Services
Copy-editing/Structural Editing
Your appraisal will cover any restructuring we feel your work would benefit from, which you may want to do yourself, but it may be that you are uncertain about punctuation and grammar, spelling and fact-checking (we cannot cover such mistakes in the critique, other than by pointing out a few examples) and such mistakes can distract a reader. A professional copy-edit will ensure that you present your work to an agent or publisher in the best possible way. Should you wish one, we provide a separate copy-editing service.
Copy-editing is available to everyone, not just those who have come to us for appraisal. (See fees)
Proofreading
A service for those who feel their manuscript is in good order, but who would like a professional to proofread it before submission, simply for errors of spelling and punctuation, repetition or missed words. Available to all. (See fees) ^
Scanning
Some of you, whether looking for an appraisal or not, may have manuscripts tucked away that you've always intended to rework but you quail at the thought of keying in the whole thing again. We can take the pain away by scanning your script and turning it into an editable Word file. We can do this on various levels - a straightforward scan in which we simply check that all the pages have been scanned in, leaving you to do the proofreading; a scan with a cursory proofread; a scan with an intense proofread. (See scale in fees) ^
Abridging
It's not unusual for even a top author to be asked to shorten a manuscript by many thousands of words and then resubmit it - and some find this an intensely painful process. It may be that your intended 100,000 words has grown to 200,000 and you know you need to lose some but you just can't see how to do it and still retain your work's integrity. One of the reasons is, of course, that you are too close to the world you've created. As award-winning abridgers, we have the necessary separation and objectivity to do that for you (see the list of authors whose books we've abridged) successfully and sensitively. ^
Fees (vat inclusive):
Manuscript Appraisal
(1 page of double-spaced, 12pt copy is equal to approximately 300 words)
Full-length manuscripts, fiction/non fiction/childrens
Flat fee of £165 + £3.60 per thousand words
For those who do not wish to submit a full manuscript:
Synopsis of no more than 2 pages and 15,000 words of script:£165
Short stories
Up to 3,000 words £77
Each additional 1,000 words (up to 10,000 words) £10.50
Copy-editing
The time taken to copy-edit a manuscript varies hugely depending on how many errors there are in the manuscript, how many facts have to be checked, and how long the manuscript is. Of work done for publishers in 2010, for instance, the worst-case scenario was a novel of 100,000 words, with muddled construction and poor grammar/punctuation, which required 79 hours of work. Three months earlier a well-presented non-fiction of 130,000 words, took 52 hours
£17.50 per hour
Proofreading
Usual estimate is that 10 pages/3,000 words can be proofread in an hour
£15.50 per hour
Scanning
The better condition the typescript is in, the better the scanned results. However, it is perfectly possible to get a good scan from heavily yellowed paper and a mostly okay one even with faded type. What we can't scan is handwritten manuscripts.
Basic scan and page check: £103
Scan and light proofread: £205
Scan and full proofread: £410
Abridging
Time taken depends on how many words have to come out.
£20.50 per hour. ^
Submissions
With all work undertaken, you must first contact us on our site's contact form, or by phone, so that we can give you a definite date for booking your manuscript in, whether it's for appraisal, editing, scanning or abridging.
We will accept manuscripts by whichever method you prefer - by email; on CD/DVD/USB key or on paper. However, if you are sending electronically, unless you also send hard copy there will be a charge of 9p per page to print out manuscripts - it's much easier on the eyes to read off-screen! - but all examples of editing will be shown on the electronic script. Those of you who submit paper manuscripts will have any editing shown on that.
Pre-printed manuscripts must be presented on A4 paper, printed on one side only, in a 12-point plain font and double-spaced. Each page should be numbered.
ALWAYS ensure that you have a back-up copy of the script, whatever method you choose to submit it in. Unless return postage, on suitable packaging (a Jiffy bag or similar strong envelope) is sent, we will be unable to return a hard copy manuscript to you. Any manuscript we have printed for reading will be kept for 2 months and then shredded. Electronic manuscripts will be archived for 2 years on an external medium, then destroyed.
Please ensure that your name, address and telephone number are included on the title page of the script.
NB If you have an old, typewritten manuscript that you have revisited and would like appraised, we can offer the extra service of scanning it and turning it into an editable Word file. We cannot scan handwritten manuscripts.
Once you have read and absorbed the appraisal, you will have a telephone conversation with the editor on an agreed day and time which is included as part of our service.
When you have edited your work, we will be happy to read it again for you at a cost of 75% of the original fee and do a comment sheet.
For anyone anxious for a very fast appraisal, it is occasionally possible to arrange an expedited service of 14 days at the normal fee plus 50%.
Copyright of the appraisal belongs to Kati Nicholl Editorial; copyright of the work appraised is yours.
ALL work is handled in the strictest confidence.
While we cannot guarantee publication of any work, if we think that your work is of publishable standard, we will recommend you to an agent or publisher from our wide range of contacts. ^