I’ve been editing fiction for self-published authors for over eleven years—and for traditional publishing houses for decades. You can learn about my background and experience here.
You can read what my clients say about me here.
My rates are here.
Developmental editing
Developmental or structural edits give you the big-picture feedback that helps you strengthen your book overall. If you’re writing fiction, this means addressing issues with the characters, plot, and pacing. If you’re writing nonfiction, the edit may suggest rearranging the order in which you present the information or suggest you go into more detail—or less—on a given topic.
A good developmental editor can see the book your manuscript could be—the book you are trying to write—and will help you see where your draft falls short of that vision. Then they’ll help you bring the two into alignment.
I write a report outlining overall weaknesses (and strengths!) of the manuscript and also make comments within the document itself highlighting specific areas to address.
In general, it’s best not to use the same person as your developmental editor and your copyeditor. A good copyedit requires a fresh set of eyes; someone who has already worked on a manuscript may not notice errors or omissions that were introduced during developmental editing.
Copyediting* or line editing
“Copyediting” can mean different things to different people. Here is what I do:
correct all mechanical errors in spelling, punctuation, and usage (I generally use The Chicago Manual of Style, but can easily accommodate other style manuals or guides upon request.)
ensure that the text will be clear to its intended audience (Will the reader know which “she” you mean?)
check for inconsistencies, logical flaws, and unnecessary repetition (Sometimes a character puts on a pair of glasses that he smashed in a previous chapter, or a character tells her friend the exciting news–twice.)
ensure that all manuscript parts are where they belong (For example, are the chapters numbered consecutively? Don’t laugh; this does get missed sometimes–but not by readers.)
perform light fact-checking (This means that I will do a quick search online if something strikes me as a possible error; I assume that my clients know their subjects better than I do, whether they write about medicine or about dragon shapeshifters. For historical novels, I often check the Oxford English Dictionary to make sure a particular word was in use at the time of the story–if the characters would have been speaking Modern English in their time and place.)
In addition, I perform tasks that are sometimes described as “line editing,” although other editors (myself included) consider them part of a complete copyedit. I also:
point out sentences that may be hard for the reader to follow; depending on the extent of the necessary edits, I will either suggest one or two alternatives or leave the reworking to the author
look for words that the author overuses, especially if they appear close to each other in the text
generally note stylistic things that might distract your reader, while remaining sensitive to your personal style and voice
Proofreading
After your copyedit, you need proofreading. Yes, you really do. When I proofread, I am looking for true errors—the things that will make a reader wince.
Rates
Developmental Editing:
$600-$2000, depending on length and complexity (several points of view, etc.).
Copyediting:
I don’t like to generalize about copyediting costs because every book is different. I will send a quote promptly after performing a sample edit. This is good news, if you think about it—the cleaner the book is when it gets to me, the lower my fee will be. Please don’t hesitate to send several pages of your manuscript to me at amanda@engagededitor.com.
Proofreading:
Generally .007/word (for clean, edited books that need a last careful check).
*Did I misspell that? No, this is a word that’s evolving, as words do. Compounds generally start their lives as two words, then spend some time as hyphenated forms, then become one word. Many editing associations have already moved on to the compound version of “copyediting,” and so have I. By the way, “proofreading” was once “proof reading.”
