I’m an editor and writer with over a decade of experience consisting of editorial work for small presses, magazines, and indie authors. I’ve also spent several years running a national literary journal and teaching college-level English composition and poetry. As a publishing poet and former freelance journalist myself, I’m skilled in the techniques of shaping text for different audiences.
In addition, I avail myself of continuing-education opportunities in the field. I’ve completed courses in developmental editing of fiction, memoir, other nonfiction, and advanced copyediting.
Past and current projects include novels (literary and genre fiction), memoir, other nonfiction, poetry, and query letter reviews. I’m always delighted to help with other writing endeavors as well.
WHY HIRE AN EDITOR?
I pay close attention to voice, tone, and craft because the manner of delivery is as important as the story or subject matter itself. I also see your work with fresh eyes and am adept at spotting what’s been left out. This may be anything from a missing word or idea to unexplored potential in a character.
It will be my pleasure to assist you with your creative or professional writing. From memoir and novel manuscripts to queries and cover letters, no writing project is too big or too small. My services range from copyediting to assistance with in-depth restructuring.
Before we begin, I’ll be happy to discuss your goals, audience(s), and which service(s) would be most appropriate for the stage your work is at. Whatever your needs, it’s my job to help you to see your writing more objectively and prepare it for the world.
Please see what clients say about my work. I look forward to collaborating with you!
SERVICES
Evaluations
Before diving into a costlier developmental edit, it’s often a good idea to have a professional first do a close read and provide thorough written feedback on your manuscript. Keeping your goals and potential audiences in mind, in the case of fiction or memoir, I evaluate high-level items such as pacing, voice, point of view, use of dialogue, characterization, and plot or narrative arc. For other nonfiction, I consider organization, argument, evidence, voice, and tone. You’ll receive a comprehensive letter of about five or six pages that highlights strengths and weaknesses in the writing and orients you as to where revision efforts can be directed. Actual editing is not included in this phase.
Developmental Editing
In this type of editing, also commonly referred to as line editing or content editing, I’ll do an in-depth, sentence-by-sentence evaluation of major components of your manuscript. This takes the form of extensive commentary and suggested edits. Your work is your work; I do not rewrite it. For fiction, my focus includes point of view, tone, character development and believability, dialogue, pace, plot, and overall structure. Nonfiction concerns depend on the type of nonfiction, and may cover areas such as organization, argument, evidence, voice, dialogue, and pacing.
Copyediting
This level of editing addresses foundational items such as grammar, spelling, punctuation, word usage, clarity, and syntax. For fiction, I’ll also note any plot holes or inconsistencies in characterization. When copyediting manuscripts, I use the Merriam-Webster dictionary and follow the Chicago Manual of Style, the industry-standard style guide for published works. I’ll follow different style conventions for other projects as appropriate. I do not address bigger structural issues at this level; these are the province of developmental editing.
TURNAROUND TIME AND FEES
My turnaround time varies with my schedule; depending on the scope, it can be as short as a few days, or up to a month or two. Please contact me with details about your project.
I do not have a one-size-fits-all fee schedule for editing, as every author and manuscript is different. My rates for editing full-length manuscripts depend on word count, type of content, and the extent of editing involved. This said, you can generally expect to pay from $.025 to $.04 cents/word for copyediting, or a project fee for manuscript evaluations or developmental editing. Consulting on incomplete manuscripts will be billed at an hourly rate. Pricing for book proposals, query review, short stories, poetry, and other projects is on a project-fee basis.
I’ll need to see your full manuscript in order to provide a quote. Please rest assured that your work will be held in confidence.
Clients will receive a letter of agreement detailing the scope and pricing of the work. I require a minimum 50% deposit or full payment upfront in order to place you on my schedule. Depending on the project scope and timeframe, the balance will be due either upfront when the project is arranged, or in installments throughout.
