What is copy-editing?

Copy editing involves correcting your manuscript to eliminate errors. This may include spelling mistakes, punctuation & grammatical errors, typos, and inconsistencies. If your first language is not English, then a good copy-editor can ensure that your text looks and sounds right to a native speaker. Copy-editing does not involve raising issues to do with the story itself - your plot, characterisation, dialogue, pacing, marketability, etc.

In short copy-editing will guarantee you a 'clean' text, but not necessarily a good story!

"Mr Smith of all people ..."

" ... dropped a simple catch!"

Do I need to get my book copy-edited?

Probably not.

If your work is bought by a commercial publisher, then the publisher will be responsible for copy-editing your work to a high standard - and at their own expense. Copy-editing isn't particularly cheap, and there's usually no reason for authors to undertake this work themselves. But there are exceptions. Two of the most common are:

• My book is going to be self-published.

Some self-publishing companies offer this as part of the package. Others don't. If yours doesn't, and you want the job done properly, then do by all means come to us for cost-effective copy-editing.

• I am a non-native English speaker and/or my spelling/grammar is poor. Agents read a lot of work. If they find a manuscript which is hard to read because of poor presentation, the chances are that they will reject it immediately, without reading more than the first page or so. This is a brutal approach - but agents get 100s of manuscripts every month and can't possibly read each one.

How good does your standard of presentation need to be? About as good as a professionally written business letter. Of course a few typos will always creep through, but on the whole, your text should be clean and easy to read. Most competent writers will be able to do this themselves, simply by being perfectionist about small things as they re-read and revise their work.

I don't know if I should get my work edited or copy-edited first.

If in doubt, always come to us for regular editing first. (See our pages on fiction, non-fiction, children's, film & TV, and poetry).

If your basic story isn't up to scratch - a weak plot, cardboard characters, etc - then no amount of correcting typos will make the difference. It's essential to get the basic structure right before starting work on the more cosmetic issues. Also, one of our regular editors will be able to tell you if your work is let down by poor presentation. If it is, they'll alert you to the major presentational issues so you can make the corrections yourself.

"The news spread ..."

What do  you charge for copy-editing?

Unlike regular editing, we can't quote prices up front. If your manuscript is in fairly good shape, the work will be pretty quick (and therefore cheap). If your manuscript needs more work, it will take longer and be more pricey. If you want to get a quote, please send us your manuscript by email, and we'll be straight back to you with a price. On the whole, you'll find our rates are much cheaper than those advertised elsewhere on the web.

"And spread ..."

How do we arrange payment, if I accept your quote?

Easy. You simply post us a cheque, payable to the Writers' Workshop. Our address is:

The Writers' Workshop
Pritchards Cottage

Steeple Barton

Oxfordshire OX25 4QP

Alternatively, we can take payment by Visa / Mastercard. Please just call us on 01869 347040 to arrange card payment.

Other questions

You may well have further questions. Many of these will be answered elsewhere on this site. Either browse the site, or feel free to contact us at any point. We look forward to hearing from you.