Professional Book Editing Services

A professional editor works with you, hand in hand, to ensure your book screams quality from the first word to the last. While there are several types of editing, not all manuscripts require every one, and not every author wishes to invest in their book. How much editing your book receives is entirely up to you. You can choose to have as little or as much editorial help as you’d like. Our editors will guide you to the options best suited to you and your goals. So you understand the basics, here are the main types of professional editing services, all offered at Indie Publishing Group:

Copy Editing

This in-depth line-by-line edit will not only cover spelling, punctuation, and grammar, it will target clunky words, fix tense issues, correct sentence structure, fine-tune phrasing, flow, and tone, and ensure format consistency. Editors copy edit using Word’s track changes function and comment boxes to explain revision suggestions. You, the author, can either accept or reject the suggestions one by one, staying in full control of your manuscript.

A copy edit is essential. It’s an important stage, ensuring your book has no grammatical mistakes, which will greatly influence the readability of your book. How much will it cost to copy edit your manuscript? Every manuscript is unique, but here is a basic formula to estimate your copy editing costs. Simply replace the underlined numbers with your own:

A manuscript comprised of 40,000 words is divided by 250 (industry standard) words to equal a standard editorial page count of 160 pages. An experienced editor can copy edit 4–7 pages per hour, so 160 pages will require 23–40 hours to complete. At approximately $40.00 an hour, a copy edit will cost around $920 to $1,600 Canadian dollars. These numbers are estimates, since every manuscript requires a different touch, but Indie Publishing Group will provide an accurate quote of your manuscript.

Reminder: a copy edit is only done when you are completely satisfied with all the big-picture issues such as theme, plot, story structure, characters, setting, etc. There should be no holes or saggy middles. Your manuscript will have gone through many revisions before it’s ready for a copy edit, and possibly even a developmental edit.

Developmental Editing

A developmental edit provides detailed feedback, a bigger picture perspective focusing on improvements to the manuscript as a whole. It addresses larger issues such as theme and scope. It’s a broad view of structure, narrative, character development, voice, style, and pacing, noting pages and sections needing attention. A developmental edit will help you fill holes, tie loose ends, and define story threads, but won’t rewrite your manuscript. It provides clear instructions for you, the author, to make changes, and ultimately create a stronger book.

How much will it cost to developmentally edit your manuscript? Every manuscript is unique, but here is a basic formula to estimate your developmental editing costs. Simply replace the underlined numbers with your own:

A manuscript comprised of 40,000 words is divided by 250 (industry standard) words to equal a standard editorial page count of 160 pages. An experienced editor can developmentally edit 3–5 pages per hour, so 160 pages will require 32–54 hours to complete. At approximately $50.00 an hour, a developmental edit will cost around $1,600 to $2,700 Canadian dollars. These numbers are estimates, since every manuscript requires a different touch, but Indie Publishing Group will provide an accurate quote of your manuscript.

Reminder: When it comes to choosing book editing services, unlike a copy edit, not every manuscript is in need of a developmental edit. If you’ve received feedback from competent beta readers, have undergone a manuscript evaluation with a professional editor, and you’ve finessed every flaw, this step might not be needed. If you’re unsure, one of our editors can assess your manuscript and provide direction. Your manuscript might be ready for a copy edit. Or, an editor might suggest a manuscript evaluation, which allows you to make developmental alterations yourself.

Structural Editing

This is an enhanced developmental edit that includes changes and reordering of the structure by the editor. It is returned with Word’s track changes on, including comment boxes to assist with corrections. It also includes a one-on-one chat to discuss your objectives and goals for the manuscript and the editing suggestions in more detail.

Stylistic Editing

Also known as Line Editing, this level of editing includes ensuring the language level (readability) is appropriate for the intended audience, medium, and purpose, editing the length and structure of sentences and paragraphs, and avoiding unnecessary jargon, clichés, and euphemisms. It includes copy editing.

