So, I Read This Book Today . . .
Editing Fees and Guidelines
As my editing jobs have become more numerous, I have updated my Editing Fees and Guidelines. My editing and proofreading includes checking for grammar, sentence structure, misspellings, and pointing out plot inconsistencies, etc. At this time, my base charge is $0.008/word, with a minimum of $50, payable via PayPal. Editing jobs I am currently working on, received before May 1, 2014, will continue to be edited at the old rate.
If your manuscript is less than 5,000 words please let me know and we can work out pricing. I prefer to set up appointments for your manuscript, but please, send your manuscripts to me as early as possible. I can often work them in sooner than they are scheduled, but advance notice is much easier.
I use Microsoft Word 2013. I use the Track Changes application while I edit and leave the decision as to whether or not to accept those changes to you. I also tend to leave extensive notes outlining the reason for specific changes, noting uneven or awkward sentence or paragraph flow, or even if I noticed something that just doesn’t feel right.
Full editing is completed in one of two ways. The first choice is that I completely edit the book and provide you with a corrected copy, highlighting changes and corrections and making when appropriate extensive notes. Your second choice is full editing. I take the book in hand, do all corrections and changes and provide you with print ready copy. The charge for print ready copy is $0.010/word.
Please note: Books from authors who speak English as a second language, hence requiring a great deal more correction for grammar, or books with extensive re-write may be significantly more. You may send me your book for pricing if you feel there may be extensive work needed on the book. Pricing available upon request.
After I have edited a manuscript, I will send it back to you. Once you have made changes, you can always send it back to me for a second pass at no charge. Please note: If second-pass changes are truly extensive, I will reserve the right to bill a second payment for the second pass. I want to be fair to you, but I also want to be fair to myself. Just as writing is difficult, though rewarding, editing a book in a manner that will make you proud of your final product is a lot of work.
For available books on which I have worked, please see my “i-edited” shelf on Goodreads. You may contact any of the authors with whom I’ve worked for a reference. I am also very willing to provide you a sample of my work to see if we are a comfortable fit. I can be easily contacted through Goodreads or by e-mail at soireadthisbooktoday@centurylink.net
I look forward to working with you!
Trinkets, Treasures, and Other Bloody Magic (The Dowser Series)
If you haven’t read Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic (The Dowser Series) WHY NOT??? IT IS WONDERFUL! So, read Cupcakes and then dive right into Trinkets.It’s like chocolate – you can’t STOP
Looking back at my review of Cupcakes, the first in The Dowser Series, I realize that I talked more about the cupcake recipes that Meagan came up with. Well, the cupcakes sound awesome so who can blame me? But I never really said anything about the story other than how much I enjoyed it. And I should have, because the story is wonderful.
Jade is the daughter of a witch (father unknown), granddaughter of one of the strongest witches on the West Coast, and foster sister of yet another witch. Best friends all their lives, Jade trusts and loves her sister Sienna with all her heart. Happy in her life, running her bakery, “Cake In A Cup” and making ‘trinkets’ from bits and bobs infused with the magic of their former owners, Jade has a happy, calm, and peaceful life. Well, until the vampire shows up staring through her bakery window. And then, her whole life changes. Dead werewolves, blood magic, and other horrors change and twist Jade’s life. Yes, some of the changes are good, as she begins to grow into her strength, to become what she is meant to be. However, there is deep and cutting pain that must be absorbed, betrayals and hatred and horrors. Jade’s life will never be the same. But she grows, adapts, and begins the journey to her new life as an unknown power in the magical world.
You want to believe that there’s one relationship in life that’s beyond betrayal. A relationship that’s beyond that kind of hurt. And there isn’t.- Caleb Carr
There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love. – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Now, in the second edition, Trinkets, Treasures, and Other Bloody Magic (The Dowser Series 2). Jade continues to grow into her new Dowser powers. A magical ‘finder’ much like a water dowser, Jade tracks and finds magical objects – and apparently, also magical people. The story opens in the incredible Squamish forest of the Northwest outside of Vancouver as Jade enjoys her second to last piece of single-origin Madagascar chocolate and contemplates which of her two teachers, Kett the ancient vampire, or Kandy, the werewolf, will try to jump her this time as they teach her how to protect herself from the world of magic creatures. What they find in the forest is strange and new (to Jade) and proves her powers are even more than she first believed. Here starts a tale of yet more growth and change for Jade. And pain that she had only recently thought could not be more overwhelming.
More betrayal overwhelms her life in this edition, and yet there is also hope and new friendships, new discoveries about herself and her powers. Doidge weaves a tale with layers and depths not found in many of the other urban fantasy series on the market today. The beliefs that Jade has built her life upon are ripped out from under her feet, and nothing will ever be quite the same again. But as been said, and proven, over millennia, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger – and Jade is coming into her strength.
There were some things I didn’t like about the book – Jade is much too forgiving of people who would dismiss and demean her, both as a person and a magic user. But that seems to be a theme with ‘family’ issues, where those who you thought loved you and believed in you truly don’t believe you are strong at all, who have no faith in your abilities . . . I wouldn’t be as forgiving as Jade was. However, I have a feeling that Jade will show that person that she is stronger, and “more” than anyone ever could have believed.
The end was shocking, and wonderful, and heartfelt. It has me on the edge of my seat waiting for the next volume. I highly recommend that you read Cupcakes first, then Trinkets. They can be read stand-alone, but you will enjoy it more if you read both. Then, when you are done and waiting for the next, I highly recommend that you read Meghan’s other works, especially Spirit Binder (The Cascadian Chronicles #1). The second of that series is another book I am drooling to get my hands on.
Again, highly recommended to anyone who loves Urban Fantasy, strong women characters, and beautiful writing.