Some frank talk about fees

[Millionth_Monkey]

Editors, unlike doctors and lawyers, have no credentialing body. Anyone can offer his or her services as an editor. Some self-anointed editors have no qualifications other than their good intentions. As a result, they can demand only minimal compensation for their work.

I have invested a lifetime in gaining the experience — not to mention hundreds of thousands of dollars in gaining the education — to become a seasoned and accomplished editor. I will not compete on price with someone whose only investment is the cost of an advertisement on the Internet.

The disparity in the qualifications of those offering their services as editors has become more pronounced in recent years as large companies have moved into “manuscript processing” (the phrase brings to mind the manufacture of Spam, doesn’t it?). These firms, while generally based in the English-speaking world, farm out the editing work to low-wage ESL workers in the Near East and Far East. I will not compete on price with those who toil in countries where the average professional earns $5,000 a year.

In short, if you want the work done right, you’re at the right place; if you want it done on the cheap, we wish you the best of luck.

[Millionth_Monkey]

I believe I failed to identify myself in the post about fees. I am Millionth Monkey.

[Tdol]

One of the sadder consequences of the internet is a drive to the bottom for prices at the expense of quality. The most alarming example is the rise of the illiterate sites offering essay writing services (cheating), where they cannot write a sentence without a mistake. Serious editing services are being dragged down by this cheating nonsense as well as price-cutting mediocre providers.