Editing Services – editing@amobst.com
I enjoy helping other authors, whether you plan to self-publish or want to give your book the best chance when querying agents and publishers. I know what it’s like to have a limited budget and keep my rates as competitive as possible.
I currently offer several editing packages depending on your needs and budget – Copy Editing (full or partial), Proofreading and ‘Super’ Beta Reading.
I am happy to edit most genres, with a particular love of fantasy/speculative fiction, romance, young adult, crime, psychological thrillers, mysteries, and stories with LBGTQ+ characters and themes.
Note: I do not, nor will I ever, use generative AI in my editing work.
Member Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP)
Copy editing
My aim is to ensure your manuscript is true to itself. To get the most value from this service, I recommend this takes place after any developmental/structural editing, self-editing and beta reading.
Once you’ve edited your story as much as you can and are happy with the overall plot and structure, I’ll perform a detailed review of your manuscript, looking at aspects such as:
- Spelling, grammar, and punctuation
- Continuity
- Readability
- Word choice
- Narrator and character voice
You’ll receive:
- A Word document with marked up suggestions, queries and comments
- A Style Sheet capturing key information such as writing style, preferred spellings and formatting, characters, places, and timelines
I generally charge based on the total word count of your story, rather than a rate per hour, to give you confidence that there will be no budget blowouts.
As at January 2025, my standard rates* per 1,000 words are:
- GBP £5.13
- USD $5.50
- AUD $8.25
* These rates apply if, in my assessment, the manuscript is already written and self-edited to a high standard. A higher amount may apply based on the work required. Please contact me at editing@amobst.com for more information or quotes in other currencies.
* A discount may apply if I copy edit more than one book in a series.
If a Full Copy Edit is out of your budget, how about a Partial Copy Edit? I can work on a smaller portion of your manuscript (ideally the first 50%) to highlight any issues or queries that you can then apply to the rest of the manuscript. Rates are same per 1,000 words as those quoted above.
Want to know more? Contact me at editing@amobst.com and we can talk further.
Proofreading
This is ideal for a final, line-by-line check of your manuscript, focussing on spelling, grammar, punctuation and formatting consistency. It generally takes place after all other editing is completed and you are otherwise ready to publish or query.
My rate for Proofreading is £25.00 per hour. Please contact me at editing@amobst.com.
‘Super’ Beta Reading
My Super Beta Reader package is a budget-conscious service designed to complement feedback from free beta readers. And you are guaranteed to get feedback from me!
I will provide you with an actionable written report with my constructive and honest feedback about your story’s:
- Plot and pace
- Characters
- Writing style and voice
- Setting, worldbuilding, underlying magic system (if applicable)
- Engagement – what made me want to keep reading?
- Ending – was it satisfying/did it deliver?
- What I liked most, and what I disliked most
My prices for this Super Beta Reading service are:
- Short stories (up to 20,000 words) – $5 US / £4 GBP / $7 AUD
- Novellas (20,001 to 50,000 words) – $20 US / £17 GBP / $30 AUD
- Novels (50,001 to 80,000* words) – $35 US / £30 GBP / $55 AUD
* additional words above 80,000 charged at $3 US / £2.50 GBP / $4.50 AUD per 5,000 words or part thereof.
You can engage me by emailing editing@amobst.com or via my gig on the freelance website Fiverr at https://www.fiverr.com/s/NN6aG7N
Here is what some of my clients have said:
“His suggestions were always thoughtful. His email communications were timely and pleasant. The cost was very reasonable and absolutely worth every penny. If you are in need of similar services, I could not endorse anyone more highly.”
- Forrest Greene, author of the Wizards and Warriors fantasy romance trilogy
“He was amazing! He took the time to get to know me and my work before he started editing. The style sheet he created has become my favourite syntax resource because it focusses on my personal inconsistencies – and he gave me his encyclopedia of characters, places and key events, saving me having to make one myself. There is nothing generic about his edits either, as he ensured that he took my ‘voice’ into account, rather than blindly following style rules. That said, he also gave me some great overarching advice about ways in which my ‘voice’ doesn’t conform to normal rules, just so that I am aware. He took the time to research other languages and historical facts that I drop in, just to make sure I was correct – and on top of all this, he returned my edited manuscript ten days ahead of his deadline. Needless to say, I have already booked him in for my next novel!”
- Anna Lauten, author of the Draconiad fantasy series
“He reviewed a draft I had been working on for some time, and which I had thought relatively close to completion, just needing a few more run-throughs. He used tracked-changes to point out about 50 mistakes throughout the short story I submitted. His work is clean, precise, and most importantly, correct. I will likely use his services again in the future.
He also wrote quite an extensive ‘style sheet’, which was incredibly thorough and told me a lot about my own style which I kind of knew but had never seen typed out in black and white. Apparently I enjoy using sentence fragments, and I also used the Oxford comma (although not as consistently as I thought).
I recommend him for his copy-editing. We all make mistakes as writers, and he is good at what he does.”
- Steven Raaymakers, author of the Aria of Steel fantasy trilogy and Scars of Magic fantasy series
“He was wonderful to work with. He kept to his schedule, didn’t try to change the book to match his own writing style, and told me what he liked as well as what he didn’t. I find I’m agreeing with 95% of his comments and there is no doubt in my mind, he’s helped make the book better. I’d strongly recommend his editing skills and hope to use him again in the future.”
- Jack Chandler, independent thriller author