FAQ – Editing

 

What is the editing process? How (and when) do I pay?

When you contact us with your manuscript, we will confirm the price for the manuscript, and give you an idea of the timeline. If you are happy to go ahead, we will send you an invoice for 50% of the editing fee for your book. This must be paid before any editing will commence.

(Note – if the date for editing is more than two weeks in the future, we may just ask for a $25 non-refundable book fee at the time of booking, and send the invoice for the 50% a week before your job is due to commence. The booking fee will come out of the final price for the book – it is not an extra charge.)

Once your payment is received, we will confirm the estimated start date and end date for work on your manuscript. If there is any change in the scheduled dates, we will be in contact with you as soon as possible.

The editor assigned to your book will get in contact with you shortly after you have made your payment with any questions he or she has for you about your manuscript and personal writing style.

Once the edit or proofread is complete, the editor will send your manuscript back to you with their changes marked via Track Changes, and any additional notes as comments in the margin. They may also send additional notes or observations in a separate document. You will also receive a style sheet, which is a list of names, places, and conventions the editor has used in your manuscript to ensure consistency. An invoice for the remainder of the editing fee will be sent at the same time.

You are free to go through the suggested changes in the document and accept, modify or ignore the changes as you see fit. The work is then over, but our editor is always happy to answer any questions you have or clarify anything you might be unsure about.

 

What if I don’t agree with some of the editors suggestions?

Because the changes in the manuscript are marked with track changes, you are free to accept or reject the editor’s suggestions as you prefer. They are just that – suggestions. If you are unsure about any of the changes, the editor will be happy to discuss it with you.

 

Can I book editing jobs in advance?

Yes! We are more than happy to book editing jobs in advance. You will need to pay a $25 non-refundable booking fee. Your job will not added to the schedule until we have received your booking fee. (The booking fee will come out of the final price for the book – it is not an extra charge). We will need to know a rough word count of the book, so we can estimate the time required to do the editing.

 

Do you edit …?

We are happy to edit almost every type of book, of any genre – kids books, young-adult, romance, erotica, science fiction/fantasy, etc. We are also happy to edit non-fiction books, although if the book is technical in nature we wouldn’t be able to check the accuracy of the information you are providing.

 

Will my manuscript be error-free after editing?

It is impossible to guarantee a book will be error free – even traditionally published books, with multiple rounds of editing by different people, still have errors in them when they are published. However we can guarantee that the number of errors left in your book, if any, will be minimal.

 

Do I need Microsoft Word if I use your editing service?

Having Microsoft Word makes it a little easier, but most word processors (eg: Pages, OpenOffice, LibraOffice, GoogleWrite) support importing Word files, so you will be able to see the changes you have received from the editor.

 

What are the editors’ qualifications?

You can find out more about our individual editors over here, but the short version is all our editors have years of experience with editing, are very familiar with the intricacies of The Chicago Manual of Style, and have been tested to make sure they know what they are doing! If you are still unsure, you can always ask for a sample edit before you go ahead, to judge the quality of the work for yourself.