Native US English Editor for Children’s Fiction – Final Polish

I’m looking for a native US English editor with experience in children’s fiction to carry out a final editorial review of an English-language collection of children’s stories. The stories were originally written in Spanish and have already been translated and carefully revised in English. The manuscript is at an advanced stage, so this is not a rewrite or a full line edit. I’m looking for a fresh native-English perspective and a very light final polish while preserving the existing voice and style. The collection uses short, direct prose designed to work well both on the page and when read aloud. Some repetition is deliberately used for rhythm, emphasis, contrast, and narrative echoes. Paid test – $40 fixed price Before assigning the full collection, I would like to begin with two sections of the collection as a paid test. One is a standalone story, while the other is a sequence of three connected short stories, one of which is very brief. The total length of the test is approximately 3,000 words. For the test, I would like you to: - Read the stories carefully, including reading them aloud. - Flag anything that sounds translated, unnatural, awkward, or not fully idiomatic in American English. - Identify unintentional repetitions of words or sentence structures. Some repetition is deliberately used as a narrative device, so please preserve it when you feel it is intentional and effective. - Flag any accidental rhymes, near-rhymes, or distracting sound patterns. The stories are prose, not verse. - Note any dialogue or vocabulary that feels unnatural, overly formal, out of register, or inconsistent with children’s fiction. - Flag any sentence or passage that reads naturally on the page but feels awkward when spoken aloud. Please use comments to briefly explain why something caught your attention. If you recommend a change, feel free to suggest an alternative. Most importantly, I’m not looking for changes simply because a sentence could be written differently. If something sounds natural, works in context, and fits the author’s voice, I would prefer it to remain unchanged. After completing the test, I would also appreciate a brief overall impression: - Did the English feel natural throughout? - Were there any moments when you became aware that you were reading a translation? - Did anything stand out when reading the stories aloud? - What did you think of the titles and character names as a native US English reader? The test will contain only the English versions. No knowledge of Spanish is required. If the collaboration is a good fit, the next stage will be a similar final review of the complete collection.