Copyediting. Why not in-house?

[Heather Morrison <heatherm@eln.bc.ca>]

One of the services offered by publishers is copyediting. 
Correct grammar, spelling, etc., is important; but, wouldn't it 
make more sense to do this in-house?

The rates for freelance copyeditors range from about $5 per page 
for light copyediting (one freelancer I found on the web this 
morning quotes $2 - $5 per page).

Picture a highly proficient secretary or editor copyediting a 
manuscript that has been written carefully and gone through a 
grammar / spellcheck.  Copyediting a page shouldn't take very 
long, should it?

There are good reasons why peer review should be blind or double- 
blind.  Not so copyediting.  Having a copyeditor work directly 
with the author is much more efficient than working indirectly 
through a journal editor.

A copyeditor who gets to know the author and their research will 
have more understanding of the topic matter, be less likely to 
make technical errors, and will be more respectful of the 
author's stylistic preferences.

In addition to hiring freelancers, other options are creating 
jobs for students with subject expertise and good language 
skills, or secretaries.  Perhaps the same staff could take 
responsibility for depositing the author's final manuscript in 
the appropriate open access archive(s)?  The skills and 
experience such staff would develop would lend themselves well to 
providing additional help to the researcher, such as helping with 
the paperwork involved in grant applications, thus freeing up the 
researcher's time, for research.

If copyediting is done in-house, it makes sense to me that 
publishers who charge for this service, should provide a 
discount.

Copyediting does not always cost, of course.  There are people 
who enjoy copyediting, and provide this service on a volunteer 
basis.

Any opinion expressed in this e-mail is that of the author alone, 
and does not represent the opinion or policy of BC Electronic 
Library Network or Simon Fraser University Library.

Heather Morrison, MLIS
The Imaginary Journal of Poetic Economics
http://poeticeconomics.blogspot.com