Welcome!
Are you looking for someone to help you polish your story so it shines? You’ve come to the right place. Here at Compass and Lantern Editing, I am dedicated to making your story shine with all the light it has to share. Whether you’re looking for a deep dive into your plot, character, and theme, or just needing someone to polish it with style and clarity, I’m here to help.
What I read
- Clean Romance
- Clean Historical Fiction
- Clean Fantasy
- Clean Young Adult Fiction
- Middle Grade Fiction
- Chapter Books
- Picture Books
- Some Non-Fiction
What I do NOT read
- Horror
- Erotica
- Spicy Romance
- Excessive graphic violence, disturbing scenes, vulgar language.
*If it wouldn’t get a light PG-13 rating, I’d rather not read it.
Rates
Because each story is unique and will have unique editing needs, I charge by the project. The rates listed are an estimated range, with the exception of the Workshopping Session’s flat fee of $50. If you are interested in working with me, please contact me with your email address, your genre, word length, and what kind of edit you are looking for, and I will send you details on submitting your work and a brief survey to help guide us in this process. I will ask you for a one page synopsis of your complete story, along with 7-10 pages of your manuscript, double-spaced, 12-pt Times New Roman. After reading your sample pages, I will give you a project cost and estimated time of completion. The sample and survey will also allow us to see if we are a good fit.
*To get a better idea of the industry standard rates for Editing services, see The Editors Freelance Association’s rate calculator here, or check out this Reedsy table on rates here.
Services Provided
Beta Reading
Everyone needs a beta reader. Never let your story go to press without someone else’s eyes on it. We often cannot see our own mistakes, especially when we’ve been pouring over the same story for months, and it’s a good idea to have another reader’s perspective. As a Beta Reader, I will take one pass through your manuscript, leaving comments along the way with feedback. While this kind of reading can usually be done by critique partners and friends and family, it can also be helpful to have a professional beta reader look at it. Critique partners may have seen the same scenes many times already, or may have seen the story in a disjointed fashion since they typically only get a chapter at a time. Friends and family are usually not professional writers and don’t recognize common pitfalls and industry standard practices. A professional beta read gives you experienced feedback from an objective, first-time reader of the manuscript as a whole.
What a Compass and Lantern Beta Read includes:
- One pass through the manuscript
- Comments in the margins including reactions (good and bad), suggestions, and questions
- An editor’s letter with general suggestions and feedback
Price: $75-$300 depending on manuscript length and genre
Developmental Editing
This is my most in-depth editing service, consisting of two passes through the manuscript, comments, suggestions, and reactions along the way, as well as a deep dive into your story’s theme, character arcs, plot, story structure, pacing and worldbuilding/setting. I will go over each chapter or scene, looking for ways to make them better work for your story along with an overall critique in an editor’s letter. If your story needs help with any big picture items, this is the edit you need. There’s no point in paying for line editing, copyedits, or proofreading if your story falls flat, because no matter how polished it is, a story that doesn’t make sense or resonate with the reader will ultimately be put down and never finished. You don’t want that!
What a Compass and Lantern Developmental Edit includes:
- Two passes through the manuscript
- Chapter-by-chapter critique (usually 1-3 paragraphs each)
- Some line edits (at editor’s discretion, usually the kind that will help with big picture items)
- An editor’s letter with in-depth feedback and suggestions for story as a whole
Price: $100-$4000 depending on manuscript length and genre
Line Editing
Also called Substantive Editing, this edit is where I really bring out the best in your manuscript. This is not a copyedit or proofread, but a stylistic check point to make sure each paragraph is powerful and poignant, each sentence says what you want it to, and each word works for your story. Line edits include making sure descriptions meet their mark, dialogue does more than convey information, and character and plot details are coherent, cohesive, and consistent.
What a Compass and Lantern Line Edit includes:
- One thorough pass through the manuscript plus re-reading certain parts as needed
- Comments in margins including suggestions on word choice, sentence rephrasing, paragraph structure, style, inconsistencies, and fat that can be trimmed
- Track changes like word choice suggestions or word deletions or additions, sentence restructuring, paragraph creating, etc. as needed. These will all be done as suggestions and can be accepted or rejected by you.
- An editor’s letter focusing on strengths and weaknesses of writing with suggestions for overall style, flow, and a list of little things that need to be fixed for an overall positive reading experience
Price: $100-$4000 depending on manuscript length and genre
Workshopping Sessions
As an add-on for any of my services, I can provide a one hour workshopping session where I brainstorm with you to find possible avenues you can take to bring out your intended theme better, fine-tune your character arcs, create atmosphere, discuss the plot and options to make it stronger, and any other problem areas that you would like to talk through with one of our experienced editors. These sessions are done through a phone call or zoom meeting, depending on your preference. They can be scheduled through email after we’ve entered into an editing service agreement and will take place after I’ve had a chance to read through your manuscript.
Price: $50
A word on Copyedits and Proofreading
Copyediting and Proofreading are the final steps in polishing your manuscript. It is important to make sure your story is free from grammatical and spelling errors or typos, so don’t skip this step. However, I am not offering copyedits or proofreading services at this time. I do have many great recommendations so if your manuscript is ready for these kinds of edits, don’t hesitate to ask through my contact form. Thanks!