Service Details

By placing your work in the safe hands of a professional copy-editor before your book goes into the production process, we can critically assess and consult you on all matters of style and consistency of literary mechanics; including grammar methods, punctuation, spelling, word choice, sentence structure, verb tense, and reading clarity. Schiel & Denver Book Publisher's editorial department is skilled at flagging and querying issues for your consideration, and suggesting revisions for improvement.

The Professional Copyediting service

Once your book enters the production process, implementing even minor changes becomes very expensive, in terms of both time and money. The process takes about three weeks to implement, during which time you will receive weekly progress updates.  At the end of the process, you will have a finished manuscript product that is clean and ready for professional publication.

What if my book has already entered the production process?

If you have already submitted your manuscript to Schiel & Denver, and later decide to implement editorial changes, please contact your desk editor immediately to halt the production process.

You have three general options at this point:

1. Withdraw your book from the book production process, and order a professional copyediting service - either by our professional editorial department or by hiring the services of a freelance editor;
2. Implement the changes yourself - defined as author corrections. Your S&D desk editor will liaise with you and our professional design and production team on whether your proposed changes require minor production adjustments, or a major re-tech;
3. If you make an alteration decisions after the galley proofs of your book have been prepared by your design team, you can still engage our professional proof-reading service.

• NOTE: If you make editorial changes after the book production process has advanced beyond printer submission, a $100 printer-disruption fee is levied.
• If your book has already been published, post-publication changes to your book are possible and defined by the following procedures. Your desk editor and design team will give you prudent advice, to shephard you through the process as cost-effectively as possible.

Pricing Information

How do I purchase this Service?

Download Editorial Services Agreement (PDF) - [0.5MB]

• The cost of this service is $0.02 per word.
  

• Turnaround Time is 3 weeks.

Example:

To calculate the final price for your manuscript, multiply the number of words in your manuscript by $0.02. If you need help please call us at 1-832-699-0264 to speak to a book publishing consultant.

Example calculation for a thriller fiction manuscript of 80,000 words:

Word Count     x     $0.02    =     Final Price

80,000      x     $0.02     =     $1,600

At Schiel & Denver, we find most people prefer to work with transparent and up-front guidelines, where they know exactly what our services cost, before engaging them. All rates are quoted in U.S. dollars and there is a minimum charge of $350.00 per job.

If you have purchased the expedited service package, and require rapid copyediting services, this service can be expedited for $0.08 per word. These rates apply to electronic editing of Microsoft Word documents. If your book manuscript is in a different format or hard copy, please have your book manuscript converted to a digital microsoft word format before our indexers begin work, due to complicated editing tools our book publishing team require.

Additional Information

There is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of in the fact that every author, regardless of their genre; or who their publisher is; or how many books they sell; needs to seek the objective counsel of a professional copy-editor.

Your best friend, spouse, beloved family member (or former English teacher), no matter how well-meaning their intentions, cannot professionally answer and direct industry solutions to the above questions, at the required level of the Chicago Manual of Style.

Today, in this global recession, the book buying public demands higher standards than ever before, and wants value for money. Any author who seriously wants readers to buy their work on literary merit, would do well to hire the services of an editor who can check and standardize grammar and spelling, improve structure and punctuation and other necessary literary mechanics of style.

Editorial Resources For Writers

• The Chicago Manual of Style: 15th Edition. The essential guide for professional writers & editors.
• Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition. Industry Standard.
• Random House Webster's Pocket Grammar, usage, and Punctuation. 2nd Edition.
• The Copy-Editor's Handbook: A guide for publishing and corporate communications. 2nd Edition.
• The Elements of Style. Forth Edition. Very informative guide.

Useful magazine links for Writers

• Writers' Digest
• Poets & Writers
• The Writer
• Writers' Journal