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Our services
The descriptions below outline the scope and key terms of our editorial services. However, writing and publishing projects are complex, and some don't fit neatly in a box. We can customize editorial work (and fees) to virtually any need, any size and any stage of the writing/publishing process.
We can handle almost any writing job, from websites to white papers to blog posts.
What we do:
Write dynamic, thoughtful content with the right details, precision word choice and attention to audience.
Supplies we need from you:
> raw materials such as notes, outlines or previous iterations of the product
> potential sources
> cues such as models you like, language you avoid, or brand identity
Specs we need from you:
> length
> platform/purpose
> audience
> tone/style (formal/informal, news, personal, business, cultural)
> deadline
Deliverables:
Word files or Google Docs
AI content development
Branding is increasingly content-driven, so today's businesses need much more content than they used to—and for a variety of formats. But content, you may have noticed, is labor-intensive and expensive. We can help you find the efficiencies, versatility and quality you're looking for with AI-assisted content generation. AI can join your freelance writer bench, but only if it's coached expertly with research/transcription, prompting and editing. We'll coach it up.
What we do:
Social media posts, blog posts, interview and meeting notes, transcripts of talks and present-ations, marketing content, news-letter items, articles and reports
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When you have copy that's already been carefully prepared, or already been seen by multiple eyes, or you're just fairly confident in the writing, you may want it checked by a grammar and style pro before it moves forward in the publication process. That's the time for a light copyedit, which should occur before typesetting/design..
What we do:
> follow your guidance for scope of editing and any special concerns or special formatting
> correct all errors, typos, inconsistencies (internal, house style, AP Style)
> check word choice, rephrase for clarity and grammar
> check formatting, sources and links
Supplies we need from you:
> draft text in Word, Google Docs or email (PDFs showing proposed layout can also work)
> list of house styles you prefer
Specs we need from you:
> platform/purpose
> audience
> guidance on how much help you want optimizing message and impact, if any
> who has prepared/edited the text so far
> deadline
Deliverables:
> Word files or Google Docs showing edits in Track Changes or Suggesting mode
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Our heavy copyediting includes all the elements of light copyediting, but goes beyond checking for mistakes to offer help with the content and the writing quality of your draft. We may look at organization and structure, and we may revise sentences or phrases that are technically correct but awkward, vague or without purpose. We will even fact-check dates and names. Because edits like these change the length of sentences and paragraphs, heavy copyediting always occurs before typesetting/design.
What we do:
> follow your guidance for scope of editing and any special concerns or special formatting
> correct all errors, typos, inconsistencies (internal, house style, AP Style)
> check facts, sources and links
> check word choice and grammar
> rephrase for clarity & meaning
> suggest new sentences, transitions, sources and reorganization as needed (sometimes referred to as line editing)
> check keyword optimization
Supplies we need from you:
> draft text in Word, Google Docs or email
> list of house styles you prefer
Specs we need from you:
> guidance on how much help you want optimizing message and impact, if any
> deadline
Deliverables:> Word files or Google Docs showing edits in Track Changes or Suggesting mode
Once you've got your copy written, edited, and approved by brand, legal and the CEO, it goes to a designer who designs pages, typesets the text, and prepares page layouts. These layouts are called "proofs," which is where "proofreading" gets its name. As your professional proofreaders, we know it's critical to eliminate all remaining errors and typos in the text, as well as checking for problems with the layout and typesetting. You can easily see why proofreading always occurs after typesetting/design.
What we do:
> mark all errors, typos, inconsistencies (internal, house style, AP Style).
> general fact-checking (not facts that are specific to your organization or location)
> mark formatting & typesetting issues (widows, bad line/column breaks, image overlapping text)
> check layout and page elements (images, cutlines, page tops, folios, navigation cues)
Supplies we need from you:
> finished content already in proposed layout on page
> best formats: PDF, web page
> acceptable formats: hard copy printouts, JPEG, HTML email
Specs we need from you:
> list of house styles you prefer
> guidance as to scope
> deadline
Deliverables:
> marked up PDF or a list of changes (via email or Word doc)
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We can create original lists or update existing lists, from ice cream parlors in Dade County to veterinary technology training programs in Indiana. Select a filter, and we'll work that up instead: best ice cream parlors in Maine, most unique degree programs in Louisiana, or most recent laws affecting small businesses in your state. Subspecialties are custom calendars of events for a region or industry sector, market analysis reports, and—one of our faves—annotated bibliographies.
What we do:
> combine web, email, phone and library research as needed, and if there's an existing list out there from an authoritative source, we'll cross-reference with that, too
> market research
Specs we need from you:
> parameters
> format/medium and audience
> deadline (Research is the equivalent of pounding the pavement, so depending on the list, turnaround times can range up to two months.)
Deliverables:
> copy in Word doc or Google Docs
> list of sources and brief methodology
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We love producing business profiles, interviews, event coverage, press release upwrites and infographics, plus an assortment of briefs, brights, odds, listicles and factoids for magazines or newsletters.
Additional experience includes hard news, reports on industry trends, soft news and features, how-to's, theater reviews and more.
Supplies we need from you:
> a written assignment, outlining topic, context, audience and potential sources
> background material via PDFs, Word docs, web links
Specs we need from you:
> word count
> deadline
Deliverables:
> copy in Word docs or Google Docs
> list of sources used
Standalone projects or ongoing work
We are available for immediate, one-time, standalone jobs
(Ex: client needs proofreading on an annual report they've already produced in-house)
OR
relationship-based, ongoing editorial services at an hourly rate
(Ex 1: client sends us a mix of print ads, newsletters, brochures and writing assignments as they come up)
(Ex 2: client publishes a regular print product and has us scheduled to edit each issue)
For ongoing work, we continue to work as an independent contractor, but you benefit from our commitment to meet your ongoing needs. Rates are discounted for ongoing clients or regularly scheduled work, such as monthly issues of a newsletter or magazine.
As Gutenberg discovered six centuries ago, typesetting is the magic moment in publishing. The reason is simple:
Typesetting fixes copy on a page or other layout, as it will be printed.
Typesetting is detailed and difficult work—even today, when it's done in high-tech apps like inDesign. You don't want to have to do it again. These simple facts dictate how editorial work is done and how it is defined. In fact, Merriam-Webster says that a copy editor is “an editor who prepares copy for the typesetter." That's why typesetting sets the line where copyediting ends and proofreading begins:
1. Before typesetting, you can easily make revisions and additions to your content in draft documents, such as Word files.
Copyediting is part of that rewriting process.
2. After typesetting, if you or an editor make extensive revisions or additions to the content, you've ruined the typesetting. A designer will have to redo some of that tricky, detailed work.
3. Proofreading takes place after typesetting, because it has to check the typesetting, too! (It's great that your Word doc was perfect, but what if inDesign br-oke a word in a silly place ... or the designer accidentally lost three lines of your
4. In general, you wouldn't want copyediting done on pages that are already designed or in final layout—and you would want proofreading done only on pages that are in final layout.