Swordsmith offers a full range of production and editorial production services. Swordsmith has worked on books for Bantam/Doubleday/Dell, Barricade Books, Cambridge University Press, Circlet Press, Cornell University Press, Hard Case Crime, Hyperion, HarperCollins, Marlowe and Company, Oxford University Press, Putnam-Penguin, St. Martin’s Press, Soho Press, Thunder’s Mouth Press, Tor Books, and others.
Whether you need help developing an idea or a full line edit to prepare a book for submission or publication, we can help you. Costs range from $500 for a detailed evaluation of an outline and sample chapters to $3,000 for a heavy manuscript edit. Most editing jobs cost about $1,500 and include a phone conference, a detailed editorial letter, and a line edit of the revised manuscript. We also provide design and typesetting services for authors who wish to self-publish, and can help you steer clear of scammers. Additionally, we offer a range of inexpensive workshops for writers who need help finishing a book or want guidance on specific publishing topics.
Author or typesetter disks from copyedited manuscripts or previously typeset books are converted from their native file format into tagged files for Quark XPress, InDesign, XML, Penta, Miles, or other typesetting or Web format. Copyediting changes are input into the new files as necessary (coded files are proofread in-house before being released). Pricing is based on complexity and level of editing. British spelling and punctuation can be converted to American forms at low cost during this stage of the process.
Manuscripts are checked for grammar, spelling, punctuation, internal consistency (and series consistency if necessary). Fact checking, checking quotes for accuracy, and checking for historical accuracy is also included. A detailed stylesheet, including all location of all text elements, style and usage notes, variant spellings used by the author, and descriptions of characters (for fiction) is provided. Both traditional and electronic copyediting are provided, although we recommend traditional copyediting.
Checking typeset 1st or 2nd pass page proofs or galleys against a copyedited original manuscript to make certain edits have been included and to check for typesetting errors. Includes reads by two different proofreaders, as well as a light check for spelling or typographical errors. Cold reads for spelling and typographical errors may be done where no previous manuscript is available.
Scanning and cleanup of unedited or lightly edited manuscripts, as well as conversion into nearly any format. May be accompanied by coding, if necessary.
Files can be translated from nearly any word processing, typesetting, or screenwriting format into a new file format. Includes light cleanup if necessary