"I CAN'T AFFORD AN EDITOR!!"
This is a real problem for self- and indie-publishers. Poorly edited books are filtering into the literary stream in alarming numbers. How many times have you bought an independently-pubbed book and found it to be filled with errors? It is awful. It happens to me more and more as I pop new releases onto my Kindle. I like to support self-pubbed authors, but this below-average quality work should not have ever left the computer.
Every writer needs editing.
The mainstream traditional publishing industry spends thousands on editing for everything they release. Yes, they don't catch everything (ERAGON has at least one typo in it according to my daughter), but they catch 99% of the errors. That is the percentage self-publishers should strive for. But professional editing is expensive.
Editors MUST charge for their time and most need 1 to 3 cents a word. That's $1K to $3K for a 100K-word novel -- an impossible amount for most writers. At The Author's Mentor, I edit for 1 1/2 cents a word and I have two clients in my queue. That is a year's worth of editing. Yes, it can take up to 6 months for one editor (who is also working on other projects for other clients, which is the norm in the indie-pubbing world) to work through your 100K-word novel. And I charge a third of what most editors charge.* There must be an affordable solution.
THERE IS!
If you are teachable and if you love your book, you will be willing to put in the time to learn how to edit/proof YOURSELF. When I was starting out, I met professional editor and critique specialist Suzanne Hartmann. For $25, you can send her 3000 words of your book ($75 for 9000) and she will teach YOU how to edit for yourself! I sent in 3000 words of my novel THE JUDGING and put her to work. I was blown away by how much I learned about the craft of writing from this lady. From that point on, I have been recommending every writer that I meet to go see Suzanne and let her help them with their books.
Here is her link. Get in her queue for 2013 and you will NOT regret it. (This is not a paid advert -- I believe in YOU and what Suzanne can do for you!) HUGS <3 TAM
http://suzanne-hartmann.blogspot.com/2009/04/suzannes-critique-service.html
*The Author's Mentor offers editing and proofing services to her clients at very affordable rates. The
industry standard is 2 to 3 cents a word for a full copy edit. TAM's
fee is 1.5 cents a word for full copy edit (includes grammar,
punctuation, sentence structure, clarity, continuity check, and
style/voice issues) and 1 cent a word for proofing alone (grammar,
spelling, punctuation).
So how much would your novel/book cost to edit or proof?
Your book is 85,000 words?
1. A full edit (copy edit AND proofing) would run you $1275.00
OR
2. Proofing only (no copy edit) would run $850.
OUCH! That seems high! I understand, but keep in mind that whomever you hire to edit your book is
going to spend at least 30 hours on your project over a period of
months (most editors will ask for 6 months). That boils down to $30/hour
and that's the bottom line. You are paying for their time. Think of the
hundreds of hours YOU put in to write your baby!
If you would like to hire TAM to edit your book, or would like to ask questions about the service, contact Ellen C Maze at ellenmaze@aol.com, subject line: TAM. References and a contract are offered.
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