Professional Book Editing Services

Maximise Your Book’s Potential

At Book Helpline, we’re committed to helping independent authors fulfil their writing ambitions. We offer two main services, a Developmental Edit, which provides expert feedback to help you further improve your story, and a Copy Edit, which will polish your text to the standard expected of a traditionally published book. We also offer an All-in-one package which conveniently combines both services at a discounted rate.

D.M. Barr

@bookhelpline Thanks to Book Helpline editor Ginny, I was able to catch a huge plot issue in my upcoming release. She rushed edits for my 78,000+ word manuscript and finished on Christmas Eve. How's that for dedication?

— D.M. Barr (@AuthorDMBarr) December 27, 2017

Arnold Eslava-Grunwaldt

Great editing job, plus friendly, responsive people. I was very impressed with Ginny and Judith, and look forward to working with them in the future. Thanks again for your assistance!

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Book Appraisal

£99

Looking for an expert opinion on your manuscript? Unsure what type of edit your book requires? In need of motivation or a gentle push?

Our book appraisal service will provide you with an honest and constructive assessment of the publishability of your manuscript. We’ll also provide detailed advice on what works, what needs more attention, and outline how we can help you further in maximising your book’s potential.

If you decide to have your book edited with us, we’ll deduct the cost of the Book Appraisal from your fee!

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Developmental Edit

(Story feedback & advice)

£10/ 1000 words

Recommended for

Writers who would like professional feedback and support to help them strengthen their story and expedite the revision process.

Description

A developmental edit will provide you with a wealth of feedback to guide and inspire you in preparing a more polished final draft. We’ll review all major elements of your novel including plot lines, characters, dialogue, factual and logical accuracy, pacing, and reader engagement.

See Developmental Edit examples

Includes

– an Editor’s Report, providing an overall assessment of the work together with suggestions on possible improvements,

– content-related comments in the manuscript margin to help fine-tune the story details,

Free Sample Edit

To see for yourself how we can help improve your book, we’d be delighted to carry out a free sample edit on a 1000-word excerpt from your manuscript. Just send us your excerpt (using the form below or via email), and we’ll return the edited text to you within 24 hours.

Copy Edit

(Spelling & grammar)

£12/ 1000 words

Recommended for

Writers planning to self-publish, as well as those wanting to make the best impression with publishers and agents.

Description

A copy edit will ensure your text is polished to publishing-industry standards, affording you the same level of professional presentation as a traditionally published book. The editor will carefully read your manuscript to identify and correct any errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. The editor will also make minor changes to the text to improve the overall flow and choice of wording. Specialist editing software will also be used to perform a number of additional consistency checks (e.g., capitalisation, hyphenation, abbreviations, missing end quotes, etc.). These checks are particularly helpful for non-fiction and academic texts.

See Copy Edit example

Includes

– a version of your edited manuscript which shows all the changes that were made and any comments by the editor,

– a second, “clean,” version in which all the changes have been applied.

Rand Harlow

As a first-time author, I don't know what I would have done without Book Helpline. They were patient, pleasant, professional, and reasonably priced. That's a hard combination to find these days. Be diligent. Do your research. But I doubt you'll find a better deal.

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Bridget Miller

Thank you @bookhelpline for all your knowledge, advice and dedication. It was a wonderful experience working you! #tobecontinued #thankful pic.twitter.com/byXxgr04mf

— Bridget Miller (@Bigbitke) September 29, 2017

All-in-one Editing Package

(A comprehensive edit at an unbeatable rate!)

£20/ 1000 words

Recommended for

Writers looking for a comprehensive edit to help them publish an engaging, professional-quality book.

Description

A two-round edit consisting of a developmental edit, feedback on your changes, and a copy edit of your revised manuscript. For an additional fee, we will format your text ready for publishing, help you find a suitable cover, and upload your files to Amazon.

Includes

– developmental edit (see above),

– feedback on your changes,

– copy edit (see above),

– a complimentary copy edit of your blurb and author biography.

Questions You May Have

I’ve just completed my first draft, should I submit it for editing?

If you have time to work on your book, then it’s probably a good idea to go over your manuscript and edit it yourself first. Check that your plot makes sense (try and summarise it in one or two paragraphs), check the timeline, and check for anything that you forgot to mention (or accidentally removed). Take some time to proofread your text and check for spelling and grammar errors. When you don’t know how to further improve it yourself, send it to us!

Will your services help me self-publish my book?

Yes, as an optional extra with our All-in-one package, we’ll take you through the complete process, at the end of which your book will be published and available via Amazon (paperback and e-book).

I’m planning to submit my work to a publisher or agent. What can you do for me?

We’ll help you prepare a polished draft that’s fluent and engaging. We can also help you with the cover letter and synopsis, so you’ll have all you need to submit your work to a publisher.

For other questions, feel free to email us or take a look at our FAQ page.