sentence-level editing
Copyediting and line editing
Which one do I need?
Copyediting involves:
Line editing involves:
How to choose
For authors who self-publish their work, I recommend a combined copy and line edit. This provides you with a comprehensive edit, covering both the technical and stylistic aspects of writing. The intensity of the edit can be adjusted to suit you and your writing – I will discuss this with you after taking a look at a sample of your work.
For authors who are seeking to traditionally publish, you won’t need copyediting at this stage, as this would be provided for you by a publishing house later. Line editing, however, can refine your work stylistically before you submit to agents or publishers – it can be helpful to smooth your prose, without overhauling the story itself.
what you get
Service includes…
For both copyediting and line editing, you will receive a fully edited manuscript marked up in Microsoft Word using the Track Changes feature.
If you have opted for line editing, you’ll also receive an editorial report expanding on the edit in more depth, including any broader comments revision choices you may need to consider.
For copyediting, a style sheet will be sent to you outlining the key editorial decisions made and any important elements that were tracked. A review of any light changes you make based on the copyedit is included.
What other writers are saying
In capable hands
You are amazingly thorough. I love your process and your level of detail. And your enthusiasm for the story means everything. THANK YOU so, so much for levelling this manuscript up. I knew it was in capable hands. I don’t feel any anxiety around looking at these edits, and trust me that is an enormous feat.
Top-quality
I can’t praise Rachel enough. From the first conversation we had, I could see how professional she was, but, more importantly, how much she genuinely wanted to help bring my projects to life. Her editing skills are top-quality, not only catching and highlighting issues for me to address but giving me detailed feedback and critiques to help me improve as a writer. As an added bonus, every deadline was met and work was delivered promptly, which helped me keep to my own schedules. I look forward to working with her on future projects!
Amazing
If you ever need an editor, Rachel is AMAZING. She’s so nice, professional, and understanding. Working with her has been great!
Respecting my voice
The thing that convinced me to keep going was the quality of your editing and the dedication you put into it – you didn’t just point to the issues, you came to me with real, constructive ideas and suggestions. These are very helpful to a non-native English speaker, since showing me what you mean can make up for thousands of words of advice. What’s more, you did all this while truly respecting my voice and authorial style. I am impressed.
Incredibly high standard
The editing and feedback Rachel has provided have proven invaluable to the structure of my work, and my progress as a fledgling writer. She not only patiently explained each change she made to my manuscript, but she also gave me advice about the grammatical mistakes I was repeatedly making. Her obvious love of reading and enthusiasm for writing make her a great editor, but her kindness makes her an excellent one. Rachel’s editing was carried out quickly, to an incredibly high standard, and I cannot recommend her highly enough, except to say that I hope to be coming to her with my manuscripts for many years to come.
Extremely thorough
I’ve been lucky enough to count Rachel among Black Library’s pool of freelance editors and proofreaders since 2018, and since then she has lent her talents to a variety of products across our range, including work on our fantasy, science-fiction and horror genres. Rachel is a professional and conscientious editor, taking the time to provide in-depth queries where necessary. She is extremely thorough in her work, always hits deadlines, and is seemingly never phased by the amount of unusual terms to be found in our fiction! She has worked on both short and long-form stories, and seems eager to tackle any task. I would not hesitate to recommend her services.
A delight
Working with Rachel was a delight. Her knowledge, skill, insights, and meticulous attention to detail were exemplary. She consistently delivered work within the agreed deadlines, and her constructive feedback and suggestions greatly enhanced the strength of my writing while maintaining the integrity of my original vision and voice.
Rachel’s line and copy editing exceeded my expectations, and I learnt much from working with her. Rachel’s approach was marked by patience, kindness, and enthusiasm, coupled with clear and actionable feedback. I look forward to working with Rachel again in the future.Forensic
Rachel line and copy-edited my forthcoming book, The Last Secret of The Soul. Her attention to point of view, spelling, grammar, and continuity is forensic. She is also very friendly, helpful and flexible. I highly recommend her.
A devoted editor
I am a new writer, and Rachel not only seemed very interested in my book, but she often communicated with me about the editing itself, which I was very new at. Rachel went over my monster of a manuscript and showed me parts that needed to be rewritten, fixed, and changed and I feel my manuscript will become better because of it. If you are a new writer, and would like a professional to go over your book, I believe Rachel is one of the most devoted to making your book the best it can be.