A fair price for a good proofread/polish edit?

[Starchaser3000]

What would that be for a 100,000 word manuscript? What are included in the services?

[DrG2]

for line-edit and some suggestions, I've seen most prices from 0.2 cents per word to 1 cent per word. More elaborate editing and advice can run up to 5 cents per word.

[mammamaia]

the best professional editors will cost you in the thousands, for a proofread and polish... go lower than that and you're not likely to get a good job...

what would be included can go from simply finding and correcting typos and minor grammar errors, up to substantial revisions needed to produce a polished, marketable ms...

the going rates for reliable professionals range from low 4-figures, up to low 5s, depending on the quality of the original material...

[Starchaser3000]

Basically, the punctuation, spelling, and grammar in my manuscript is not the problem. I just need someone to go over the manuscript to spot out any meticulous continuity issues in the storyline. At worst the editor might have to add/remove a comma or change a word to eliminate word repetitiveness and improve sentence structure wherever it may occur. Is it possible to pay a freelance editor somewhere in the $500-$1000 range, and he/she can do a decent job at least?

[TerryRodgers]

Basically, the punctuation, spelling, and grammar in my manuscript is not the problem. I just need someone to go over the manuscript to spot out any meticulous continuity issues in the storyline. At worst the editor might have to add/remove a comma or change a word to eliminate word repetitiveness and improve sentence structure wherever it may occur. Is it possible to pay a freelance editor somewhere in the $500-$1000 range, and he/she can do a decent job at least?

As mammamaia has indicated the going rate for a professional editor is four to five cent per word. Paying $500-$1,000 means you get what you paid for. Many editors will do partials so you could get the first 25,000 words done for $1,000. Remember, if you pay what you have stated, you may not get what you expect. Have you tried getting friends and/or other writers to take a look? It may not be professional, but people who read a lot may locate a few items each for you. That's better than paying. Offer to buy them lunch.

[Starchaser3000]

Basically, the punctuation, spelling, and grammar in my manuscript is not the problem. I just need someone to go over the manuscript to spot out any meticulous continuity issues in the storyline. At worst the editor might have to add/remove a comma or change a word to eliminate word repetitiveness and improve sentence structure wherever it may occur. Is it possible to pay a freelance editor somewhere in the $500-$1000 range, and he/she can do a decent job at least?

As mammamaia has indicated the going rate for a professional editor is four to five cent per word. Paying $500-$1,000 means you get what you paid for. Many editors will do partials so you could get the first 25,000 words done for $1,000.

Then that would mean that I would have to pay like over $4,000 for my manuscript to be edited. I guess if the writing is really that bad to where the editor has to rewrite the entire story that's a fair price. But for someone to include or remove a comma, quotation mark, or semicolon here and there, or shorten/extend a sentence every so often, thats just plain robbery IMO.

[DrG2]

you can get good edits for under $500. the trick is finding the person, and them being able to do it as soon as you want. One editor I investigated has a backlog well into January. That will be typical if they are worth their price.

[Starchaser3000]

you can get good edits for under $500. the trick is finding the person, and them being able to do it as soon as you want. One editor I investigated has a backlog well into January. That will be typical if they are worth their price.

To pay someone under $500 and they can do an edit/format job as good as the one that was done on my first manuscript that I paid over $1000 for would be a dream come true. I probably won't be ready to pay anyone until hopefully after the xmas holidays or sometime next year in the spring. By then I hope to have a reserved spot with an editor. Since I have a long manuscript, I am pretty patient in allowing the editor to work on it as long as he/she needs. And unlike the first time I had a manuscript edited, I would hope to be able to work more closely with an editor via e-mail or cell phone this time around.

[FBaron]

Then that would mean that I would have to pay like over $4,000 for my manuscript to be edited. I guess if the writing is really that bad to where the editor has to rewrite the entire story that's a fair price. But for someone to include or remove a comma, quotation mark, or semicolon here and there, or shorten/extend a sentence every so often, thats just plain robbery IMO.

If all you're concerned about are a few incorrect punctuation marks and a possible continuity issue, you needn't have anyone edit it. If accepted by a publisher, an editor will be assigned to work with you to polish the mss and it won't cost you a nickel.

Too many newbies believe a mss must be flat-out perfect before subbing. No book that keeps people turning pages will be rejected because of a misplaced comma or ill-considered colon. Write an engaging book. Proof it to the best of your ability. Craft a killer query. Research agents/pubs. Submit.

Repeat as necessary.

[mammamaia]

But for someone to include or remove a comma, quotation mark, or semicolon here and there, or shorten/extend a sentence every so often, thats just plain robbery IMO.

but that's not all you said you needed...

I just need someone to go over the manuscript to spot out any meticulous continuity issues in the storyline.

...doing that involves much more work and requires much greater expertise than a simple edit for typos and minor grammar glitches and sentence probs... it would be what is called a 'comprehensive' or 'developmental' or 'story and polish' edit... and can cost 3-5x more than a simple one...