Copyediting Service
Copyediting Service
Preparing to publish your manuscript? While a thorough proofreading is crucial for authors hoping to produce a professional product, copyediting services provide an even greater level of polish, ensuring your final draft is not only error-free but also well-written, accurate, and easily understood.
As your copyeditor, I'll dive beyond surface-level errors, deep into the language of your manuscript. I'll evaluate tone, style, voice, word use, and sentence structure to enhance narrative quality and flow. I'll also provide light fact-checking and ensure consistency by carefully noting details, such as timeline progression, character specifics, dates, and settings.
You've worked hard to finish your manuscript. Why not make it everything it could be? Let's work together to make sure your final product delivers the seamless and captivating experience your readers deserve.
What to Expect from a Professional Copyediting Service
• Before the red pen ever hits the page, I'll read every word of your manuscript and take careful notes to ensure consistency of voice, tone, and detail throughout. This is not common outside of a development-level service, but I believe that a thorough read-through helps me to catch and eliminate inconsistencies that page-by-page editors often miss. It also gives me the opportunity to evaluate whether or not your manuscript is ready for copyediting services or would benefit from more substantial revision first. (See Rules and Regulations.)
• I'll then perform a chapter-by-chapter edit using both Microsoft's "review" function and "track changes." The draft you receive will feature my comments on a sidebar and note any changes made to the text. You are free to reject changes you don't agree with, which will restore the original text.
• I'll ensure your draft is free of spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors and demonstrates a consistent style throughout. Chicago style (CMOS) is traditionally used for fiction, but I'm happy to use the stylebook of your choice. You'll also be given the opportunity to create a custom style sheet for your work to outline any preferences that may fall outside of a specific style (e.g., non-traditional spellings, specific rule exceptions, non-standard language).
• I'll edit for sentence clarity, conciseness, and appropriate word choice, rewriting when practical or suggesting necessary changes. All changes will be flagged for your consideration.
• I'll ensure a consistent narrative voice throughout the manuscript, noting any issues I find.
• I'll carefully monitor your story's timeline and flag any inconsistencies so your readers always know where and when the action is taking place.
• I'll provide light fact-checking for general fiction. (The level of fact-checking required for historical fiction and other research-heavy genres may fall outside of this scope.)
What You Should Not Expect from a Copyediting Service
• A copyediting service is intended to enhance and finalize the language of your manuscript. It's not intended to improve the story itself. Story issues, which are typically addressed during the developmental editing phase, often require significant revision. Since changes to the language would negate copyediting, these issues should be addressed long before your manuscript hits the copyeditor's desk. If you're in need of a developmental editor, I'm happy to help. I offer a discounted developmental editing package, which includes a comprehensive developmental review and a chapter-by-chapter line edit. Not sure what service you need? Consider commissioning a manuscript review.
• A copyediting service does not include any kind of formal assessment of your story on a whole.
• Regrettably, I am not an author/editor and a lawyer, and I cannot provide any legal answers or advice regarding copyrighted material or anything else.
Rates and Conditions
$0.02 Per Word
• A 25 percent deposit is due at the time of submission. The remaining balance is due upon completion of the project.
• I’m not in the business of taking advantage of my fellow writers, and I don’t want to charge you for a service that won’t help you succeed. If, after completing my read-through, I determine your manuscript needs further revision before copyediting, I'll reach out to discuss the matter with you. If you choose to pursue a developmental service with me, I'll apply your deposit toward that. If not, I'll return your deposit minus a $150 reading fee. (This fee not only compensates me for my time but also protects me from those who would take advantage of my policy as a means of informal review.) Of course, if you're happy to proceed with the copyediting service, I'm happy to oblige.
• Turnaround time will depend on the length of your submission and my current editing queue, but three to four weeks is a solid estimate for a novel-length manuscript.
• Interested clients should submit an inquiry below. I will reach out soon after. If you have questions or would prefer to chat before submitting a formal inquiry, please feel free to contact me.
• All manuscripts must be submitted electronically as a Word document (.doc or .docx) via the provided submission form, which will be sent to you via email.
• All story submissions must adhere to professional manuscript formatting standards (Arial, Courier, or Times font; size 12 text; double-spacing throughout with one-inch margins). Please name your file in the following manner: Last Name-Your Story Title
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