I firmly believe that every writer deserves a good edit. No one’s first draft is perfect, and it’s not reasonable to ask one’s writing group buddies to do as close of a read as a professional editor would. Editors are very careful with our work and spend many hours with your manuscript, in addition to time spent writing summaries and editorial letters, double-checking sources, or looking up spellings. An incomplete or haphazardly done edit is, arguably, about as valuable as no edit at all.
A good edit is expensive! But there are also other options available if a full edit is out of your price range, you’re not ready for a thorough edit, or you’d like to experience working with me first before you commit to the big one. So, I’ve laid out a few options that I have available as alternatives to a full edit.
Manuscript evaluations & partial edits
Manuscript evals are awesome! I like doing them, and I truly think they can be as helpful as a full developmental edit. Basically, in a manuscript evaluation I take a look at section of your manuscript rather than the whole thing. The first two chapters, say, and I note its strengths and weaknesses, just like I would in a full developmental edit. What’s great about these is that most of the time, any issues with a manuscript will show up repeatedly. While you wouldn’t get my feedback on every chapter or section, a manuscript eval sets you up for a very, very solid self-directed developmental edit.
Along similar lines, I am also happy to do partial copy edits. Because I price by the word, these can be adjusted to fit your budget. So, for example, if you’d like me to look just at a chapter or a reference list, I am very happy to do that. I can also do formatting only if you need help formatting your dissertation or a journal article to journal guidelines. Formatting goes a lot more quickly than editing does, and there’s absolutely no need to book in for a full edit if all you need is a quick tweak on a few sections.
Consults
Sometimes one isn’t ready for an edit, but still wants feedback or guidance! That’s why I offer consults with verbal feedback options. These are designed so that you can send me what you’re working on and we can chat over it in a Zoom call. We can focus on the writing itself, or on your process—whichever is causing you the most stress.
Some folks want to talk through a stuck-point, some want hard-core feedback on their writing (sort of like a mini manuscript eval or dev edit), and others use these as check-ins or deadlines. These are meant to be easy and inexpensive enough that you can book one without being too stressed out about it, but still leave you feeling anchored and like you have a clear path forward.
So there are a few options for you! I am always open to chatting if you have questions. And remember I have student rates and fee-free payment plans as well. Let’s make this work <3