I generally work electronically, using Track Changes in Microsoft Word, but am happy to work via hard copy and trusty red editing pencil if requested (shipping charges incurred both directions will be the responsibility of the author). To help you decide whether FoxPrint is a good fit for your manuscript, I offer a sample edit of up to 1,000 words.
Editorial services:
Substantive/Developmental: This is a very broad, wide-ranging edit that considers and evaluates all aspects of the story: structure, character development, pacing, plot, dialogue, point of view, etc. Some of the questions considered are:
· How well does the story work, overall? Does it hold together from beginning to end? Are dramatic tension and conflict sustained throughout? Is the payoff satisfying?
· Is the manuscript structured in a way to give the story maximum impact and flow? Are there “dead zones” in forward momentum?
· Are the characters and their actions believable? Are all the story questions answered and resolved, all loose ends tied up? Are there holes in logic, consistency, or sense?
In addition to my embedded comments throughout the manuscript, you will also receive a separate written editorial overview of “metafeedback”: the big-picture comments about the overall structure and form of the manuscript. This will never be fewer than five double-spaced pages, and generally closer to ten or more.
Line edit: A line edit addresses sentence by sentence the author’s style, consistency, tone, echoed words/phrases, awkward or clunky narrative or dialogue, organization, syntax, extraneous words, word choice, etc. Areas that need clarification, tightening, or other improvement are queried in embedded electronic comments for the author to address.
Copyedit: These are the basic linguistic mechanics: grammar, punctuation, spelling, fact-checking (including all names, locations, and trademarks), consistency, tense agreement. All corrections are made in accordance with the industry-standard reference books, The Chicago Manual of Style and Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary. In addition, I will provide a style sheet for your manuscript, with all character names and descriptions, verified locations and trademarks, grammatical and style guidelines followed, and word spellings not found in Webster’s.
After the Edit
Please feel free to ask for clarification of any comments or suggested changes that are unclear after you’ve looked over my edits—moderate follow-up is included in your quote. However, extensive follow-up or additional editing of revisions made after the contracted editing work has been completed will be treated as a new contract, and a new rate will apply.
Pricing/rates
Developmental edit rates begin at 2.5 cents per word (.025) and can go up to 4 cents (.04), depending on the services you request and the amount of work required and agreed upon (exact quote settled before work begins). Copyedits/line edits are priced from $35 to $45 per hour, based upon turnaround time and level of editing required. Separate rates can be arranged for evaluative edits and/or additional editing of an already edited and subsequently revised manuscript previously contracted with FoxPrint; please inquire. Rush jobs will incur a higher rate. One-half of the agreed-upon rate is due upon acceptance, with the balance to be paid in full prior to delivery of the edited manuscript. All shipping charges incurred in hard-copy editing are the responsibility of the author.