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!
The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, Book 1)
The Dark Tower The Gunslinger"The Man In Black fled across the desert, and the Gunslinger followed. The desert was the apotheosis of all deserts, huge, standing to the sky for what looked like eternity in all directions."
Back in the 80's, before "The Dark Tower" became the huge hit it is today, I lucked out, coming upon this jewel of modern American writing in a tiny little used book store in a tiny little town in Texas. King dreamed up the story from a reading of "Childe Roland To The Dark Tower Came" by Robert Browning, and carries all of the angst, pain an despair which fills that poem.
The series centres around Roland Deschain, The Last Gunslinger, who may be a creature of myth and legend, or simply a man, as he tracks the Man In Black across a bleak and hopeless desert - a desert of reality and of the soul.
"My first thought was, he lied in every word,
That hoary cripple, with malicious eye
Askance to watch the working of his lie
On mine, and mouth scarce able to afford
Suppression of the glee that pursed and scored
Its edge, at one more victim gained thereby. " Robert Browning
The Gunslinger immediately gripped my attention and refused to release me. Poetry, mythology, pain and loss, a searching of the mind soul and body. As a Browning fan, the concept touched me deeply.
Over the years, I was thrilled every time a new Tower came out, and was never disappointed. This is King stretching himself, moving outside his "horror" boundaries, while still remaining true to his writing style in many ways. The world of the Tower is desolate, painful and digs deep into archetypes of the human soul.
Is this another world, somewhere lost among the tides and times of the Universe, old beyond measure and dying? Or is this our world, old itself beyond measure, stretched thin and worn, fading into the universe with a whimper, rather than a bang.
The story grows and develops over the subsequent editions, building and expanding on its mythos, its archetypes, its heart. A serialized novel of depth and power, of heartbreak and redemption, with characters unlike any others, The Tower is a blend of poetry, art and prose unlike any other. Read "The Gunslinger." Then gift your soul with the rest of the series. And think - - - what is real? Are we? Is Roland? Is the world of Roland just on the other side of our own reality?
George Guidell does his normal, spectacular job as the voice of the Audible.com edition of the series. His voice, which has narrated over 900 audio books, and won two Audie Awards for Excellence in audio book narration, is perfect for the part and never deviates from its power and perfection.