Starchaser3000 wrote:TerryRodgers wrote:Starchaser3000 wrote: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.
You asked for info on a professional editor. What you describe is a detailed or developmental edit. Do you want someone who does it for a hobby or someone that lives and breathes editing on a daily basis. You have a 100k manuscript. That's a lot of words. For the job to be done right, 100k words could take two or more months. Yes, that long. If the editor does this for a living they can't live on $1,000 for two months of work. For $1,000 you can have an editor do a read through and give you a one to two page write up of what they think needs work. No line editing, just an opinion. That would take maybe one week, more likely two if they read it twice. Once again, you get what you pay for. Remember, a professional edit on your manuscript does not guarantee an agent or publisher will pick up the novel.
You have to learn to do your own editing anyway. My suggestion is for you to find friends who love to read and other writers that are willing to help out. Many bestselling authors have first readers. I'm not saying investing in an editor is a mistake. I used one for my first novel. I was just starting out and had no writing experience or background in writing other than technical manuals. It cost me $3,600. I got exactly what I paid for. I received a complete red-lined manuscript with a ten page write-up on my strength and weaknesses and where I need to focus my writing. She even re-wrote several areas to show what she meant. That $3,600 was the best money spent and basically paid for a semester of creative writing. Without that investment, I would have still had no clue what a modifier was or POV or show versus tell or too many other areas of writing to count. I used a professional editor who had a degree in English lit and an MFA. She also had many references including published authors. That is what you want in an editor. If I were to self-publish, I would definitely spend the money on a professional editor as the one I used.
I hope this helps. If not, just one more piece of advice. Please, please, please research any editor you are considering. That includes reference checks. Good luck.
I've read some pretty graphic novels and use it in my own writing. Even if it's rape or incest it's been done before. Nothing is in bad taste if the public wants to read it and agents and publishers are always looking for something new and different. The word only equates to certain people. I've read some gory novels as well that involved gang rape and satanic rituals. Some people love that stuff. Agents know this.
But you are definitely realistic on the sales issue. Including, close friends & family, and maybe about 3 people over the internet, I have sold maybe no more than a whopping 10 units since my book became available in like January. But I have also given away my paperbacks and my E-Book PDF file to more than enough people and friends who get my sense of humor for free if they ask me to as well.
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