Jump onto any of the many freelancing platforms (e.g., Freelancer.com, Fiverr.com, Upwork.com) and you’ll find a plethora of projects seeking freelance writers and editors, among other services. More than once, I’ve run across a “buyer request” that includes a statement to the effect that the potential client has reviewed similar projects on the platform and knows that the budget specified for the project is fair.

What that so-called research omits is that the published budgets for those projects are low-balled 99.99% of the time. They’re unreasonable to begin with.

So, if you’re in the market to hire a “creative” (I really dislike using that word as a noun), then here’s what to expect and not to expect.

Ghostwriting
Expect a skilled writer with native fluency in the language used for the document. If you’re publishing an article in Spanish, then find a native speaker of Spanish. Proficient fluency doesn’t catch idioms and colloquialisms, which leaves the content sounding stilted, overwritten, and overly formal.

Ghostwriting, nonfiction especially, requires work beyond actually writing the content. It may involve literature research, interviews with subject matter experts, and more. That pre-writing work takes time, effort, and the good judgment to know what information is relevant and what’s not. 

Writing is a craft and well-written content demonstrates competence or even mastery of that craft. Competence and/or mastery comes from years of practice and effort. The value of this expertise is calculated into the ghostwriter’s rates. Beginners with little experience deliver less value, because they’re basically learning on the job. They charge entry level fees. Skilled writers are professionals and invoice for their compensation accordingly. If that’s not clear enough, there are two excellent sources for professional writing and editing rates: the Editorial Freelancers Association and freelance platform nDash.

These authoritarian resources show rates that may result in sticker shock. However, when it comes to writing, you get what you pay for.

Editing
Writers write content; editors refine content. That’s the basic dividing line between the two. Editing may include some rewriting and revising of existing content, but it generally does not include wholesale creation of new content. That’s what writers do. Editors improve existing content. That effort may entail reorganizing the sequence of paragraphs or sections and/or correcting grammar and readability errors. Different kinds of editors perform different tasks; some editors excel in more than one type of editing. Before hiring an editor, understand the kind of editing your document needs.

What an editor does not include in his or her services as part of editing is creation of new content or graphic design (e.g., cover art/design) or page layout. These tasks go beyond the scope of editing. An editor may have knowledge of document design and may offer suggestions for improvement. As with writing, it helps to hire an editor who’s familiar with the topic or the genre, especially if you’re looking for someone who will check facts for accuracy or who knows what works best with the target audience.

When an author hires an editor, the author does not receive a manuscript ready to publish. The author receives a manuscript that looks like the editor’s red pen and yellow highlighter hemorrhaged all over it. The author is responsible for reviewing every single change and accepting it, rejecting it, or otherwise revising the content. 

Authors should also understand that editing isn’t usually a one-and-done process. Proper editing requires multiple passes through the manuscript, meaning the editor edits, the author reviews and revises, then the editor edits the manuscript again. Sometimes this cycle repeats several times, depending upon the extent of rewriting involved. The final round of the editing process is proofreading which detects and corrects those usually small errors that slipped through the cracks. Proofreading may occur before or after document formatting.

For an accurate range of rates charged by professionals, see the EFA link above.

Formatting
Cover design differs from page layout, although graphic designers do both. Most writers and editors do not excel at graphic design and page layout, which pros execute using sophisticated software specifically intended for the task. Canva, Microsoft Word, and other programs don’t make that cut. The necessary software isn’t cheap and there’s a steep learning curve to using it well.

Cover design concerns just that: the book’s cover. Accurate calculations are required to ensure the correct size of the document. This task entails understanding the difference between light and pigment, the importance of resolution (and what it is), and various artistic techniques to alter images and text.

Page layout concerns everything between the covers and how the book appears when the reader opens it and turns each page. Choices in font and leading (i.e., line spacing) affect the readability of the content. Margin shift, image placement, and text wrapping must be accommodated. Page layout requires gut-level consistency throughout the document, regardless of how long that document runs.

Graphic designers consider how things look, not how they read. That means they are not responsible for typos and other content errors.

Follow the link for an accurate range of freelance graphic design rates.

Your Responsibility
As an independent author, you are responsible for the quality of the product you produce. Once you sign off a completed task, the vendor you hired is no longer responsible for any problems or flaws detected afterward. Many vendors, however, will do their best to accommodate after-completion requests for correction.

As an independent author, whether you want to publish a book or your business wants marketing collateral, you accept the responsibility and obligations of a traditional publishing company in the production of your material. That means the services a traditional publisher pays for either with in-house staff or hired contractors shift to you. You may have expertise in the above areas which may enable you to save a bit of money, but few people are skilled in all those tasks.

Don’t do your book, newsletter, magazine, or other document a disservice because you don’t want to spend money. If you want professional content, then be prepared to pay professional rates.

Underwriting the costs to pay for the publication of one’s own story is an age-old practice. For the last few centuries, writers seeking to raise money or get their messages out have paid to reproduce their words for distribution. At its essence, publishing for one’s own self is vanity publishing.

An entire industry devoted to publishing anything and everything, regardless of quality, style, or genre, covers both vanity publishing and self-publishing. In fact, the definition of a vanity press squarely hits self-publishing platforms like Kindle Direct Publishing, Lulu, IngramSpark, Draft2Digital, and others.

The key difference between a vanity press and self-publishing is transparency. There are other differences, too.

