linguistic design // editing, proofreading, copy-writing, translation (English / German)

Readability is an issue – not only when it comes to visual design. Editing should also increase the readability of content by correcting non-fluent wording or mistakes. Optimizing the linguistic design of texts is the wordsmith’s goal.

the wordsmith’s tools of linguistic design range from simply proofreading to (re-)writing texts. The following is an overview:
Proofreading: corrections done on word level, i.e. concerning spelling and punctuation. This is the final stage of corrections for any product including text (at least, it should be). Proofreading is done after the product has been copy-edited and designed or typeset.
Copy-editing: corrections done on sentence level, i.e. concerning grammar, lexical correctness, and consistency of vocabulary. This and the stages of editing listed below should happen before the proof stage.
Stylistic editing: corrections done on paragraph level, i.e. concerning the structure of the paragraph. If needed, sentences are moved or cut completely to ensure a coherent style and flow.
Developmental editing: corrections done on text level. This is the most substantial form of editing, as the text is examined as a whole. This can lead to whole paragraphs, or even passages, being deleted, moved, or adapted in order to achieve stylistic and linguistic integrity.
Copy-writing services are available upon request.

Due to the wordsmith’s bilingualism, any and all of these tools of linguistic design can be applied to both English and German texts. the wordsmith also offers text translation from English to German or vice versa.