There are certain important things every writer should look for when hiring an editor. Not all editors and editing companies are created equal, so to sort through the editorial slush pile, there are things you can look for that will ensure a professional and positive editing experience.
One of the things writers must decide before looking for a book or document editor is whether or not to pay by the hour or by the project. Both exist in the editorial services field, but there is a strong argument for writers to choose the latter. Consider this: Say you hire an editor to edit your book by the hour. That editor is then going to download your manuscript of, say, 60,000 words and give you a date he or she expects to have it ready.
Now, let’s say that editor has an emergency during the editing process. What do you do? That’s the challenge of not only hiring an individual rather than a company, but it presents the challenge of how to account for that editor’s hours. Do you pay her anyway and then have to find someone else? What if that editor works a few hours each day, but forgets to write down his start and end time? Now, he has to make one up based on memory. As far as price, what if you are on a budget, and the editor comes back to you and tells you that it took “x” amount of hours, which comes to “x” amount of money, and it was more than what you had budgeted for? Lastly, is there any way to verify the actual amount of time that editor has spent on your book or other project?
As an editor with FirstEditing.com, I know that if the absolute worst happens and I have to abandon a project (it has not happened yet!) there are other professional, qualified editors who can take over. And when I say professional and qualified, let me tell you – the screening process to get hired with FirstEditing was brutal! There are also a lot of benefits for the writer, which is that the work is guaranteed. This means that if after the editing job is complete, if you still have questions, you can still communicate with your editor about them. We also stand by our work. If something isn’t right, we’ll fix it. You are also given a firm deadline, so you know exactly when to expect your document back. And, very importantly, you will know the cost in advance.
So, your best bet as a writer is to hire an editor from an editorial services company that is professional, qualified, offers a guarantee on its work, and offers you a firm price and deadline.
Related posts:
- Successful Blogging: Creating Your Own Virtual Writing Space
- Basic copy editing takes teamwork
- How to Write an Author Bio
- Writing, Editing and Getting Your Book Published by a Professional Editor
- What is Copy Editing? By a Professional Editor
Tags: editing, firstediting.com, Manuscript Submission, Professional Editing, professional editor, Submitting for Publication
