FAQs

Developmental editing (also known as substantive editing) is usually the first stage in the traditional editorial process. In this stage, the editor guides the writer through big questions⁠ such as plot, characters, structure, and form, among other things. This stage is about getting the story right. 

All projects are priced individually. No two manuscripts are quite the same, after all. My rates vary by the type of edit and are competitive according to the EFA’s median hourly rates. I create a price range per project based on the EFA’s suggested rates and the expected amount of hours the project will take, which I estimate by the time it took to do the free sample edit.

I’d love to hear about your manuscript! Get in touch to find out how much and how long your project will take.

A style guide advises on how to handle issues such as capitalization, spelling, use of italics and quotes, abbreviations, and word usage, among other stylistic choices. Following a style guide is essential to keeping a manuscript consistent. The most popular style guide in the US publishing industry is The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, which is the style guide I use the most. If your manuscript requires a different style guide for publication, I am happy to oblige. 

I prefer Word documents (.doc or .docx). It is most efficient to edit a piece in Microsoft Word because of its Track Changes and Commenting features. Beyond these two useful features, Word offers other behind-the-scenes tools, such as macros, which help me make your writing impeccable. You will receive the edited piece in two separate Word documents: one redlined and one clean with all changes accepted. 

Alternatively, Google Docs has a Suggesting feature similar to Track Changes, but less powerful, that makes editing in real time a possibility. If your document is in another format, please reach out to see if we can find a solution. 

A document that has Tracked Changes showing is considered “redlined.” Deletions and additions will appear in line with the text in another color, which is typically red, and along the right-hand margin between the text and comments. 

To see all Tracked Changes in Balloons, click on Review and then, next to Track Changes, open a drop-down menu by clicking on Show Markup. Hover over Balloons to be sure that Show Revisions in Balloons is selected. This is the easiest way to see all of the changes made in the document. To avoid missing suggestions, be sure that you don’t unselect Formatting or Insertions and Deletions from the Show Markup drop-down menu. 

To change how you view Tracked Changes, click on Review and then, next to Track Changes, select All Markup to see all changes in the document. If you prefer to view the edited document with only comments, select Simple Markup. 

Red can seem a little harsh when viewing all suggested changes. I suggest that all authors change the color from red to something less reminiscent of a middle school teacher’s terse slashes across a grammar test. To do so, click on the little arrow in the bottom right corner of the Track Changes box, and then click Advanced Options. In the top right corner, you will be presented with the option to change the colors for both insertions and deletions. I suggest choosing blue, green, purple, or (my favorite) dark yellow.

With the document displaying All Markup, review the insertions and deletions along the right side of the screen. Right click a change and select either Accept or Reject. For efficient reviewing, you can also highlight parts of the text and accept changes in bulk after rejecting any unwanted changes. If you wish, you can accept all the changes remaining in the document at once by going to Review, clicking on Accept in the Changes box, and then selecting Accept All Changes from the drop-down menu.