As Publisher and Editorial Director at Cursed Dragon Ship Publishing, I spend more hours editing than any other single responsibility. And I love it. Working with new writers and watching them understand and improve gives me hope in our future artists. Challenging experienced writers to go that extra step and hone in on skills that need polishing brings me a level of satisfaction I didn’t know I could reach professionally. Our publishing calendar, however, can only handle so many authors. That’s why I offer my services to the writing community at large. Let me use my experience to help you take your creations to the next level to thrill readers and agents alike.
Below are the specific editing services I offer.
Developmental Editing
What is developmental editing, you ask? Sometimes, it’s called content editing, which might be a more clear label to most of us. Developmental editing entails a professional reading your draft and helping you elevate the story to the next level. I’ll check for character consistency, plot holes, pacing, repeated grammar mistakes, plot structure, character arcs, point of view issues, tropes, themes, etc. In other words, this type of editing looks at big picture issues to make sure your story meets and, if we do it right, exceeds the expectations of your readers.
Writers are too close to their own work to necessarily see the flaws. It’s difficult to discern the true strengths and weaknesses of your work without a developmental editor working with you to analyze the creative piece. Let me get in there and dig deep. I’ll show you which parts shine and which bits need extra attention. I want to partner with you to bring your work to life as someone’s new favorite book.
How much will dev editing cost me?
This type of deep dive into your work takes time, and time is money. Hence, you see developmental editors charging on average $55 an hour (at about 1-5 pages per hour) or $0.07 a word. Did you do the math for your manuscript? It hurts doesn’t it. (For my first novel, Tarbin’s True Heir, that would have cost me $4000.) Yet, it will hurt a lot more when you publish your novel without a professional’s eye. Reviews are not kind, and neither are readers when they’re wholly disappointed with what could have been an incredible experience for them. That thing they say about first impressions holds doubly true for authors.
After existing in the publishing sphere for almost a decade, I understand the strain of getting it all done and being able to afford it. Because of my unique perspective, I’m willing to offer my services for a flat, reasonable fee of $0.02 a word. Before we agree to a thing, I will edit for free the first 10% or 2500 words of your manuscript—whichever is smaller—to make sure we’re a good fit. If an author and an editor don’t mesh, it will show in the finished project. Neither of us want that.
How can I do this for so much less than many other editors? I don’t offer a Style Sheet. I never look at mine and I know many authors never look at theirs either. I don’t even do them for my authors at Cursed Dragon Ship. So why pay for it? If you find a Style Sheet to be essential, I do offer this as well. It takes a significant amount of time, though, so the cost of the dev edit goes up to $0.03 a word.
Copy Editing / Line Editing
What is copy editing / line editing? There is some debate in the world of editors—for there is not much we editors don’t like to debate—about the delineation between these two processes. For me, I don’t see enough of a difference to define them, or bill them, separately. Basically, once you have a revised manuscript with a strong story, moving character arc, and believable world building, it’s time to get a new set of eyes on that document to make sure there are no stray plot holes, your sentences are clear and precise, and the formatting matches acceptable parameters, That’s what this level of editing is for. It’s more grammatically focused than dev editing, but not as typo focused as proofreading.
If I completed the dev edit, I recommend utilizing the fresh eyes of another editor for this process. The human eye goes blind pretty quickly and you deserve an editor at the top of their game. I will have recommendations if you need one. We editors like to stick together, you know, for all the debating.
How much will copy editing cost me?
Again, I’m sensitive to how much this process costs to the author. Though this type of editing often takes more time than dev editing because of the deep dive into the minutiae of sentence structure and word use, I charge the same amount: $0.02 per word. Again again, there is no Style Sheet included, but can be negotiated for a fee of $0.03 a word.
