Manuscript Evaluation | 1.5 cents/word

Sometimes authors aren't sure what level of editing is right for them, or they want a more affordable option for receiving basic feedback on the strength of their manuscript at both the story and language levels. With a Manuscript Evaluation, we read the entire manuscript and provide an editorial feedback letter that lays out our impressions of your book in broad strokes. At the author's request, we include a recommendation for further editing, a sample edit, and a quote for our proposed services. If the author proceeds with a Developmental Edit after a Manuscript Evaluation, we deduct 1.5 cents/word from the cost of the Dev Edit.

Developmental Editing | starts at 3 cents/word

This is where most authors start. A developmental edit is a deep, comprehensive evaluation of your book's storytelling elements, such as POV, narrative structure, scene versus summary, dialogue, plot, and much more. You'll get a marked-up manuscript with our comments, suggestions, and example revisions, as well as a detailed editorial letter explaining our feedback. You’ll also get a book map, which is a scene-by-scene breakdown of your book that helps diagnose pacing issues, find turning points, and trace cause and effect. Both Chris and Susannah work on your developmental edit, so you get two editors’ feedback.

Line Editing | starts at 2.5 cents/word

In a line edit, we make changes to address wordiness, unintentional shifts in tone and diction, word choice, transitions, and other issues at the language level. Line editing elevates the level of your prose by enhancing flow, ensuring consistent voice, and fine-tuning rhythm and pacing.

Developmental + Line Editing | starts at 5 cents/word

Sometimes called substantive editing, our developmental + line edit takes place in two stages. We first edit your manuscript for its storytelling elements (through manuscript markup, an editorial letter, and a book map), and then move on to refining and tightening the language. This comprehensive edit is especially popular among debut authors.

Standard Copyediting | starts at 2.5 cents/word

A copyedit is a close read of your work to address grammar, punctuation, spelling, inconsistencies, fact-checking, and adherence to the Chicago Manual of Style. Unlike with line editing, at the copyediting stage, we do not fix or improve your style, but simply ensure your language is polished and consistent. We also create a style sheet.

Heavy Copyediting | starts at 4.0 cents/word

A heavy copyedit is a line edit + a standard copyedit. This is a great choice for self-publishing authors.

Proofreading | starts at 1.5 cents/word

Although it may be tempting, we recommend never publishing your book without a proofread. This stage is a final once-over to eliminate last-minute errors. When possible, we compare the copyeditor's work to the laid-out files, providing quality assurance on the copyedit. We also point out problems with formatting such as missing page numbers, incorrect fonts, and so forth.

Copyediting + Proofreading | starts at 3.5 cents/word

When you hire us to both copyedit and proofread your book, we use a different proofreader than copyeditor so you get two pairs of eyes on your work.  

Pro Package | starts at 7.5 cents/word

The Pro Package includes all of the above (except the Manuscript Evaluation). When you choose this package, your manuscript undergoes the same editorial process used by traditional publishers to get a book ready for publication: a developmental edit, often in two rounds; a round of line editing; a round of copyediting; and, once the book is formatted, a proofread. Includes plenty of opportunity for back-and-forth between author and editors.

Query Letter Review | starts at $150

For authors who will be querying agents, Susannah will review and edit your query letter for books she’s worked on in a developmental, line, or copyedit.