Texas Book Lover Editing Services
"Having been on the receiving end of five of Michelle’s book reviews, I have to say that I (actually we, since Miles Arceneaux is the pen name for me and two collaborators) awaited each review with anticipation and some trepidation. Her reviews were always insightful, accurate, and spot on. They were also forthright—if the book had flaws, she would call them out. After each review, I remember wishing that we had had someone like her to edit our novels before publication. When I found out she had begun to offer that very thing, I sent her my recently completed manuscript straight away (different pen name, different collaboration). She did not disappoint. Whether you decide to self-publish or are getting your book ready to pitch to an agent or publisher, I highly recommend Michelle’s editing service."
Brent Douglass (aka Miles Arceneaux, aka H.A. Douglass)
I am a voting member of the National Book Critics Circle; a member of the Texas Press Association, Writers' League of Texas, and PEN America; and a former award-winning editor of the Texas Spur, a weekly newspaper since 1909. I have been an editor at Lone Star Literary Life since its founding in 2015. I have been a reviewer for Kirkus Indie and Foreword Reviews, and my work has been published or is forthcoming in Foreword Reviews, Pleiades, Rain Taxi, World Literature Today, High Country News, South85 Journal, The Review Review, Concho River Review, Monkeybicycle, Mosaic Literary Magazine, Atticus Review, the Rumpus, Bookslut, PANK Magazine, and the Collagist.
Please carefully consider which level of attention your manuscript requires: paragraph-level editing (stylistic and structural), sentence-level editing (line editing or copy editing), or word-level editing (proofreading).
In my experience, many writers are skipping the copy editing process, assuming their beta readers have caught the large majority of errors. Many writers are dismayed and disappointed, even angry, when a proofreader finds a large number of errors in the final document; it means lost time and more money to fix a book that has already been designed or formatted.
The easiest way to distinguish between copy editing and proofreading is to consider when they occur during the editing process. Proofreading is the last step of editing; it happens after your book has been formatted for print or digital distribution and returned to you from your formatter or book designer. Proofreading occurs when your book is in its final form—the form your readers will buy.
For print books, proofreading will occur in PDF format; an e-book will be proofread as an epub or mobi file. In addition to language issues, such as typos, punctuation errors, and misspellings, the proofreader will also look for errors made during formatting and design.
The fewer changes you have to make at the proofreading stage, the better. Formatting or designing a book involves placing text so that your book looks good, the digital edition operates correctly, and both read well. Major changes, such as revising paragraphs and rearranging sentences, can ruin the carefully arranged layout of your book. Accordingly, you should only need to make minute changes at the proofreading stage.
Any corrections suggested by your proofreader will need to be performed by your formatter or designer.
Pricing:
- Proofreading (word-level editing): $2.00 per page
- Copy editing (sentence-level editing): $3.50 per page
- Stylistic and structural (paragraph-level editing, including copy editing): $5.00 per page
Please plan on receiving your edited or proofread manuscript approximately two months from the date on which I receive your manuscript. Fees for a rush job, due in one month, include a surcharge of 25 percent.
I look forward to hearing from y’all and teaming up to make the world a safer, more satisfying place for readers everywhere.
Michelle
