Academic editing: I have edited for three different journals (two social science and one business history, all international in scope), and I have worked privately with academic clients on books, articles, conference presentations, book proposals, grant applications, and more. The projects I have edited have been successfully published in dozens of journals and with university or traditional presses. My experience has led me to have a deep appreciation of the “publish or perish” world of my academic clients. It also means that I have edited hundreds of thousands of words across different academic platforms and topics. These have included, among many others, human rights, civil rights, finance, history, politics, business, motherhood, and race relations. 

Nonfiction editing: nonfiction writers usually have a specific audience in mind, and I’ve edited projects across myriad subjects, including the life story of a musician in Germany (World War I to World War II), policing in America, education, health care costs, living with bipolar disorder, self-help, and more.

I have edited for a wide range of nonprofit and for-profit companies. Clients have included a behavioral and social science research center, a major university, financial investment firms, a Fortune 500 real estate company, a local animal shelter, a grassroots newspaper, a website on health care, a media company dedicated to real estate and personal finance issues, and more. Work has included complex reports or proposals, annual or quarterly updates, marketing and sales materials, RFPs, college catalogs, museum guides, blogs (lots of blogs), magazines, and more. Much of this work has been written by multiple people at different writing levels, which must then be edited to sound like one person wrote it and with a unified voice throughout. My experience has led me to have a deep appreciation of the kinds of work that can cross a manager’s desk and the fact that everything has to be clear, crisp, cohesive, and consistent. And done quickly and accurately.

I started my career in theater as an actor and director, but I started my editing career in theater as a dramaturg (working with playwrights on original scripts or doing detailed research), a theater literary manager, and a script reader for Tony Award-winning theaters. From there, I took an unexpected turn into academic and business editing, but my love of the creative arts has kept me active working with playwrights, screenwriters, and short story writers. I have worked on a range of genres from small comedies to historical dramas, and from surreal to “kitchen sink.”

It is actually a pretty simple reason: nonfiction writers, no matter the topic, have the same goals as academic writers: the concepts and ideas have to be fresh, the writing has to be clear, and your audience has to be affected by your words and message in order to be inspired, informed, and engaged.

I have worked with authors across a broad spectrum of topics. These have included sociology, anthropology, history (US and international), ethnicity, gender, and other social sciences; US and international business history; ecology; motherhood; fatherhood; race; health care; and mental health. These could fall under the very broad categories of politics, history, social sciences, business, personal growth, and self-help. You can check out my responses in the FAQs on academic/nonfiction authors, business clients, and creative writers.

I think anyone who writes can benefit from editing, even editors! It is too easy to think your words are saying what you think they are, or that your message is clear when it isn’t, or that every bit of punctuation is exactly in the right place. I know that I personally have a tendency to overwrite, so I’m aware that when I’m done, my words will need pruning. I know that as an editor, but when I’m writing, my go-to habit is to overwrite. That also helps make me a better editor, since I understand the foibles of writing. From blog posts to best sellers, everything reads better after a professional edit.

I started working with playwrights as a dramaturg and theater literary manager about a decade after college, although I was working in other capacities in theater before that time. I worked with playwrights on dialogue, plot, tension, imagery, and so on. (This knowledge has directly helped me move into editing nonfiction authors, who have a story to tell, although in a different way.) After about 15 years, I took an unexpected turn into academic editing when I took a job at a think tank that published a journal, and it taught me so much about academic editing and the publishing industry. By the time I left, I had edited more than 140 articles and overseen six volumes, each at 1,100 pages. From there, I immediately started my editorial services business in 2011, during which time I have edited hundreds of thousands of words in articles, books, blogs, reports, presentations, and other work.

I always do a pro bono test edit of a few pages of your work so that you can see if my editing style and depth of editing are what you are seeking. This way you can see my work, and I get a few pages to read to see your writing level, writing style, and genre. After we mutually decide that we are a good match, then we can discuss pricing and timeline. I don’t include pricing because the first thing to know is if my editing meets your needs and expectations and that we can build a strong and collaborative working relationship.

I don’t have prices on my site because each project is unique. Is it a short blog or a long book? Does the project have hundreds of citations and a bibliography, or is it designed for a quick read? Is it a film treatment or a government report? What is your timeline? Is there a specific style guide to follow? These are just some of the questions that we discuss after we decide that we’re a good match to work together. (See How do I know if you’re the right editor for me?) With so many variables worked out with each client to meet their specific needs and their specific project, it isn’t possible to offer set prices.

I accept payment by credit card or PayPal. For universities, publishers, and businesses that pay through a department, I have an EIN. For overseas clients, I have arranged bank-to-bank transfers. I do accept old-fashioned checks from US-based clients, but the check must clear first before the editing can begin. For new individual clients, I do ask for a good-faith payment upfront before I start work.

I edit in all the Microsoft products—Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. I also edit PDFs and Google Docs.

Getting an outside source to read your words is definitely the first step after you finish writing. But this is the first step, not the last one. You have to find out: Did they like it? Did it make sense to them? Did they offer feedback you can use? Can you trust the advice that you’re getting, and are you getting the whole truth? Might someone be trying to protect your feelings or your friendship? Or might the advice be tinged with “how I would write it”?

As a professional editor, my goals are to make your words shine and to work with you collaboratively to make your work the best it can be. I’m experienced, professional, and neutral, with the guiding principle of making your writing the best it can be. One other thought if you’re considering not using an editor at all: if you put out a work with errors, it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to ever get that reader to buy another work with your name as the author. I remember a colleague saying that his wife spent 99 cents for an e-book, and it was so littered with typos and poor writing that she felt she’d wasted her money. She believed that no one but the author had ever seen those words in that order.