Proofreading

A proofread is your last set of eyes when you’re sure your manuscript is in pristine condition, an editor has completed a professional copy edit, and formatting is complete. A proofread will catch prior-to-publication spelling errors, punctuation mishaps, and grammar faux pas. It’s the final editorial step, the last chance to catch mistakes.

So, how much will it cost to proofread your manuscript? Every manuscript is unique, but here is a basic formula to estimate your proofreading costs. Simply replace the underlined numbers with your own:

A manuscript comprised of 40,000 words is divided by 250 (industry standard) words to equal a standard editorial page count of 160 pages. An experienced editor can proofread an average of 5–10 pages per hour, so 160 pages will require 16–32 hours to complete. At approximately $30.00 an hour, a proofread will cost around $480 to $960 Canadian dollars. These numbers are estimates, since every manuscript requires a different touch, but Indie Publishing Group will provide an accurate quote of your manuscript.

Reminder: proofreading is the last step, only done after your manuscript has been copy edited.

Manuscript Evaluations

Like shoes, manuscript evaluations come in sizes. A full manuscript evaluation is great for authors looking for a professional report that covers their entire manuscript from start to finish. A partial manuscript evaluation is good for authors looking for a professional report that covers the first 50 pages of their manuscript, so they understand the book’s opening issues and general structure flaws. The recommendations in a partial manuscript evaluation can often be applied to the larger body of work but won’t cover issues that arise beyond the first 50 pages. Here are more details regarding the two options:

Full Manuscript Evaluation

A Full Manuscript Evaluation involves a thorough read-through of the entire manuscript while taking notes on details such as theme, title, premise, opening, genre, voice, style, format, flow, tense, dialogue, plot, character development, setting, writing habits, size, and overall strengths and weaknesses. This option results in a 6–8 page written evaluation, clearly noting suggestions for improvement. You, the author, consider every suggestion, and work on the manuscript in your own time. This is a great option for catching holes and flaws in the entire manuscript before a developmental edit or copy edit.

The manuscript read is billed at $40.00 per hour, and the average 60– 80,000-word manuscript takes approximately 10–12 hours to read (including note-taking). The written evaluation takes approximately 6–8 hours to organize and write and is billed at $40.00 per hour. So, a full manuscript evaluation costs approximately $640 to $800 Canadian dollars.

Partial Manuscript Evaluation

A Partial Manuscript Evaluation involves a thorough read-through of the first 50 pages (of your manuscript). This is approximately 12,500 words. The read-through includes taking notes on details such as theme, title, premise, opening, genre, voice, style, format, flow, tense, dialogue, plot, character development, setting, writing habits, size, and overall strengths and weaknesses. This option results in a 1–3 page written evaluation that focuses on the first quarter of the story, clearly noting suggestions for improvement. You, the author, consider every suggestion and work on the manuscript in your own time. This is a great option for catching holes and flaws before a full manuscript evaluation, a developmental edit, or a copy edit.

The manuscript read is billed at $40.00 per hour, and the average 50-page manuscript takes approximately 2–3 hours to read (including note-taking). The written evaluation takes approximately 1–3 hours to organize and write and is billed at $40.00 per hour. So, a partial manuscript evaluation costs approximately $120 to $240 Canadian dollars.

Summary

You have spent a long time writing your book. You owe it to yourself to allow a professional editor make it the best it can be. An experienced editor can take a book with ho-hum potential and help turn it into a spectacular book that readers fall in love with.

At Indie Publishing Group, our top-notch editors will help you polish your manuscript into a book you are proud of. You call the shots. You choose what type of editorial assistance you’d like help with. We are here for you, to prepare you and your book for publication. If you know what type of editing your manuscript needs, have one of our talented editors provide you with a personalized quote. If you know your manuscript needs work, but are unsure what type of editing is required, have one of our editors review your manuscript and provide you with direction.