Phifer Editing - Services

Academic Editing

Dissertations/Capstones
Long-form essays
Academic Journal Articles
Curricula Vitae
White papers
Peer-reviewed articles
Grant proposals
Textbooks & other curriculum
Experienced in formatting and citations for the latest editions of the following styles:
- APA
- Chicago
- Turabian
- MLA

Academic editing is tailored to your specific setting and needs.

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Manuscript & Other Editing

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Proofreading

Copyediting includes checks for spelling, consistency, grammar, punctuation, repetition, and polishing your sentences and paragraphs so they’re clear and well-written.
Proofreading includes checking for typos, line breaks, punctuation, and other fine, final edits.

Substantive Editing

Substantive editing is an in-depth review of the overall picture of your completed work. It asks questions like:

Does this work for your genre?
Does the character establishment and development work?
Are there plot holes or other misplaced elements?
Does the manuscript flow?
Does the story make sense? (You can create your own Hogwarts, but the story needs to follow the Hogwarts rules!)

Substantive editing requires a completed rough draft.

woman in blue shirt sitting at a table in front of a wall of books editing document by hand with red pen

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Ghostwriting

Do you have a story or message to share, but not the time, energy, or skillset to write it yourself? As your ghostwriter, I will conduct extensive interviews to help you find the core of your story or message, and hone it into the book you would write yourself, in your style and voice.

Ghostwriting is an in-depth and personal service. Please contact me to discuss if this is a good option for you.

* Contract required for all work

2025 Service Rates

Editing is tailored to your specific needs. Contact me to get a custom quote.

Copyediting

Editing for grammar, punctuation, and basic flow.

$ .04/word
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Formatting (Academic)

Editing of academic writing (paper, thesis, dissertation, etc.). Includes copyediting plus formatting according to required style guide.

$ .05/word for < 30K words

$1,600 for > 30K words
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Coaching / Developmental Editing

Helping develop a manuscript at any stage (foundation → final draft). Includes guidance on topic, genre, plot, & character development.

$ .05/word for existing manuscript

$65/hr for manuscript in development
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Research / Fact-checking

Confirming accuracy of citations.

$ .06/word
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Writing (non-manuscript)

Writing of any non-manuscript format/length (includes ghostwriting/co-writing). Includes research, writing, & two drafts.

$ 60/hour
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Writing (manuscript)

Writing of manuscript (includes ghostwriting/co-writing). Includes research, writing, & two drafts.

$ 65/hour
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