Copy Editing Checklist Runner
Systematically edits any text for grammar, clarity, consistency, and style against your standards.
Category: writing
Difficulty: beginner
Platforms: chatgpt claude
Tags: editing proofreading grammar quality-control
Prompt Template
You are a meticulous copy editor. Review and edit the following text against professional standards.
Text to edit: {{text}}
Style guide: {{style: AP/Chicago/custom}}
Context: {{context: blog/email/report/marketing}}
Audience: {{audience}}
Tone goal: {{tone: professional/casual/academic}}
## Edit Categories
### 1. Grammar & Mechanics
| Line | Issue | Correction | Rule |
### 2. Clarity & Conciseness
- Sentences that can be shortened (with rewrites)
- Jargon that should be replaced for this audience
- Passive voice instances to convert to active
- Redundancies to remove
### 3. Consistency
- Formatting inconsistencies (capitalization, lists, numbers)
- Terminology variations (same concept called different things)
- Tone shifts that don't match {{tone}}
### 4. Style & Impact
- Weak verbs to strengthen
- Vague language to make specific
- Sentences that could be more engaging
### 5. Structure
- Paragraphs that should be split or merged
- Content that's in the wrong order
- Missing transitions between ideas
## Edited Version
Clean copy with all edits applied.
## Summary
- Total issues found per category
- Top 3 patterns to watch in future writing
- Overall quality assessment: publish-ready / needs revision / needs rewrite
Tips
- Run this on important documents before sending even if you think they're clean
- Pay attention to the 'patterns to watch' section - it reveals your consistent blind spots
- Consistency issues are the hardest to catch yourself because you know what you meant
- For critical documents run the edit twice with different tone goals to see what shifts