1. What are your rates?
See here. If you have a more complicated project, email me here for a quote.
2. How do I schedule an editing project?
After many years of late and missed projects, I’ve adopted a two-prong approach. I know how hard it is for scholars to predict their deadlines accurately (not to mention life circumstances!), so this approach allows you to choose between two options:
- Free and easy option: If you struggle with deadlines, contact me when your project is complete. I will edit in the order received, assuming I have an opening in my calendar. For example, if I have an editing spot open when you contact me, it will take two weeks to complete the edit (for shorter projects). No booking fee required.
- Certainty option: If you want to secure an editing slot in the future, email me for my availability. If I have a slot that works, you’ll pay a non-refundable booking fee to secure it.
- For projects less than $900, the booking fee is $100.
- For projects of $900 or more, the booking fee is $400.
3. What are the logistics of booking fees?
- The booking fee will be deducted from the final invoice issued when the editing work is complete.
- The booking is considered confirmed once you’ve paid the booking fee and I have received it or an invoice has been submitted to the university paying the fee.
- If you’re self-paying: The booking fee should be paid within 3 days of sending the booking confirmation to secure the slot in my schedule.
- If you’re paying through the university: I wish we could bill the university, but this process is too slow. You’ll just need to pay me the booking fee directly to hold your spot. Then, once we submit the invoice to the university, we’ll deduct the booking fee from the total so you’re not out of pocket. Many editors charge the full fee or 50% up front. I realize many of you do not have personal funds for editing projects, so the lower $100 booking fee takes this into account.
4. How do I pay the booking fee and completed invoice?
Electronically—contact me for details about accepted forms of payment. If you’re invoicing the university, and I’m not already a vendor at your university, I charge a flat $50 to become a vendor. Just ask me—I’m a vendor with many universities already.
5. What if I cannot meet my deadline and I’ve paid a booking fee?
Under absolutely extraordinary circumstances (such as a death or natural disaster), we can renegotiate the timeline, assuming I have space in my calendar. I’ll do my best, but please consider what extraordinary circumstances actually means before contacting me.
6. What if I need to cancel the project after you’ve started work?
I’ve already started work on this and allocated a slot in my calendar. This means you’ll pay the full amount.
7. What happens if you (the editor) must cancel a project?
If I must cancel (e.g., family crisis, illness, bereavement), I will email you to see if we can reconfigure the time frame or find an alternative. The booking fee will be refunded, of course.
8. How long will it take to finish an editing project?
For each editing pass, projects up to 10,000 words usually take two weeks. Larger projects usually take around four weeks.
9. What is an editing “pass”?
Each time an editor reviews a full manuscript, it’s called a “pass.” It’s similar to your own revision process: first, you review for structural and organizational issues, and then you review it for more granular issues as you continue. See also the next question about combined edits.
10. What does a “combined developmental and stylistic edit” mean in terms of timeline?
See the question about editing “passes” above. This combined edit involves two passes. The first is the developmental edit, and the second is the stylistic edit.
- You send me the manuscript for the combined edit.
- It takes me two weeks to complete the developmental edit.
- You take a few weeks (we’ll negotiate the timeline) to revise the manuscript based on my comments and suggestions.
- You resubmit the manuscript to me.
- It takes two weeks for me to complete the stylistic edit.
- You complete the final manuscript at your leisure!
11. When I send you the manuscript, should I send you anything else?
Yes, please! I love all the context and guidance you can provide. I have a brief author questionnaire here to help guide you.
12. Do you schedule phone calls to discuss manuscripts?
As a general rule, no. I’m a full-time nomad, so the internet and scheduling time zones make this challenging. If we’re working on a much larger project, we may occasionally schedule a brief call to check-in. If you crave a human voice, I’m always happy to send you an audio message of my comments—just ask!
13. What about confidentiality?
The work will be kept confidential and not made known to anyone other than you without prior written permission. If we use a cloud service to exchange files, we will agree on a date after which the files will be deleted. I will retain copies of the work on my computer, but these will not be shared. If you prefer that I delete them entirely after the conclusion of the project, please let me know.