Updated 12-24.
You can learn a lot about editing online, sometimes for free. Here are good examples of what's out there:
• Edit a PDF (free trial, Adobe Acrobat)
• Editing in Acrobat — Just don’t go there! Editing is not one of the things Acrobat does well. Worse yet, Adobe periodically changes the interface — as far as I can tell, specifically to annoy us all. (Geoffrey Hart, Tech Talk, An American Editor, 12-6-24)
• PDF Markup Basics for Proofreaders (Adrienne Montgomerie, SciEditor, 9-23) Marking up changes on PDF production proofs uses the Comments tools, NOT the Edit tools. Watch the video to learn to use the tools that proofreaders (and other production pros like editors) need to mark up corrections on a PDF using the free Adobe Acrobat Reader (or Pro). A great way to show the process. Browse the site for more practical tips and information.
• Mark up text with edits (Adobe Acrobat) Scroll down to "More Like This" for helpful links to Sharing PDFs and collaborating, starting or participating in a PDF review, commenting and managing comments on PDFs, and filling and signing a PDF.
• How to use Adobe Acrobat Reader XI to mark up a PDF
(Science editor Adrienne Montgomerie)
• Editing Hacks (four YouTube videos demonstrating Shane Arthur's copy editing--especially how to trim flab)
• Katharine O'Moore-Klopf of KOK Edit Blog providesw excellent links to resources on her Copyeditors’ Knowledge Base.
Editing Checklists
Time is money when you're editing, so you must have systems.
***Editing checklist (Kathy Frost's invaluable 24-page compilation of points from other editing checklists--especially good for nonfiction)
• Kimber Severance's Content Editing Checklist
• Self Editing by Lori Handeland (for fiction)
Macros for editors
Macros are simple programs that allow you, with one or two keystrokes, to automate tedious search-and-replace tasks and other mind-numbing copyediting chores. They let the computer do the boring tasks while you focus on the content. Free trials are available for most of these tools.
• Editor's Toolkit Plus--The Editorium (tips, macros, add-ins, and utilities for editors editing online using Microsoft Word). Check out Jack Lyons' Macro Cookbook for Microsoft Word.
• EditTools (www.wordsnsync.com)
• FileCleaner for Microsoft Word cleans up common problems in electronic manuscripts, including multiple spaces, multiple returns, unnecessary tabs, improperly typed ellipses, ells used as ones, and so on. It turns double hyphens into em dashes, and hyphens between numerals into en dashes. It can also remove directly applied font formatting (such as Times 12 point) while retaining styles (such as Heading 1) and character formatting (such as italic and bold), quickly cleaning up those messy documents imported from other word processors or OCR programs.
• PerfectIt (www.intelligentediting.com) (proofreading software for professionals)
• Reference Checker checks numerical (Vancouver) and name+date-style (Harvard and APA) references in Word files. Finds all name-date or numbered citations in a document and checks them against the references. When finished, it displays a list of matches and mismatches.
More advice and practical tips on editing and proofreading:
• Proofreading Tips and Tools (For Editors, Writers and Editors)
• Editing and Revising Fiction (links to many helpful articles)
(First published 1/12/13. Updated 12-5-24)