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EDITING SERVICES

The kinds of writing I work with are:

  • Fiction (all genres)

  • Creative Non-Fiction (all genres)

  • Book Reviews

  • Articles/Essays

  • Poetry

  • Applications (fellowships, grants, etc)

  • Academic work

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If you're looking for help on a larger project, like a novel, memoir, collection, etc, please include an outline and/or overview of the project as part of the page count.

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All work is to be double-spaced in a standard font (Times New Romans, 12pt, Arial 11pt, etc) within the relevant page count.

 

 

I'm offering five levels of editing. Please choose the one that best suits your needs right now.

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  • Broad Edits : 30 pages​​

Also called "Developmental Editing", this focuses on larger themes like plot, character, tone, subject, etc. This is often most useful for works in earlier drafting stages where you might want guidance to figure out what direction to go, what's working already, and what might need to be communicated better. Because it's assumed that there are still a lot of changes to be made, I won't offer a lot of suggestions on the level of sentences and phrasing, though I might still highlight killer lines.

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  • Line Edits : 20 pages

For this form of editing, my focus will be much more on the piece as given. While also providing broader commentary, I'll be looking to highlight specific areas that are particularly resonant or might need tweaking, even down to the level of phrases and words. This is best for pieces that are in the revision stage, when they are close enough that you're confident you won't be making major overhauls.

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  • Targeted Edits : 25 pages

A sort of hybrid of the above, here I will focus on areas that you point me to, for instance seeing if a character's motivation makes sense and how it can be strengthened, or what's working in a central scene and what could be stronger, or what feels missing to me as a reader, etc. I may offer more broad feedback if asked to address larger themes like plot, tone, etc. or more narrowly focused feedback if you're wanting me to look at specific sections of the work, like a scene.

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  • Proofreading : 30 pages

This is for work that you're about ready to send out. I'll be looking at things like sentence cohesion, grammar, spelling, etc. There won't be a lot of general comments, but I'll provide tips for places that might be good fits and ways to present the piece or pieces to give them the best chance.

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  • Applications : 30 pages

If you're needing to send in an application (or several), I'll work with your statements for ways they can be strengthened and tailored, and then proofread them to best avoid turning off selection committees who can be notoriously harsh on grammar mistakes and typos.

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The standard editing will involve:

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  1. An initial virtual meeting lasting 40 mins

  2. I will return edits after 2 weeks

  3. After a week for you to digest, we'll have a second meeting of 40 mins so we can go over the edits and any other questions you might have

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For applications, the process will be along the lines of:

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  1. An initial virtual meeting of 40 mins

  2. I will return edits in 2 weeks

  3. Email correspondence, and you'll submit the polished work

  4. I'll return proofread work in a week

 

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If there are adjustments to these services that you need, please let me know beforehand and we can work out a plan. It may also be that after looking at your work, I may suggest that we switch to a different mode of editing; for instance, if something is a lot closer than you thought, it might be more useful to work on line edits instead of broader themes.

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In lieu of payment, I ask that you donate what you can (money or otherwise) to people and causes that you feel is right. (I can also offer some suggestions.)

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