Easy Reader Editing
I read books. I correct books. I read more books.

Line and Copy Editor for Hire

If you need line editing or copyediting services for your book, novella, or short story, my expertise as a line editor and a copyeditor is just what you need. I’ll happily edit your book for consistency, grammar, spelling, and more.

Professional Line and Copyediting Services

Lynda Dietz | Book Editor

Line Edit

Rate begins at .015 per word and includes copyediting. This includes two passes (see COPYEDIT column, right). (Also see note under PROOFREADING section for the "extra" that comes with this package.) For short stories up to 10k words there is a $100 minimum charge. [See Children’s Book Editing Package for separate pricing.]

Your story is ready for this step only if you have already revised your manuscript based on feedback from your beta readers or critique partner, or have had a developmental or content edit. Based on my experience, it's my professional opinion that your manuscript isn't ready for a line edit if your eyes have been the only pair to work on it up to this point.

I use the Track Changes feature in Microsoft Word so you can see exactly what I’ve done. I’m a big fan of margin notes to provide explanations if needed when making changes that may seem strange or inconsistent. My thoughts on margin notes: if you are able to see and understand why something is done a certain way, you’re more likely to remember it for the future, and your writing will improve.

I’ll focus on these areas at the line and paragraph level during the first pass:

  • Awkward sentence construction

  • Overused words and crutch words (every author has his favorites!)

  • Showing v. telling (this ties in with overuse of adverbs, though not all adverbs are evil in and of themselves)

  • Excessive and incorrect dialogue tags (less is more here)

  • Point of view inconsistencies (I’ll note head-hopping as well)

  • Irrelevant/superfluous language and ambiguities

  • Verb tense consistencies

  • Jargon/clichés (whether phrases or word pairings)

  • Repetition and redundancies

  • Choppy sentence flow and pacing

After this first pass, I will return the manuscript to you for approval of suggested line edits. If there’s any reason you wish to keep a particular item as is, please highlight and note that in the margin so I don’t simply correct it again, thinking I missed it somehow. After you’re finished incorporating all edits, send the manuscript to me for the second run-through.

Copyedit

I’ll focus on these copyedit areas on the second pass:

  • Consistency of names and character traits/facts

  • Grammar, capitalization, and spelling

  • Word repetition, correct word choice, and general wordiness

  • Adherence to current style manuals (Chicago Manual of Style & Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, others if necessary, e.g. military)

  • Number/numeral usage

  • Hyphenation

  • Proper handling/punctuation of dialogue and dialogue tags

  • Overused adverbs and adjectives (though this should be fairly clean after the first pass)

  • Punctuation

  • Fact-checking if needed

  • Typos/extra spaces

The copyedit should improve consistency and clarity in your book, and result in its most readable version.

If you’ve already had a line edit on your manuscript and only wish a copyedit, I provide a single pass for the immediate above-mentioned copyedit items only, starting at .01 per word ($100 minimum charge), contingent on the results of the initial evaluation. If a line edit is required, the line edit/copyedit package applies, and this will be noted in my estimate prior to starting any work. This single-pass option does not apply if you have not had any professional editing done yet.

Let's figure out where you are in the book process and how I can help you!