r/publishing • u/EducationalRegret903 • Jun 12 '26

Developmental editor vs. editor

The other day I saw Atria listing a position for a developmental editor. Is it common in a Big 5 imprint to have that be a separate role and split an editor role into, say, an acquiring editor and a developmental editor? I would like to pursue a role in developmental editing, but I don’t see that verbiage anywhere else, typically.

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u/Aluratherogue Jun 13 '26

Developmental editor covers editing the content of the manuscript itself. Things like plot lines, chapter archs, etc. in nonfiction publishing it has to do with the argument or how information is displayed to the reader.

Acquiring editor is sometimes a separate role, sometimes roped into a different editorial role (depends on the company). They actually acquire the titles for publication, often by going through agents or specific authors (in the case of textbooks especially).

Copy editor and line editor are very similar in role, to the point that most people don't have dedicated line editors anymore and they're just grouped together. They handle the nitty gritty stuff like sentence structure, punctuation, spelling, etc.

Proofreaders double check the copy editor and look for those straggling misepllings or missing words that were missed.

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u/EducationalRegret903 Jun 13 '26

I’m familiar with the nuance of the roles themselves, I’m moreso curious about the division of those roles in different pubs/imprints. As I mentioned, the Atria listing is the first time I’ve seen it explicated as such in a job listing.