Your manuscript is safe with me
You have put time and care into completing your manuscript; I want my work to honor that time and care. I will treat you and your manuscript with respect.
I do not share information about or pieces of your manuscript with any third parties for any reason without your consent. Occasionally, I consult with other professional editors for advice and input on handling specific editorial conundrums that come up, but when I do that, I obscure the original sentence by substituting words so that the source is unrecognizable.
We all have our own strengths and weaknesses, and I will never belittle you or your work for some lapse in grammar or spelling or anything else. Nothing makes me put someone on my Do Not Work with This Person list faster than seeing them bash an author on social media or discussion lists.
I strive to be kind, always.
If we choose to work together, your manuscript will be handled with the utmost care. My computer system is protected by a strong password and encrypted backups. I will maintain your manuscript in my system for at least one year (it often ends up being much longer). If you prefer me to delete it immediately after finishing our work together, I’m happy to oblige; just let me know.
If we choose not to work together, I will delete your manuscript immediately.
Finally, I am a Professional member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (in addition to ACES: The Society for Editors and the Editorial Freelancers Association). While I do not need that mantle to force me to act ethically, I am bound by its Code of Practice.
I work in Microsoft Word
I work in Microsoft Word using Track Changes. Its advanced features and add-ons, along with the tricks and procedures I’ve developed over the years, allow me to efficiently do an excellent job on your manuscript.
If you are working in any other program (Google Docs, Pages, LibreOffice, OpenOffice, Scrivener, etc.) AND do not have access to Microsoft Word to review changes, please let me know which program on which platform (Mac/PC). There are some adjustments to the review process that can be done, but overall, the project will take more time and cost more.
If you must work exclusively in Google Docs or Pages, I am not the right editor for you.
Pulling a manuscript into Google Docs or Pages can cause problems with some punctuation and spacing and with applied styles. Comments have been known to disappear in the conversion.
If we decide to work together and you review your changes in a program other than Word, resulting in problems that must be sorted out or work that must be redone (e.g., reapplying styles), that work will be charged at an hourly rate as noted in your letter of agreement.
Payments
Half of the estimated fee is due at the start of the project, and the remainder is due upon completion of the service before final files are released to you.
If we decide to work together, you will receive both invoices with the appropriate due dates before the start of the project.
I can accept direct bank transfers (Zelle is easy, if your bank supports it) or checks in the mail from the United States. If you pay by check, please allow time for mailing and for the check to clear before your work is started or released.
For international transactions, I prefer Wise (formerly TransferWise).
Credit card payments and Paypal are also options. If you need one of these options, please let me know, as I have to use a different invoicing system.