Guide
Editing works the way Word does.
Three separate things, and most confusion comes from mixing them up: whether changes are tracked, how you see them, and whether a change goes into the book.
- 1 · Track changesIs what I write recorded as a change?One switch, on or off. On, every edit is marked, named and listed. The title bar says Tracking changes whenever it is on.
- 2 · The viewHow do changes look to me?All Markup, Simple Markup or No Markup, and comments shown or hidden. Your view is kept in your browser and changes nothing for anyone else.
- 3 · Accept or rejectDoes this change go into the book?Someone who can accept changes says yes or no, one at a time or all at once. Nobody approves anything; you accept or reject, as in Word.
One sentence, three views
An editor took out a repeated word and changed a spelling, and left a comment. The author added a few words. The same sentence, as each view shows it.
She did not answer. She was counting the the rows on the lower terraces, and the sky over the weir was already greygray.
She did not answer. She was counting the rows on the lower terraces, and the sky over the weir was already gray.
She did not answer. She was counting the rows on the lower terraces, and the sky over the weir was already gray.
Comments shown: the highlighted word carries the editor's comment. Hide comments and the highlight goes.
Who can do what
| Who | Track changes | Their own edits | Accept or reject others' |
|---|---|---|---|
| The author, and a coauthor | A switch while a chapter is being drafted. After that it is locked on. | Saved at once. With tracking on they stay marked and named until accepted, so others can see what moved. | Yes. A coauthor can be given this for part of the book only, down to one scene. |
| Editors | Always on, no switch. They suggest. | Made in their own draft during a pass, and sent back as changes for you to accept. | No. |
| Beta and ARC readers | No switch. | None to the text. They read and comment. | No. |
Working alone, you never need any of this. A new chapter or vault note starts untracked, and the switch only matters once someone else is editing with you or the book reaches its editing phases.
What can happen to a change
- AcceptedIt is in the book. The editor sees that it was.
- RejectedYour words stay as they were. Nothing is deleted from the history.
- SupersededYou rewrote the sentence after the editor started, so the words the change was about are gone. It is not a rejection, and the editor sees it as superseded, never as rejected. These sit in their own short list, and you can bring one back.
- Written at onceTwo people changed the same paragraph at the same time. You see both, side by side, and keep yours, theirs or both.
Which view, when
| View | What you see | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| All Markup | Added words underlined, removed words | Going through an edit change by change. |
| Simple Markup | Clean text, with a quiet line beside any paragraph holding a change. | Reading for flow while knowing where the edits are. |
| No Markup | The text as it would read with every waiting change in. | Reading the result. Easier for many people, including anyone for whom markup is hard to read. |
Nothing is lost either way. Every edit is kept in the book's history whether tracking is on or off. Turning tracking off decides what waits for a yes, never what is kept: a stretch written untracked is recorded as one entry.