Basic Editing vs. Close Content Editing
What's the difference?

What’s the difference between Basic Editing and Close Content Editing?

If you choose BASIC EDITING, your document will be corrected for spelling, punctuation, formatting, typographical and basic grammatical errors.  We will also suggest modest revisions to improve its clarity, diction and style.  This is generally enough for relatively short documents, such as Essays and Reports.

By contrast, if you choose CLOSE CONTENT EDITING, in addition to all of the above, you will receive extensive, line-by-line notes with detailed guidance regarding the structure, consistency and coherence of the document as a whole.  Clients working on longer documents, such as Theses or Dissertations, collections (e.g., of stories, essays, poems or articles) or any manuscript in chapters will find Close Content Editing most beneficial.

To illustrate the difference between the two services, consider the following excerpt from a Strategic Development Plan for a local community safety network.

Original:

The Network has a commitment to addressing the deep rooted causes of societal problems which lie at the heart of addressing community safety in a holistic manner.

The Network’s role is in keeping with the recommendations of the Masterplan in its commitment to address community safety. Moreover, the multi-partner approach to delivery means that the Network is directly contributing towards an integrated approach to neighbourhood renewal.

Funding

There is potential in engaging with a range of funders, to include:

  • Private Sector
  • the Partnership and DSD to explore the viability of the Network accessing Neighbourhood Renewal Funding as part of the Neighbourhood Renewal Action Plan.
  • Belfast City Council
  • Peace III
  • OFMDFM

The Network cannot be self-sustaining.  However, funding the Network will lead to reduced costs to other public services through the redirection of resources, and by eliminating duplication and increasing collaboration, integration and efficiency.  A properly resourced Network also will generate income indirectly, by attracting investment (and expenditure) to the area, which will be made safe, and be shown to be safe, through its efforts.

Proper resourcing also would enable the Network to develop its role as a local research body, identifying local need and working in partnership with statutory bodies to:

  • develop and deliver operational initiatives;
  • contribute to the development of protocols and policy locally;
  • reassure the community when specific concerns arise, and challenge public perceptions about the level of crime and anti-social behaviour in the area. This has already been achieved by the Network through its enabling of a joined up approach between police and the community to address the concerns of local parents following reports of attempted child abductions in the area.
  • and provide a conduit through which to identify and address area/city-wide issues, and to contribute to national  and cross-border conversations.

Basic Edited copy, with corrections marked:

The Network has a commitment to addressing the deep rooted causes of societal problems which lie at the heart of addressing community safety in a holistic manner. The Network is committed to addressing the deep-rooted causes of societal problems which lie at the heart of the most challenging community safety issues.

The Network’s role is in keeping with the recommendations of the Masterplan in its commitment to address community safety. The Network’s role in improving   community safety is in keeping with the recommendations of the Masterplan. Moreover, the multi-partner approach to delivery means that the Network is directly contributing directly towards an integrated approach to neighbourhood renewal.

Funding:

There is potential in engaging with a range of funders, to include:

  • the Private Sector
  • the local Partnership and the DSD to explore the viability of the Network accessing Neighbourhood Renewal Funding as part of the Neighbourhood Renewal Action Plan.
  • Belfast City Council
  • Peace III
  • OFMDFM

The While the Network cannot will never be self-sustaining.  However, funding the Network will lead to reduced costs to other public services through the redirection of resources, and by eliminating duplication and increasing collaboration, integration and efficiency.  A properly resourced Network also will generate income indirectly, by attracting investment (and expenditure) into the area, which will be made safe, and be shown to be safe, through its efforts.

Proper resourcing also would enable the Network to develop its role as a local research body, identifying local need and working in partnership with statutory bodies to:

  • develop and deliver operational initiatives;
  • contribute to the development of protocols and policy locally;
  • reassure the community when specific concerns arise, and challenge public perceptions about the level of crime and anti-social behaviour in the area. This has already been achieved by the Network through its enabling of a joined up approach between police and the community to address the concerns of local parents following reports of attempted child abductions in the area. (to address widespread concern following reports of an attempted child abduction in the area, for example, Network members organised and facilitated a series of meetings between the local parents and the PSNI which enabled the police to inform and reassure the community as the investigation progressed);
  • and provide a conduit through which to identify and address area/city-wide issues, and to contribute to national  and cross-border conversations.

While the revisions above do improve the document, problems remain with the organisation of material in this excerpt, and with the structure of the document overall.  These are addressed by the comments in the Close Content Edited copy below:

Basic Editing vs. Close Content Editing