Why don’t you list your rates on your website?
Some editing companies offer a flat rate per thousand words, a practice that requires the well-prepared author with a polished document to pay the same rate as an author who turns in a less finished paper. The only truly fair way to price an individualized service like copyediting is on a per-job basis.
What are your qualifications?
I have been enhancing the readability of documents since I started out in editing as a proofreader at a large firm in 1988. This was followed by five years as a laboratory technician in neurophysiology at Johns Hopkins Hospital, a position which included copyediting journal articles, book chapters, and posters for scientific meetings as well as writing and editing computer manuals and help files. Since that time, I have continued editing on a freelance basis.
Over the years, I have edited dozens of journal articles in psychology, healthcare, and other fields by authors from all over the world. Long-form projects include books on philosophy, reading in the digital age, construction contracts, and web material to accompany a social studies textbook. Over the past few years, I’ve added marketing and business material to my editing portfolio.
Will you check my math and statistics?
I’ll be happy to check that your formatting is consistent, but the math is up to you! Fact-checking, however, is a common element of comprehensive editing (e.g., was Henry VIII actually born in 1492 ? nope, 1491).