Developmental editing (also called “substantive editing”) is the in-depth, professional read of a project after its initial draft has been thoroughly self-edited. The work is still being molded and shaped, but it has the confident potential that warrants the time and money of an editor whose whole job revolves around this genre, subject matter, and/or service.
My service includes a vision call, in-text annotations, a developmental report (word count proportionate to book length), a debrief call, a read of the revisions with light comments and notes, and a post-revisions call to establish next steps.
Let's schedule a consultation to nail down the specific criteria we want to elevate!
My service includes a vision call, in-text annotations, a developmental report (word count proportionate to book length), a debrief call, a read of the revisions with light comments and notes, and a post-revisions call to establish next steps.
Let's schedule a consultation to nail down the specific criteria we want to elevate!
The Process
All my services can be customized too! I want to accommodate your needs and expectations and establish a solid relationship upfront.
The first step in a developmental edit is the vision call, which means meeting each other on Zoom or the phone! Let’s chat about your ideas, calling, focus, interests, expectations, and boundaries when I’m going through the book with a fine-tooth content comb. I limit these calls to 60 minutes, and it’s a give and take of my questions and yours, but this is not a consultation. It’s about understanding what you want, where you want to go, what you don’t want feedback or time spent on, and how I can best serve you.
Then, I take the book from you and mark it up with my professional perceptions, understanding of basic book structure and development, sensitivity radar, theological education, light research, and knowledge of the subject matter or genre.
When you’re reading through my comments, you get to decide if you care about each one, if/how you want to respond to it in the book itself or in a comment back to me, and if I was misinterpreting your intentions.
In addition to those fun in-text annotations and Microsoft Word tracked-changes, I’m also going to cook up a smokin’ report about the bigger issues, strengths, and adjustments the manuscript needs in my opinion (with guidance on how to revise to solve them). It’ll be a lot to read at once, so give yourself grace and time when you bite, chew, and digest. When you feel ready for it, I usually recommend a debrief call.
A debrief call is, like it sounds, a 60-minute call to review what I said, what you want me to know, what you need more information on, and how you want to go about revisions. I’ll guide you more on how to change things to solve the issues, what is really necessary versus more of my own interpretation and creative lens, and anything else you want to know! This call is optional but recommended.
The revision portion is all you, friend. I want this book to be your work, so even the changes I suggest should come from your own noggin. Take as much time as you need and just keep me in the loop. Mess with things, experiment, send me little excerpts—whatever works. I’m here to help, answer questions (via message or voice message), and encourage you on the journey.
When you think you’ve got all the ducks in a row, I’ll take a look. The second read, the revision review, does not require annotations or a report. It’s my unstructured notetaking on what we discussed, what I noticed went well, what new things I might’ve identified need help, what still isn’t fixed (and why/what I recommend), how proud I am of who you’re becoming as a person, and which character I think would be most likely to get picked for a bit on Whose Line Is It Anyway?
When that’s been sent back to you, we meet again! It’s your last call. Tell me what questions and frustrations you’re feeling, where you’re happy with how the book landed, your hopes and dreams, and how I’ve dashed them (just kidding). If we’re not happy with the book yet, this is where we make a game plan for how to get there. The cost quoted only covers everything and this call, so future work would be rated per hour based on the edits necessary (but starting at $40 per hour). I take your lead on what you want me to use my time on.
In addition to those fun in-text annotations and Microsoft Word tracked-changes, I’m also going to cook up a smokin’ report about the bigger issues, strengths, and adjustments the manuscript needs in my opinion (with guidance on how to revise to solve them). It’ll be a lot to read at once, so give yourself grace and time when you bite, chew, and digest. When you feel ready for it, I usually recommend a debrief call.
A debrief call is, like it sounds, a 60-minute call to review what I said, what you want me to know, what you need more information on, and how you want to go about revisions. I’ll guide you more on how to change things to solve the issues, what is really necessary versus more of my own interpretation and creative lens, and anything else you want to know! This call is optional but recommended.
The revision portion is all you, friend. I want this book to be your work, so even the changes I suggest should come from your own noggin. Take as much time as you need and just keep me in the loop. Mess with things, experiment, send me little excerpts—whatever works. I’m here to help, answer questions (via message or voice message), and encourage you on the journey.
When you think you’ve got all the ducks in a row, I’ll take a look. The second read, the revision review, does not require annotations or a report. It’s my unstructured notetaking on what we discussed, what I noticed went well, what new things I might’ve identified need help, what still isn’t fixed (and why/what I recommend), how proud I am of who you’re becoming as a person, and which character I think would be most likely to get picked for a bit on Whose Line Is It Anyway?
When that’s been sent back to you, we meet again! It’s your last call. Tell me what questions and frustrations you’re feeling, where you’re happy with how the book landed, your hopes and dreams, and how I’ve dashed them (just kidding). If we’re not happy with the book yet, this is where we make a game plan for how to get there. The cost quoted only covers everything and this call, so future work would be rated per hour based on the edits necessary (but starting at $40 per hour). I take your lead on what you want me to use my time on.
