When you hire a professional freelance editor, you can expect:
- Professionalism (but not perfection—remember, nobody’s perfect)
- Confidentiality (there’s no need to copyright your work first)
- Honesty (letting you know what, in their opinion, the manuscript needs)
- Encouragement (telling you what’s good, not just what’s wrong)
- Communication (via e-mail, phone, or personal visit, depending on what works best for both of you)
- Availability (within reason—everybody gets busy; don’t expect your editor to have nothing else to do but work on your manuscript and respond to your every e-mail within an hour or two)
- Promptness (whatever turnaround time the two of you agreed on—but realize that everyone has unexpected delays)
- Follow-through (the editor does what they promised, barring unforeseen circumstances)
Will there be a written contract/agreement?
It’s not necessary, but can be helpful to identify the following:
- Services requested/agreed to
- Cost
- Deadline/turnaround time
If the editor of your choice doesn’t offer one, feel free to request one if you wish.
If you’re ready to hire a freelance editor:
AUTHORS Seeking Editors
PUBLISHERS Seeking Editors
EDITING PROJECT MANAGERS Seeking Editors
TRANSLATION Request (Spanish or German only)
What can I expect from a freelance editor?
Will there be a written contract/agreement?
It’s not necessary, but can be helpful to identify the following:
If the editor of your choice doesn’t offer one, feel free to request one if you wish.
If you’re ready to hire a freelance editor:
AUTHORS Seeking Editors
PUBLISHERS Seeking Editors
EDITING PROJECT MANAGERS Seeking Editors
TRANSLATION Request (Spanish or German only)
By Kathy Ide • Authors •