2. Editing and ProofreadingBudget: $1000+First up, the bad news: You’re too emotionally attached to your work to edit and proofread it. It’s always best if you enlist another pair of eyes to edit and format your book.Most authors work with a development editor, a copy editor or line editor, and a proofreader. These professionals may charge by the word or per project. A development editor costs $17 per hour. A developmental edit of a 40,000 manuscript costs approximately $960. A copyeditor charges $15-20 per hour. Copyediting a 40,000-word manuscript costs approximately $680. A proofreader starts at $10-15 per hour. Proofing a 40,000-word manuscript costs approximately $400. Combining copyediting and proofreading works out at $680.(Figures provided kindly by Reedsy)Whoever you consider hiring, read their reviews and testimonials, so you can gauge the quality of their work beforehand. Rates vary widely, so shop around. The answer depends on how clean your draft is, your subject matter and what level and quality of editorial support you want.If you want to save money, Emmanuel Nataf, CEO of Reedsy told me: “Make sure you’ve already edited it as best as you can yourself. That means removing sections you know won’t make the final edit and taking a pass to correct the spelling, grammar, and punctuation. You do not want to pay professional rates for something that Microsoft Word already does for free.”A developmental editor will provide critical feedback about your book’s tone and direction in a reader’s report. They may offer light copyediting, depending on your contract.A copy editor or line editor will go through each sentence and polish them. The editor will also check that your spelling, word choice and the overall style of your book is consistent. They’re kind of like a copywriter. A proofreader will eliminate typos and grammar mistakes and might also look for factual inaccuracies.Working with Your EditorWhile self-publishing my first book, I hired a proofreader, but I didn’t hire an editor. Having worked as a journalist and sub-editor, I felt confident about editing a non-fiction book myself.That wasn’t my only mistake.I hired a cheap proofreader for $200 to check my first book. This proofreader found some errors (but not all of them) before I self-published it. After I uploaded the first version of my book, I found some additional errors and typos (the shame!).After a reader complained to me about some more typos, I rained furious hellfire down upon him. When that didn’t work, I used the online proofreading service Grammarly to recheck every chapter. Then I resent this book to a professional proofreader for $300.A month later, I uploaded a new version to Amazon. I also paid to have much of the book re-edited. I also retitled and redesigned the cover of the book so I could position it to the right readers more effectively and increase sales.For every book I’ve self-published since 2014, I’ve worked with an editor, proofreader, and occasionally a line editor.Book writing webinarTips for Hiring an Editor or ProofreaderTypically, an editor will send you a reader report with an annotated version of your manuscript. The proofreader and line editor also make changes in a document and send it back to you to accept or reject.Feedback like this, while sometimes tough, will improve the quality of your book and teach you more about writing (a nice added bonus).Now, you can hire an editor, proofreader and copy editor based on: Your total word count The hours you want the editor/proofreader to spend on your book Your total page count Your project as a wholeBefore hiring an editor or proofreader, ask them: What style they’ll use. The Chicago Manual of Style is pretty popular. Will they edit your book in British or US English? Can they provide a sample edit for you to review (usually free)? Do they specialize in any genre? Can they provide testimonials from satisfied clients? How long will an edit take? What are their rates?Editing On A BudgetIf you can’t afford an editor or proofreader, start saving! Working with an editor is the single best way to improve your book and your craft. That said:If your close friend or another writer offers to help with editing and formatting the book, and they know what they’re doing, take them up on their offer until you can afford to hire a professional.Several years ago, I was a member of non-fiction writing group. Each of us critiqued and edited the works of others in the group. So that’s a worthwhile option if you’re on a tight budget.Similarly, if you write guest blog posts based on your draft, you can get free editorial feedback about your non-fiction. After your guest post goes live, you can always reuse elements of the post as chapters in your book with some light rewriting.I caution against self-publishing your book without hiring or getting an eagle-eyed friend to proofread your book.Those typos will come back to haunt you.