Get Editing Help

If you have skipped through the main pages of this website, you may have noticed that they are all now in an expanded format that matches the blog page's layout. In the process, I rewrote the copy for Editing Services and, to a lesser degree, Writing Services. Some may complain that the description of editing help offered is more vague than before, and that the prices have disappeared. That's because each client has individual needs, and a category of help does not fit all cases. For example, editing actually varies on a continuum from tinkering with a few words here and there through rewriting wide swaths or all of a work to full- on researching and writing the whole shebang for someone else to claim as their own (ghostwriting).

Individuals have differing ideas of what "editing" should cover. That's why I no longer offer fixed prices or a set service, but list examples. Some people want more and some want less. I'm currently working with a new author, readying a nonfiction book manuscript to send to the publisher. What I'm doing is more than proofreading, but less than what the client considers editing. An editor at the publisher will handle copy editing anyway.

The best way to get an estimate of the cost for editorial help of any kind is to provide an editor with a portion of your copy or manuscript and an idea of the work you want done. Sometimes the editor spots difficulties with the writing that the writer missed. A good editor will suggest how she can improve the work on the basis of a sample submitted. She won't "steal" your idea or your words (a common worry for beginners). Some jobs are more reasonably paid by the word, and some by the hour. It all depends on the type and amount of work performed.