Work with Me
Professional Editing and Coaching Services for Authors
Elyse Lyon is the best of the best.
★★★★★
Professional, passionate, knowledgeable, organized, and efficient. I will use her again. Always. She did an extraordinary job proofreading my manuscript. The process of creating a clean copy, from start to finish, was seamless. I will definitely reach out to Elyse when my next novel is written.
—Evelyn L.
Ready to begin your journey?
Let’s work together.
Discover how.
My Services
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Book Coaching
Book coaching can help at any stage of a writer’s process. Want help with planning your project? Support through a revision process? Feedback on a partial draft? Tailored assignments? Try book coaching!
$90/hour
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Coached Manuscript Evaluation
My flagship service, if you will. This is a collaborative, budget-friendly alternative to a full developmental edit—and I think it’s better for most authors! Read more about it on my blog here.
$180 + $90 per 10,000 words
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Manuscript Evaluation
I treat a manuscript evaluation as a pared-down developmental edit. I’ll complete an in-depth read of your completed manuscript and write a detailed editorial letter including a revision plan.
From $14 per 1,000 words
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Developmental Editing
Developmental editing tackles the overall structure and content of a book. For fiction, this involves in-depth, collaborative work on issues such as plot, character development, narrative perspective, and theme.
From $40 per 1,000 words
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Line Editing
Line editing polishes a work at sentence level, focusing on issues such as word choice, phrasing, rhythm, redundancy, and clarity to create vivid, professional prose and ensure the author’s voice shines.
From $34 per 1,000 words
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Copyediting
Copyediting deals with grammar and spelling, but also so much more! For this service, I also ransack a book for any remaining continuity errors and plot holes, fine-tune phrasing, and double-check facts.
From $27 per 1,000 words
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Proofreading
Has your book already been copyedited? Proofreading is the final stage before publication. I’ll scrutinize the manuscript for errors that eluded previous rounds of editing. If your book has been typeset, I’ll check for formatting issues.
From $16 per 1,000 words
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Publishing Support
Need advice on navigating the indie or traditional publishing world? I offer bespoke services that range from one-off consultations to full-service self-publishing support. (Limited support is also included free with editing services.)
$90/hour
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Customized Packages
Most editing services can be combined in a custom package, usually for a lower price: line editing and copyediting, copyediting and proofreading, and so on. Contact me to discuss your needs, or add an extra service to one you’ve booked.
Price on request
Frequently Asked Questions
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Line editing, copyediting, or proofreading for book-length manuscripts usually involves a turnaround time of up to one month. For developmental edits, we’ll need a minimum of four weeks, depending on the format of our collaboration.
If you contact me in January and my next available slot is in early May, this means you can expect a completion date of late May to early June, at minimum. However, expedited services are occasionally available upon request.
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No. Although I may occasionally use AI to help jumpstart research or find a word or phrase that’s on the tip of my tongue (asking questions such as “What women’s magazines were popular in 1950s Wales?” or “What are some more professional-sounding ways to say ‘skeevy’?”), I don’t feed client work to AI, and I don’t use AI to perform any actual editing. This isn’t just because use of AI poses severe copyright and ethical issues (e.g., work may not be publishable if it’s created with the help of AI); it’s also because, in my experience, AI produces markedly substandard results and requires far more work than simply doing the editing myself.
I do use Zoom’s AI Companion to help take notes during client calls, but clients are absolutely free to opt out of this. -
Please see my Portfolio page for a better understanding of what genres I edit. I copyedit, line edit, and proofread most types of fiction, as well as memoirs. I’m much more selective when it comes to developmental editing: I usually work with thrillers, literary fiction, LGBTQ+ literature, and romance, as well as additional projects that happen to be a good fit for my skills and experience (e.g., some types of business and self-help books).
I also copyedit, proofread, and line edit trade nonfiction (nonfiction for a general audience), as well as some types of scholarly literature, usually related to the humanities. I have experience in Chicago and MLA style and can adapt to other citation systems on request. -
Absolutely. I’ll never share, publish, or otherwise use your work; if I did, my career as an editor would be over!
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I work in US and UK English; I’ve also worked in Canadian English. I will not change UK to US English, or vice versa, unless specifically requested.
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No problem at all! This a common concern. Just reach out to me via my Contact page, and I’ll either meet with you via Zoom or discuss your needs and goals via email.
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I normally meet clients via Zoom. If you’re more comfortable with a phone call, though, that’ll work as well.
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Absolutely! Most clients I work with directly pay 50 percent in advance and 50 percent on return of their edited files. However, I’m happy to break that into smaller installments at no extra cost.
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Yes. I may occasionally recommend additional freelancers to work with you on the same project, but the choice of working with them is yours. I never subcontract or outsource work and pass it off as my own.