My copy editing service includes two read-throughs of your work, with a thorough, line-by-line check for misspelled words, incorrect words, grammatical errors, missing or incorrect punctuation, extra spaces (or not enough spacing), and consistency.
I’m familiar with AP Style and Chicago Style, as well as working with in-house style guides. I’ll check with you on your style preferences—parentheses or em dashes? And how do you feel about the Oxford comma? And I’ll make sure these things are consistent throughout the work. For authors, I will also make note of any story inconsistencies that pop up (e.g. your protagonist is drinking tea on one page, but it changes to coffee two pages later), so that you can correct them as needed.
I’m a thorough and efficient editor. Most small editing projects can be turned around quickly. Manuscripts/novels typically require a three-week turnaround.
For manuscripts, I prefer editing in Microsoft Word, with comments and changes showing in red on the right-hand side of the page. The document should be formatted in 12 pt. type, 1.5-spaced to help the editing process go faster.
If proofreading is what you’re looking for, I’m available for those projects as well. Typically, a proofreader comes in last—after the first draft of your copy has been edited and re-written, and just before publication—to do one last check for typos. Proofreading projects usually have a quick turnaround time, depending on the amount of copy involved.
Current and past editing and proofreading clients include:
Shen Evans (Health Communications)
International Association of National Health Institutes (IANPHI)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Morgan James (author)
Cappy Hall Rearick (author)
Susan Horne (author)