1.
Contact
me to see if there is space in my
schedule for your project. For book-length projects, ideally contact me at least a month
in advance; a 50% rush fee applies to jobs with less than a week’s advance
notice. For smaller projects, such as brochures or fact sheets, ideally contact
me a week in advance; a 50% rush fee applies to jobs with less than 24 hours'
notice.
2. If
I have space in my schedule for your project, let's have a (complimentary)
conversation so
I can learn more about it (and you can learn more about me). I prefer meeting with
new clients in person or talking on the phone, although we can converse via
email if necessary. One of the most important things to discuss is whether your
document may need a higher level of editing, such as copyediting
or substantive editing, rather than proofreading.
3. After
our conversation, if you're interested in working with me, send me a five-page sample of
your document, along with a total page count. I'll proofread the sample (at no charge) and give you a rough estimate of cost. I’ll
also send you a simple contract
summarizing what I believe we agreed upon in our conversation -- specific fees, deadlines,
procedures, and so on. We'll make sure we both agree on what you'd like me to
do.
4.
You’ll return the contract to me,
signed, with the following:
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A printout of
the document to be proofed.
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Any
supplementary information that may be helpful to me in proofreading
your document. A few examples:
*
the style sheet/word list prepared by the copyeditor, detailing
unusual words,
names, and/or idiosyncratic spellings in the work
* a list of any particular errors you'd like me to watch for, such as
missing accents or misplaced captions
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If
the proofreading is to be done online, a file containing the document in
final form, and
in as few files as possible, to facilitate searching. One big file is ideal.
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A check for half
of my estimated fee (for
first-time clients). The balance will be due on completion of the work.
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