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There's proofing and there's editing, and they're two different animals.
Editing is the big picture, mostly structural. Are there too many characters, too many subplots, is the pace all over the map, does the author know how to leave the reader wanting more, etc, etc. This sort of editing is what 99% of writers skip over or ignore.
Proofing is checking for typos and inconsistencies. Does someone's eye colour change from one chapter to the next, are place names spelt the same, etc. (I use British spelling & language and I've seen one review accusing me of 'errors' where it's really just a different convention.)
Editing can make a poor or average book into a good one. Proofing just polishes the thing.
I'm sure most of you know this anyway, but structural editing is the key to finding and keeping readers.
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