Proofreading is the final stage of checking a manuscript before publication. It means looking for any remaining typos, spelling mistakes, grammar slips or formatting errors.

Editing, in its various forms, is more involved. With editing you might be looking at the overall structure, style or mechanics of the story. There are different levels of editing that can be carried out on a manuscript, including developmental editing, line editing and copy editing.

Developmental editing is the first type of editing your manuscript might need. Essentially, it is big-picture editing. A developmental edit might look at the theme and genre of the novel, the structure of the story and plot, character and characterisation, pacing, point of view and world building.

Line editing usually happens after developmental editing. It is a stylistic form or editing, and instead of focusing on the big picture, it looks at the sentence structure, syntax, word choice and tone, and how each aspect contributes to the writing as a whole. The goal of line editing is to support the writer in creating the most effective, powerful prose for their novel.

We offer a combined line and copy editing service so that you don't need to pay twice.

Copy editing is generally less in-depth than line editing. It focuses instead on the mechanics of your writing, the spelling, punctuation and grammar, repetition, consistency and much more.

We offer a combined line and copy editing service so that you don't need to pay twice.

In a word, no. We offer two services suitable for partial manuscripts: book coaching and manuscript critique.

We have provided book coaching services to clients with only a synopsis and the first few chapters to go one. With this type of coaching we generally find we are looking at structure, plot, characterisation and other broad elements as well as focusing on the art and craft of writing and self-motivation.

We have also provided manuscript critiques based on partial manuscripts, helping the writer identify strengths and weaknesses before moving forward with their writing.

We work very flexibly and are happy to find the best approach to suit your writing needs.