We get email all the time from clients who ask us, “How much will you charge to edit, just edit these three pages?” It’s a simple enough request, until you consider what we do when we “edit” something.
Microsoft Word helps us find misspellings and points out what it considers to be grammatical errors, so that’s not a problem. In fact, our prospective clients have usually already done that, used Word or other software to fix obvious typos and correct basic grammatical errors. We are not, however, human versions of readily available software. Nor is that software all you need to write and perfect a superior document. Far from it.
So what exactly are we doing when we provide editing services to our clients?
What does “editing” mean at Editaway? What do our customers get for their hard-earned money? The answers are superior clarity, flow and messaging. If we find typos and grammatical issues, we’ll point them out and suggest ways to fix them, of course, but most of what we’re doing is helping our clients improve the effectiveness of what they’ve written.
The initial question we ask ourselves when we receive a client document is, “Are our client’s ideas clearly presented in a professional manner that reads well?” And then we do everything possible to answer that question so that, by the time we’re done, we can respond in the affirmative. And then you’ll read the edits we send you and say to yourself, “Wow. That really is better.”
Editing is science, but it’s also an art, and it’s the “art” part that is the reason our clients use Editway. We’re not just editors per se. We’re writers who edit. Writing original material for our clients is most of what we do – through Writeaway.us. In fact, it’s because we write that we’re so good at editing. It’s why we have the skill and will put in the time and effort that goes into turning an okay document into, “Gee whiz. Did I really write that?” The fact is, yes you did. We just helped you make it better.
And then there’s the question of process.
To help you understand what we’ve done to your document, we add line and page numbers, whenever that’s possible, relative to which we make specific comments and suggestions that are easy for you to follow and use to your advantage.
We also believe in the collaboration that is, or should be, part of every editing assignment. The reality is that we don’t know your business, certainly not the specifics of it.
Unless we’re careful, which we are, it’s possible that we might suggest changes that affect the meaning of what you’ve written or the impression you were trying to make. That’s why we will occasionally raise the question, “We’re not sure precisely what you meant to say here. Does the change we are recommending still convey the original meaning you had in mind?” And sometimes it doesn’t. Our clients get back to us, which is something we encourage, and we try another approach until we get it right.
The more specialized or unique the context of our client’s materials, the more important this carefulness and collaboration become.
Editing, Editaway-style, takes time and skill.
The rougher the original, the greater the effort it takes to edit it. That’s why we charge what we do for our services. To be honest, we’re not sure anyone who charges any less is doing the job our clients are expecting and deserve.
Ask yourself, “What am I willing to pay to significantly improve the quality of an important document?” The odds are very high that it’s considerably more than we charge.
The adage, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression,” applies. If your document is important – and you don’t need to hire us if it’s not – isn’t it worth a few dollars to make sure it’s well-written?
By the way, keep in mind that two of our people review every single page we edit, just in case the first editor missed something. Two people. (We take editing very seriously.)
So fill out our “Send Us A Document” form.
We’ll take a look at your document and then send you a proposal for your consideration.
We also work for clients who need regular, recurring services on a subscription basis which is more cost effective than piecemeal work, one document at a time. For those clients, Editaway acts as a part-time employee, but without costly employee benefits and other expenses.
In general, we communicate with our clients via email and video calls – including evenings and weekends if necessary given your schedule and to produce the quality work you need on a timely basis.
Needless to say, but we’ll say it anyway, all client materials – even those we review, but are not hired to edit – are kept in strict confidence. Editaway never discusses our client’s documents and business with any other client or person. We won’t even tell anyone that you’re one of our clients. Ours is a strictly confidential service.
Thanks for stopping by. We’re looking forward to hearing from you and to helping make a document you’ve written even better.
-Editaway
P.S. We asked one of our editors, Avril Levine, for a picture we could use on our website and this, on the left, is the one she gave us. Uncanny, isn’t it, how much she looks like rock singer Avril Lavigne.
