Every so often, I find myself in a situation where I have a discussion about the real costs of editing. In the past, when I have had this conversation on my blog, it has been about the time it takes to read a document and the effective editing time as a consequence. However, recently I have found myself in a situation where perspective clients have been assuming that my rates for larger projects are based on my sample contract rate.

Whenever I have an inquiry from a perspective client, in the initial response that I send back, there is often the offer of a sample contract. I do not offer free sample edits—I never have and I never will—but I do offer a smaller substantive editing contract that does not need to go through my full onboarding vetting process. Any prospective client who wants to see what I could do with their work on a smaller scale are given the opportunity to employ my services through this smaller contract. I also point out that should a larger contract come from this, containing the same words that were found in the sample contract (with some editing expected), the sample contract can be used to offset the cost associated for the larger contract.

But here is where assumptions were made.

There have been some prospective clients that have taken the fee associated with the sample contract and have extrapolated the cost associated for their manuscripts based on a linear scale. As such, they assumed that I would be charging in the order of US$6000 for an edit on 100,000 words. This is certainly not the case.

My father is often fond of saying that when you "assume" things that you make an "ass" out of "u" and "me". And this particular assumption is no exception.

In today's post, I want to highlight why this assumption is a bad assumption, and I want to bring to your attention some of the facts associated with the real costs of editing.

Every contract has administrative costs

Anyone who has been involved with contracting or freelancing will know that there are certain tasks that you have to do for every single contract that comes in the door. It doesn't matter if the contract is big or small. There are certain administrative tasks that still have to be done.

For me, these administrative tasks include loading the contract into my database system, loading it into my calendar, ensuring that I have the correct files in the correct format on the various devices I use… And that's just to get the contract started. However, I also have to ensure that invoices have been issued, that payments have been made, and that emails have been formulated and sent accordingly.

All of this takes the same amount of time regardless of the size of the contract. And the cost associated with these tasks (i.e. a charge for my time) is built into every single contract that goes out the door—including the sample contract.

For a sample contract, I allot 7 hours of my time spread out over a few days. Of that time, there is an hour built into the contract to manage administrative tasks. A contract for 100,000 words might be allotted 70 hours of my time over the course of a few weeks. This also contains a 1-hour allotment for administrative tasks. But 1 hour absorbed into a 70-hour contract seems almost insignificant when you compare it to the 7-hour contract.

If we were to look at this based purely on the word counts associated, then a sample contract could effectively see a rate of approximately $0.08 per word, and this is purely because of the minimum time associated with certain tasks (like writing a mini-report in the body of the final email sent to the client that highlights key issues found). However, a contract for editing on 100,000 words might be issued a quote that is around $0.04 per word (sometimes less)—nearly half the per-word rate of the sample contract. This is because the time associated with certain tasks (like writing that mini-report found in the body of the final email sent to the client) doesn't change with the size of the project. However, the tasks associated with reading, annotations, and actually editing do.

But there is more to this situation than just the administrative tasks.

Different services also incur a different fee

My sample contract is for a substantive line edit on 5,000 words.

For me, substantive line editing examines a writer's narrative style, looking at their usage of narrative show, dialogue constructions, sentence constructions, and the transitions between chapters and scenes. Some punctuation and grammar are also examined, but not to the same extent that a copyeditor would do. A substantive edit from me is about the reader experience and enhancing reader engagement.

Substantive line editing takes a more focused level of concentration, focusing on the words actually on the page, not just processing the overall context of the story. As such, the time it takes to perform a substantive line edit is longer, normally taking me approximately just under twice as long as it takes for a manuscript assessment.

On the 5,000-word contract, there is only a few minutes (to an hour tops) different between the time needed for a manuscript assessment as opposed to a substantive line edit, but I also know that the client would benefit more from an examination of their writing style. This is only one of the reasons why I offer only substantive editing on such a short contract.

My larger contracts often shift focus from the sentence and paragraph level to that of the overall story. In the small contract of 5,000 words, I'm unable to properly assess the overall pacing and characterizations that might be seen across an entire novel—which is the one thing that most of my clients seek my services for. To provide that level of information, I need to review the full novel as it is written. This type of editing is faster than substantive line editing—making it effectively cheaper.

Some writers would still benefit from the feedback that a substantive line edit can provide. However, doing a full substantive line edit on a 100,000-word manuscript would come with a hefty price tag that is often overkill for what the client really needs.

It has been my experience that substantive line editing of the first few chapters also provides valuable insight into narrative writing style that can be filtered throughout the manuscript. Hence, when quoting for full manuscripts, I tend to offer manuscript assessment packages that include a partial substantive line edit on 20,000 words (typically taken as the first 20,000 words unless the client has specifically asked for a different section to be examined with that level of detail). The time associated with such a contract dramatically decreases, bringing the costs down significantly.

And for repeat clients, I have a few tricks up my sleeve to help bring the costs down even further (and no, it's not by way of offering special discounts).

Getting into the rhythm of editing

Longer manuscripts also possess this quality to them where an editor is able to get into the rhythm of doing the work.

During the first few chapters, certain patterns start to emerge: favored constructions; repeated errors; narrative style habits. Once an editor is able to identify the patterns, the editing moves more quickly as the editor is able to repeat their treatments across multiple points.

I wasn't joking when I said that substantive line editing of the first few chapters can provide valuable insight into narrative writing style that can be filtered throughout the manuscript. Copyeditors take advantage of this fact all the time in their work.

And if an editor is enjoying the piece they're working on, their editing speed seems to increase again.

My point here is that you can't look at the time associated with a 5,000-word contract and apply a linear scale to find the time associated for a longer contract. There are too many factors involved.

Please don't make assumptions

There are some editors out there who offer sample contracts for free. If you were to apply the logic that was being applied to my sample contract fees, then you would be in a position to incorrectly assume that the larger contract is also free. While this might be a simplification of the issue, it is the same assumption that is being applied, and it has the exact same flaw. However, those larger contracts are rarely quoted using the same hourly or per-word rate that the sample contract was.

Going forward, if you are ever offered a sample contract, don't assume anything about what the quote would be like for that larger contract. Actually wait for the larger contract quote.

And I beg you to not start negotiating the editor's rate. It is their rate.

Trust me when I say that editors agonize over the numbers associated with their rates all the time. Every editor I know (and I know a lot of them) are in a constant dilemma, wondering if they are charging more than their clients can afford while freaking out over how they are going to pay their own bills.

And when a prospective client makes assumptions about our rates, accusing us of price gouging, it's heartbreaking and demoralizing for the soul, which is already struggling with the quotes we're sending out.

Interested in my services?

Are you concerned about the costs associated with editing? Because seriously, I get it. I'm right there with you. But if you are interested in my services, let's have a chat about your project and your circumstances.

You never know, I might have the perfect suggestion on how to proceed forward that will give you the greatest boost to your confidence as a writer but within a budget you can afford. But unless we have that conversation, I can't make the offers.

I specialize in action-based stories, with a particular fondness of thrillers, crime fiction, science fiction, and fantasy. But all of my packages are tailored to suit a writer's individual needs.

All you have to do is to be willing to take that first step. Reach out and let's have a chat about your project.