The purpose of this level of editing is to prepare an already well structured manuscript for publication. A mechanical edit may address any of the following as needed:

Correct errors in spelling such as:

  • Correct words that can be found easily in a dictionary or credible on-line resource.
  • Correct errors involving words that have similar spelling or sound such as:
    » “manager” and “manger”
    » “there,” “their,” and “they’re
    » “affect” and “effect”
    » “two,” too,” and “two”
    » “it’s” and “its”
    » “insure,” “ensure,” and “assure”
  • Correct errors in possessives involving names, as well as both singular and plural possessives.
  • May query inconsistencies in specialty terms that not commonly known by the public and are difficult to verify.
  • May query inconsistencies in names and places that are fictional or not well-known.

Correct errors in punctuation including:

  • Ellipses.
  • Different types of dashes including en dashes and em dashes.
  • Hyphenations.
  • Commas.
  • Colons.
  • Semicolon.
  • Quotation marks.
  • Apostrophes.
  • Various punctuation marks within sentences and at the end of sentences.
  • Sentence fragments.
  • Run-on sentences.

Correct errors in grammar including:

  • Subject/verb agreement.
  • Mixture of tenses.
  • Issues involving plural and singular.
  • Treatment of possessives.
  • Basic syntax (the way in which words are put together to form phrases or sentences).

Correct errors in capitalization

  • Ensuring that proper capitalization rules are applied in different situations such as:
    » Titles of persons.
    » Titles of various types of works.
    » Specific terms including those referring to directions, seasons, and languages.

Identify some basic language usage issues such as:

  • Words that are used incorrectly as in:
    » “Incontinence” when “incompetence” was intended
  • Incorrect attempted use of a noun as a verb as in:
    » “Impact”
    » “Strategy” and “strategize”

Suggest changes in word choice in cases when:

  • A word is overused.
  • A different word choice may more clearly convey the meaning.
  • Some readers may find a particular word offensive.