Editing . . . The MOST important stage of any publication
Having your work edited to a professional standard is crucial. Why is it absolutely critical that all authors, and particularly new (indie) authors understand that this is the most important stage to get right in the publishing process? Because it is the biggest indicator to your audience of professionalism, or indeed a lack of it. If a book has been poorly edited it impacts upon everything else.
We can help you get over this potential hurdle. You probably can't do it all yourself, very few people can. To expect to be able to succeed in the modern day with anything that doesn't meet a professional standard is totally unrealistic because the competition is so great from those who have made sure they've gone through this process properly. If everything is done to a high standard your book will at least have the platform to launch successfully. It might take a long time, successful works of fiction are often slow burners in their infant days, but you should measure the success of any publication over a period of time and treat the initial outlay on services as a long term investment. Good professional editing does cost, and you won't make your money back with a few sales, but your book, if it is good, can and should be around for years to come. Getting all the parts of the process right at the time of publication can make all the difference to the success of a book.
Making sure your manuscript goes through a thorough editorial process is a long term investment.
I'm going to hold my hands up here right away before I even get started telling you how my team and I can help with editing your final manuscript, and if this is the longest and most wordy page on the site, I make no apology; you need to take it all on board.
You see, I made the same mistakes at this stage that a huge number of other indie authors have made . . . and are still making! I rushed things with my first book and didn't get things done properly. It wasn't just that I couldn't afford a professional editor, more it was that I didn't understand the importance of the process. What I should have done was assess my priorities. What many writers need to understand is that there is a huge variance of editorial services being offered and you really should consider what you really need and when you need it.
There are basically two types, or levels of editing: a Copy edit whereby all spellings, punctuation and grammar will be checked, and then a fuller Content edit whereby all aspects of the writing are given consideration. Aswell as this there is Proof reading. Proof reading should really be done at the end of the process and is traditionally often done by a friend or family member ... great – but not always! You need to be selective. Bearing all this in mind there are a few options you might like to consider before parting with any cash:
• You can pay for a professional editor, and if you do so you should be able to completely trust the results you get back, but only if there is more than one person thoroughly going through your manuscript – this will always be costly. If you can afford this option then go for it, but be absolutely sure you know what you are getting as most independent editors won't show your work to anyone else during the editing process unless they have made it clear from the outset that it is part of the deal!
Copy and content editors will vary but generally can offer anything from a straightforward proofread, through to a complete line by line copy and content edit. They will also offer highly qualified and extensive advice on all aspects of your writing including plot imbalances, character development and fresh ideas for improvement. However, be warned, even a short manuscript, (20,000 words or less), can be expensive and beyond the initial budget planned by many first-time authors. Equally, be wary of paying for extra 'rounds' of editing that you are going to need but haven't been quoted for in the original price.
• You can choose to have just a copy edit; your manuscript will be grammatically corrected to either English or American/English. To some extent you can choose to adhere to a particular version. This is important for some works.
• You can choose to have a complete copy and content edit (recommended); This would mean that every aspect of your short story, your novel, your poetry collection, your biography of your Great aunt's estranged husband . . . whatever it is you are seeking to publish, will be scrutinised, and solid advice given and suggestions made for improvements.
• You can specifically request that more than one authority look at your work (or you can pay more than one provider/editor to do so). This way, you get more than one pair of critical eyes looking through your manuscript always with a positive attitude taken towards any suggestions they make.
ALL the final decisions MUST be yours as the Author, but I believe you should give yourself the best opportunity to make this a worthwhile, cost effective and above all, non-regrettable part of the process.
But here's the problem . . .
. . . you NEED as many pairs of eyes, as many separate views of your manuscript, as many rounds of editing as you can possibly get whilst keeping everything within budget, and even paying out for just ONE professional editorial service is going to cost quite a bit.
We can help You . . .
We've identified that the most important part of the process, whether you submit your work to us or anyone else, is to do it at the right time, and that is when you have completed your manuscript and feel it's ninety-eight percent ready . . . it probably won't be . . . but that's where we can help. Of course we are happy to get involved at any stage and will gladly edit a free sample for you even if you're not ready with a full manuscript just yet. Just send a sample up to 1500 words and we'll give it a full line and copy edit. But, when you feel it's ready, and you have checked your work until you're blue in the face, you're sick of looking at the darn thing and certainly blind from seeing any more errors – that's when we can help.
Whether it's just a quick line and copy, or a full content edit that you've requested we will make sure your work will receive the best possible attention.
