I work on a variety of texts, but particular areas of interest and experience are:
- mental health
- self-help
- self-development
- entrepreneurship
- life stories and memoir
- education
- poetry
- children’s books
Poetry
Copyediting poetry is very different from copyediting prose. The usual ‘rules’ don’t apply and we must also consider line breaks and the use of space on the page. I will, of course, look at spelling and I will then review your grammar and punctuation, discussing with you where you would like these to follow convention and where you intentionally break from this. I will look at your use of rhythm and rhyme, flagging anywhere I feel these aren’t serving the poem, and I will examine your imagery, prompting you to be more precise where I feel this is helpful. I will also flag areas where the language doesn’t seem to be making sense or is perhaps a little abstract and therefore likely to lose the reader’s attention.
My fees for copyediting poetry are different from my fees for prose, as, due to the extra aspects to consider, the process takes longer. If you would like a quote, please email me with either your full collection or a representative sample of around ten poems so that I can assess the level of work required.
Children’s book editing
My children’s book editing services include copyediting, an editorial report and proofreading. Through my lifelong love of poetry, I have developed a strong sense of rhythm and rhyme, and I am skilled in helping authors with those aspects of their work.
I have always loved reading children’s books and strongly believe in the importance of stories to children’s wellbeing and development. I have worked in primary schools and in my local library to share stories with children and encourage their reading skills, and for many years I facilitated creative writing workshops for children and young people. As a mother of two, I have particularly fond memories of sharing books with my own children.
Copyediting
Once you have written your story, you send it to me in Word format. I will check it thoroughly for consistency – in terms of spelling, grammar and punctuation and to make sure your story is internally consistent and a character who was eight and three quarters at the beginning hasn’t become six and three quarters by mistake by the end (unless your story involves time travel, of course, and this has been made clear!). I will flag any areas that don’t make sense and suggest improvements, and I will be on the lookout for repetition, offering alternatives where appropriate. If you have written a rhyming story, I will look at the rhythm and rhyme and suggest tweaks for improvement if I think this is necessary. I will also look at the formatting of your work and make sure the paragraphs and any chapter headings are formatted consistently and appropriately.
Editorial report
My editorial report is written to accompany your story. Depending on their relevance to your work, I will discuss subject areas such as targeting (which age range your book is suitable for), word count, subject, theme, viewpoint, characterisation and dialogue, and plot, suggesting ways these could be improved.
Proofreading
This is the final stage before you publish your book. Once the book has been typeset, I will check it for any minor (but often embarrassing!) errors in spelling and punctuation that have been left or found their way in since the copyedit. I will suggest minor grammatical tweaks as needed for sense. I will also look at the layout of your words on the page, checking the font and other design elements so that your story becomes a book you are proud of. If your story is illustrated, I will check the text against the illustrations to make sure everything is as it should be.
Fees
As with poetry, my fees for children’s book editing and proofreading are different from my fees for copyediting adult books. If you would like a quote, please send me your manuscript so that I can assess the level of work required.