Choose your starting point
Writing Support
For an idea, notes, or an unfinished manuscript. Discuss planning, interviews, drafting, and revisions. The quote identifies target word count, interview allowance, research depth, draft schedule, and delivery files.
Editing Support
For an existing manuscript. Discuss developmental editing, line and copy editing, or proofreading. The quote identifies manuscript length, level of intervention, review passes, and output format.
Publishing Preparation
For approved text needing production support. Discuss cover design, formatting, metadata, and platform assistance. The quote identifies formats, design scope, platforms, corrections, and included support.
What changes the price?
The amount of new writing; condition of the manuscript; interview and research needs; specialist subject matter; illustrations and complex layouts; number of formats; revision scope; and scheduling requirements.
Every quote should identify
- The total service price and currency.
- Applicable taxes or how they will be calculated.
- Payment milestones and what each payment covers.
- Deliverables, limits, and exclusions.
- Third-party costs and who pays them.
- Revision rounds and scope-change rates or quotation procedure.
- Cancellation terms and included support period.
Common question
Why not price by page alone?
Page count changes with trim size, font, and layout. Word count and complexity are usually clearer ways to define writing and editing scope.
Clarity before you commit.
Collaboration as it develops.
Define the work, the review points, and what you will receive.
Understand our processCompare the work, not only the number
A quote is meaningful when you understand what it includes. Compare the manuscript length, starting material, research, interviews, deliverables and revision arrangement. Similar service names can describe different levels of work.
The lowest headline price may exclude important stages, while a higher quote may include work you do not need. Ask for a service-by-service explanation and consider whether the scope solves your current problem.
Writing scope and cost drivers
Writing work can begin with a developed outline, a collection of notes or an idea alone. The amount of discovery, source review and new drafting will differ. Interview count, research depth, genre complexity and the intended length all affect the project.
Agree how length is measured. Page counts are ambiguous without assumptions about page size, spacing and words per page. Confirm whether the quote ends at a complete draft or includes a separate editorial stage.
Editing scope and cost drivers
An assessment, developmental edit, line edit, copy edit and proofread are different services. The manuscript’s condition matters as well as its length. A short draft with extensive structural problems may require more intervention than a longer stable manuscript.
Ask what files you receive, whether an editorial letter or style sheet is included and how questions are handled. Review of a substantially rewritten manuscript may be a new stage rather than part of the original pass.
Design and production costs
Cover design may include a defined number of concept directions and revision rounds. Print wraps depend on the final production specifications. Interior work depends on the complexity of the material as well as the number of pages: tables, images, notes and exercises require planning.
Identify every requested format. A print PDF and a reflowable ebook are different outputs. Editable source files, stock assets, custom illustration and alternative editions should be specified in the quote.
Already have a manuscript?
Tell us what you have, what is working, and where you would like support. We can discuss the most relevant next step.
Talk About Your BookPublishing and marketing expenses
Separate professional service fees from external costs. Depending on the route, these may include printing, shipping, identifiers, stock licenses, advertising, domains or other third-party services. Ask which costs are estimates and who approves the final amount.
Publishing support should identify the platforms and tasks covered. Marketing should identify the channels, assets, duration and reporting. Neither service should be priced around an unsupported guarantee of ranking or sales.
A proposal comparison table
| Area | What to confirm | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Starting point | Exact manuscript or material reviewed | Prevents quoting against the wrong version |
| Deliverables | Named files and formats | Clarifies the end of the commission |
| Revisions | Included rounds and boundaries | Separates correction from new work |
| Schedule | Milestones and author review time | Makes dependencies visible |
| Third-party costs | Items, estimates and approval | Avoids unclear additional expenses |
| Handover | Editable files and account arrangements | Supports the next stage |
Requesting a tailored scope
Send a short description of the book, the intended audience, approximate word count and the stage you are at. Tell us which work you want to commission and whether there is a deadline. An excerpt or contents page may help the scope discussion.
Before committing, review payment stages, cancellation terms, revision arrangements and the agreed delivery files. The applicable written agreement should govern the project; this page does not establish a fixed price or a new refund promise.