We can help you get over this potential hurdle. You probably can't do it all yourself, very few people can. To expect to be able to succeed in the modern day with anything that doesn't meet a professional standard is totally unrealistic because the competition is so great from those who have made sure they've gone through this process properly. If everything is done to a high standard your book will at least have the platform to launch successfully. It might take a long time, successful works of fiction are often slow burners in their infant days, but you should measure the success of any publication over a period of time and treat the initial outlay on services as a long term investment. Good professional editing does cost, and you won't make your money back with a few sales, but your book, if it is good, can and should be around for years to come. Getting all the parts of the process right at the time of publication can make all the difference to the success of a book.
Making sure your manuscript goes through a thorough editorial process is a long term investment.
I'm going to hold my hands up here right away before I even get started telling you how my team and I can help with editing your final manuscript, and if this is the longest and most wordy page on the site, I make no apology; you need to take it all on board.
You see, I made the same mistakes at this stage that a huge number of other indie authors have made . . . and are still making! I rushed things with my first book and didn't get things done properly. It wasn't just that I couldn't afford a professional editor, more it was that I didn't understand the importance of the process. What I should have done was assess my priorities. What many writers need to understand is that there is a huge variance of editorial services being offered and you really should consider what you really need and when you need it.
There are basically two types, or levels of editing: a Copy edit whereby all spellings, punctuation and grammar will be checked, and then a fuller Content edit whereby all aspects of the writing are given consideration. Aswell as this there is Proof reading. Proof reading should really be done at the end of the process and is traditionally often done by a friend or family member ... great – but not always! You need to be selective. Bearing all this in mind there are a few options you might like to consider before parting with any cash:
• You can pay for a professional editor, and if you do so you should be able to completely trust the results you get back, but only if there is more than one person thoroughly going through your manuscript – this will always be costly. If you can afford this option then go for it, but be absolutely sure you know what you are getting as most independent editors won't show your work to anyone else during the editing process unless they have made it clear from the outset that it is part of the deal!
Copy and content editors will vary but generally can offer anything from a straightforward proofread, through to a complete line by line copy and content edit. They will also offer highly qualified and extensive advice on all aspects of your writing including plot imbalances, character development and fresh ideas for improvement. However, be warned, even a short manuscript, (20,000 words or less), can be expensive and beyond the initial budget planned by many first-time authors. Equally, be wary of paying for extra 'rounds' of editing that you are going to need but haven't been quoted for in the original price.
• You can choose to have just a copy edit; your manuscript will be grammatically corrected to either English or American/English. To some extent you can choose to adhere to a particular version. This is important for some works.
• You can choose to have a complete copy and content edit (recommended); This would mean that every aspect of your short story, your novel, your poetry collection, your biography of your Great aunt's estranged husband . . . whatever it is you are seeking to publish, will be scrutinised, and solid advice given and suggestions made for improvements.
• You can specifically request that more than one authority look at your work (or you can pay more than one provider/editor to do so). This way, you get more than one pair of critical eyes looking through your manuscript always with a positive attitude taken towards any suggestions they make.
ALL the final decisions MUST be yours as the Author, but I believe you should give yourself the best opportunity to make this a worthwhile, cost effective and above all, non-regrettable part of the process.
But here's the problem . . .
. . . you NEED as many pairs of eyes, as many separate views of your manuscript, as many rounds of editing as you can possibly get whilst keeping everything within budget, and even paying out for just ONE professional editorial service is going to cost quite a bit.
We can help You . . .
We've identified that the most important part of the process, whether you submit your work to us or anyone else, is to do it at the right time, and that is when you have completed your manuscript and feel it's ninety-eight percent ready . . . it probably won't be . . . but that's where we can help. Of course we are happy to get involved at any stage and will gladly edit a free sample for you even if you're not ready with a full manuscript just yet. Just send a sample up to 1500 words and we'll give it a full line and copy edit. But, when you feel it's ready, and you have checked your work until you're blue in the face, you're sick of looking at the darn thing and certainly blind from seeing any more errors – that's when we can help.
Whether it's just a quick line and copy, or a full content edit that you've requested we will make sure your work will receive the best possible attention.
EDITORIAL OPTIONS
We have packaged the important parts of the process together into two options. With what we offer here you don't have to worry about additional costs. Pick what you require from the lists below, and if you want a slightly adjusted service we'd be only too happy to discuss it with you.
1. STANDARD LINE AND COPY EDITORIAL SERVICE
You have completed your manuscript and are completely happy with the content, (you've probably already had it read by someone else and may have made some necessary alterations to the text already). You now want a second and third pair of eyes to go through it with a tooth comb line by line making sure it all makes sense, and is grammatically correct and ready to begin the publication process.
