Costly Mistakes, the Importance of Proofreading
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Costly Mistakes, the Importance of Proofreading
Proofreading your book is one of the most important steps in self
publishing. The cost of not proofreading or not proofreading properly
can be high. Unlike traditional publishing, when you self publish the
job of proofreading and editing is yours. When you send your book off
to be produced it will be published exactly as you send it, mistakes
and all. Some people look down on self published books because they
look "amateurish". One of the reasons for this is that many self
published authors publish their book with spelling and grammar errors.
Don't let yourself be one of those authors.
Before you send off your book to the publisher or book producer,
proofread, proofread, proofread! Then, when you are done, have your
friends and family do the same. You want to catch as many mistakes as
possible before you hand it over to be published. If you catch a
mistake after it has been sent off you can probably still correct it,
but at a price. How much? Here are a few examples of what some
companies charged to make corrections at the time of this article:
AuthorHouse: Before publication the cost of corrections runs $2.00 per
correction plus a $25.00 minimum fee. A new printed proof copy is
$35.00. If you need to make a correction after the book has gone into
publication the cost is $225.00.
Trafford: The cost of corrections is $55.00 per hour with a one hour
minimum. A new proof after the corrections are made is $15.00.
Lulu: For their ISBN Plus package there is a $79.95 revision fee to
correct mistakes.
In addition to adding to the price of your book, having to correct
mistakes will also cost time. Corrections can take weeks or even
months to be completed.
Proofreading Tips
Don't be the only one to proofread your work. Have friends and family
proofread it as well. They may catch things or point out problems you
never noticed.
While spell checkers and grammar checkers can be handy tools, don't
rely on them as your only means of proofreading. They do not catch
everything.
Pick up a book on proper grammar such as "Grammatically Correct" or
"The Elements of Style". You may be using improper grammar without
realizing it is incorrect.
When reading your work, sound out the words in your head or read them
out loud.
Read slowly, don't skim over words or sentences. Doing so will often
cause you to miss small errors.
After proofreading, put your work down for a day and check it again
later. Things you missed one day you might notice the next.
When possible get a printed, bound copy of your book to proofread.
There are other things besides grammar and spelling that can make your
book look amateurish. Check your margins, line spacing, font
selections and book layout to make sure everything looks good and is
easy to read.
A published book should be a source of pride, not of embarrassment.
Publishing a book that is error free is an important part of making
sure that it is one you can be proud of.
Article copyright 2005 by Kimberly Martin
All Rights Reserved