Proofreading
What is proofreading? This is the last step before you hit publish. You’ve probably heard readers bemoan the lack of editing in a novel they’re reading. Typically, the errors they’re seeing are caught by a high-quality proofreader. While wearing this hat, my job is to catch typos, misplaced commas, improper dialogue tagging, and word choice mistakes, such as using “peaked my interest” instead of “piqued my interest”. I’d make sure names of characters and places are spelled consistently throughout the entire manuscript. In other words, this step concentrates on the little details that have nothing to do with the story but have everything to do with the reader’s experience.
How much would this cost me?
This type of editing requires a lot less problem-solving and a lot more careful reading of the text. So, I have a simple flat fee of $0.01 a word. Yes, you read that correctly, one cent a word, regardless of the length of the piece. I do request that I read the first two pages of your work—for free, of course—to make sure you don’t need a copyedit instead of a proofread.
Turn around for all work is one week for every 50K words from point of schedule and receipt of half the fee as a down payment. My calendar is filling up fast; don’t wait!
Email me at kelly@kellylynncolby.com, and we’ll get your novel polished and ready for readers.
References
I don’t expect you to just dive right in without seeing a bit of my results. I’ve worked with many writers, and assembled a plethora of anthologies. Here are a few:
Meg Hafdahl’s Willoughby Chronicles series (ya horror)
“Kelly Colby is the best kind of developmental editor. She not only identifies the weak parts of your manuscript, but gives wonderful suggestions and works with you to create a better novel. She is committed to your success, excited about your project, and understands your vision. I can’t recommend Kelly enough!” Meg Hafdahl – Author
J. Lynn Else’s Awakenings series (ya fantasy)
“Kelly is a stellar developmental editor who’s helped bring out the best in my writing. She is thorough, and is able to work within multiple genres. She is just the sort of guide you want to navigate you through the editing jungle.” J. Lynn Else – author
Kevin Pettway’s Misplaced Mercenaries series (adult humorous fantasy)
“I have worked with many developmental editors over the past decade, and have gone from wide-eyed and hopeful to cautious and discriminating. Of them all, Kelly Lynn Colby is the absolute best for some very concrete reasons.
While compassionate, she is honest about the flaws in my work that need to be corrected. She is scary-smart with a breathtakingly wide base of knowledge, and all of that benefits me directly. But far and away the most important piece is that, not only does Kelly take the time and energy to understand my vision for my work, but she cares about it and holds my feet to the fire until I have delivered on that vision.
I could not have gotten a better editor if I had made one out of clay.” Kevin Pettway – author
The Eclectic series with Inklings Publishing (speculative fiction)
“Kelly has a great eye for stories and can help an author clarify and tighten their work, while honoring the author’s voice and prerogative to tell the story as they feel it happened.”
Fern Brady – Author and Publisher
The Legion of Dorks presents series with Cursed Dragon Ship Publishing (speculative fiction)
“As a new author, nothing is more intimidating than sharing your creation with another person. Particularly when that person is going to critique it. Kelly does a remarkable job of establishing a trust and understanding that she’s working *with* you to make the work better. Kelly doesn’t just tell you what to do, she wants to help you grow your creation into something even greater while including your input. She is sure to praise what is praiseworthy, and be very clear in what doesn’t work. I would happily work with Kelly on any project.”
Stephen Adams – Author
“Kelly is the little voice in your head you’re happy to have. She is professional, clever, and offers practical and stylistic suggestions that hone your writing to a point.
Her ability to stay on top of new trends, writing styles, and formats are an invaluable resource.” A.F. Hartsell – Author and Editor
One Final Note
I have extensive experience in the speculative fiction areas of fiction: horror, fantasy, and science fiction. I can also developmental edit with great confidence any kind of fiction from contemporary to romance to historical fiction to westerns.
Anything in the nonfiction group, however, will be better suited for another editor. You really need someone who is familiar with the tropes of your genre and the style that is acceptable by its readers. That person is not me.
If you have any questions, please contact me at kelly@kellylynncolby.com. Let’s make great works together.