• Your manuscript will be subjected to a thorough line and copy edit and proof read by at least two members of our team.
• Copy will be checked for 'good flow' assuring that all spellings, grammar, sentences and paragraphs are well
constructed.
• Copies of your manuscript are returned (digital files) with suggested changes clearly marked concerning grammar, punctuation and spelling. Also provided will be a short overall appraisal with options and suggestions for the next step.
• The turnaround time is a minimum of two weeks (short story or novella), and six to eight weeks for a full length novel.
(These times are subject to current workload and are to some extent negotiable).
£10 per 1,000 words
2. FULL COPY AND CONTENT EDITORIAL SERVICE
Your completed manuscript is given a standard editorial line edit as described above but you also require the entire copy to be reviewed.
Suggestions regarding correctness of the use of language and flow of the text will be made for your consideration to accept or disregard accordingly.
We'll also give thorough consideration to the content, and suggest any development or changes that could be made to the themes or ideas. This will include style, tone, word choice, and sentence structure.
We will then have a hard look at elements such as plot, dialogue, and characterisation, structure, strength of argument, and clarity.
• Your manuscript will be looked at by at least three members of our team.
• It will receive a thorough line and copy edit throughout.
• You will be given a detailed report/review (MS Word and PDF) regarding the basic content of your manuscript and our
editorial perspective as to what should or could be given strong consideration for improvement.
• Copies of your manuscript are returned (digital files) as required with highlighted suggested amendments and comments
concerning not only grammar, punctuation and spelling, but all other aspects of your work.
• A second round of proof reading and a further written appraisal/recommendations when initial alterations have been
made by you, if and as required. (This must be within 90 days of returned submission.)
• The turn around time is a minimum of four weeks (short story or novella), for longer works talk to us to agree a time schedule.
£300 for first 20,000 words, then £12 per 1,000 words
3. STANDARD PROOF READ
If you have already got your work into shape and you just need a final proof read, we offer that with suggested corrections to copy at a flat rate of:
£6.00 per 1000 words
We are more than happy to discuss custom terms, if you would like to know more please get in touch:
Contact us by email at verbumpublications@gmail.com to begin the process.
1. STANDARD LINE AND COPY EDITORIAL SERVICE
You have completed your manuscript and are completely happy with the content, (you've probably already had it read by someone else and may have made some necessary alterations to the text already). You now want a second and third pair of eyes to go through it with a tooth comb line by line making sure it all makes sense, and is grammatically correct and ready to begin the publication process.
• Your manuscript will be subjected to a thorough line and copy edit and proof read by at least two members of our team.
• Copy will be checked for 'good flow' assuring that all spellings, grammar, sentences and paragraphs are well
constructed.
• Copies of your manuscript are returned (digital files) with suggested changes clearly marked concerning grammar, punctuation and spelling. Also provided will be a short overall appraisal with options and suggestions for the next step.
• The turnaround time is a minimum of two weeks (short story or novella), and six to eight weeks for a full length novel.
(These times are subject to current workload and are to some extent negotiable).
£10 per 1,000 words
2. FULL COPY AND CONTENT EDITORIAL SERVICE
Your completed manuscript is given a standard editorial line edit as described above but you also require the entire copy to be reviewed.
Suggestions regarding correctness of the use of language and flow of the text will be made for your consideration to accept or disregard accordingly.
We'll also give thorough consideration to the content, and suggest any development or changes that could be made to the themes or ideas. This will include style, tone, word choice, and sentence structure.
We will then have a hard look at elements such as plot, dialogue, and characterisation, structure, strength of argument, and clarity.
• Your manuscript will be looked at by at least three members of our team.
• It will receive a thorough line and copy edit throughout.
• You will be given a detailed report/review (MS Word and PDF) regarding the basic content of your manuscript and our
editorial perspective as to what should or could be given strong consideration for improvement.
• Copies of your manuscript are returned (digital files) as required with highlighted suggested amendments and comments
concerning not only grammar, punctuation and spelling, but all other aspects of your work.
• A second round of proof reading and a further written appraisal/recommendations when initial alterations have been
made by you, if and as required. (This must be within 90 days of returned submission.)
• The turn around time is a minimum of four weeks (short story or novella), for longer works talk to us to agree a time schedule.
£300 for first 20,000 words, then £12 per 1,000 words
3. STANDARD PROOF READ
If you have already got your work into shape and you just need a final proof read, we offer that with suggested corrections to copy at a flat rate of:
£6.00 per 1000 words
We are more than happy to discuss custom terms, if you would like to know more please get in touch:
Contact us by email at verbumpublications@gmail.com to begin the process.