A vanity publisher will offer a publishing contract to an author agreeing to publish the author’s work in exchange for a fee. That fee may or may not include a battery of services that a traditional publisher would use to produce a professional product: editing, proofreading, page formatting, cover design, copyright registration, ISBN registration. Online publishing platforms offer many of those services, such as templates for cover design and ISBNs. Vanity publishers, however, want to register the copyright to their ownership; the self-published author owns the copyright.

Vanity presses may suggest the fee being charged to the author as the author’s share in the speculative investment that produces a book. What they fail to disclose is that not only do vanity presses make their profits from authors who pay their fees, but they also take the lion’s share of royalties earned through book sales. Self-published authors–at least those who care to produce a professional product–pay editors, proofreaders, graphic artists, etc. to produce their books, but those vendors are open about how they make their living. They provide specified services for fees charged; they do not earn a share of those royalties.

Many vanity publishers promise to market and promote their authors’ books. Those authors frequently report that marketing efforts depend entirely on them: the publishers made little or no effort to garner book sales. This is telling, because it shows that vanity presses don’t make their money primarily from selling books (i.e., from royalties); they make their money from payments made by authors. A self-published author understands that book promotion and marketing is his or her responsibility. Those who have the time and inclination may do it themselves; others hire publicists and book promoters to take on that responsibility. A vanity publisher doesn’t particularly care whether the book sells; they’ve got their money.

Unfortunately, that lack of marketing support has infected traditional publishers, too. They invest their marketing budgets into authors whose books they know will make a profit. That, of course, gives unknown and little known authors short shrift.

So, now that I’ve made the point to distinguish vanity presses from self-publishing, what’s the difference between assisted publishing and vanity presses? After all, the author pays for the services provided for assisted publishing just as he or she would to self-publish or publish through a vanity press.

The difference, once again, is transparency. As a provider of assisted publishing, Hen House Publishing offers a menu of services for fees. The author retains control throughout the publishing process and pays for the services he or she wants. That may or may not include the actual publication process itself during which the book is uploaded to the author’s preferred self-publishing platform. Here’s the catch: the author keeps the copyright.

Why would an author opt for assisted publishing? As stated above, producing a book meeting professional standards entails skills that most authors don’t possess and/or may not understand. Editing isn’t the same as writing; proofreading isn’t the same as editing. Page layout and cover design are similar, but not the same. Navigating the publication process requires a touch of marketing savvy helped by familiarity with the platform. These employ different skill sets that most people don’t acquire, much less combine.

As a provider of assisted publishing, Hen House Publishing brings the needed skills, experience, and knowledge to the project. This shortens or even eliminates the author’s learning curve while assuring a better quality book.

If you’ve written a book and seek to publish it, but don’t know where to start or need help along the publishing process, e-mail Hen House Publishing now. Or call (937) 964-5592. Let’s talk about your project, what the publishing process entails, and what you need to produce that book.

Every word counts.

One of the taglines I use as an author/publisher is “Escape with Us.” Escape is what good fiction accomplishes. We readers immerse ourselves in the problems of fictional characters, accompany them through adventures and angst, and share their triumph when all’s well that ends well.

Sometimes we need an escape from our normal lives in real life, not just within the pages of a good story. That’s why we take vacations. We give ourselves a break and permission either to do something different or do nothing at all. Last week I took such a break. I went to New Orleans, Louisiana.

My deceased son’s birthday is in late October. I didn’t want to be home for what was supposed to have been–and was in previous years–a joyful date. I needed distraction from melancholy and what better place to find distraction than the Big Easy?

The choice of destination was deliberate. I picked a place where Matt once visited and thoroughly enjoyed himself. I picked a location I’d never before experienced. I asked my best friend to accompany me and she agreed.

I’m sure that wasn’t easy for her, as I’m not the easiest person with whom to spend extended time. But we managed to get through the entire week with our friendship intact, so that’s good. We were smart enough to get separate hotel rooms and take breaks from each other.

We explored the French Quarter together. We went on various tours: a city bus tour, a carriage tour, a swamp tour, a ghost tour. We walked pretty much everywhere. We dined at restaurants recommended by locals, not by Yelp or other tourists. We directed our attention to the city’s eclectic storefronts, art, and history. I bought stuff I didn’t need. We tried new foods.

“Escape with Us” recognizes that we all need breaks from daily stress. A good story can deliver that at our convenience; a great story pulls us back into the pages even when we’re supposed to be concentrating on other things. I’m contented with a good story, but thrilled by a great story.

A great story is what I hope to produce. It’s what every fiction author hopes to produce. There’s no better accolade than a review confessing that the story gripped the reader into the wee hours of the night or persuaded the reader to ignore his or her other obligations in favor of reading it, like this review for Russian Lullaby: “Loved this book. Had everything to hold your interest. Author puts magic and life into her words and the story flows and steals your attention. Reading this book becomes a priority. Other things put on hold…like sleep for example.” Or this review for The Falcon of Imenotash: “Holly has done it again. I couldn’t put down the book. Aridis and Edan battle humiliating circumstances brought about by the emperor. Her supposed brother. I just couldn’t wait to see if they would prevail.“

Not all my books garner such praise. A few receive negative reviews because they don’t conform to genre expectations or the reader dislikes something about the character(s). I take comfort in those reviews, because they don’t complain of substandard writing. That just goes to prove that just because something’s written well doesn’t mean that everyone will like it.