Hire the Best Copy Editors in Chicago, IL

Over the last ten years, I've utilized my writing skills in newspapers and magazines, freelance clients, fiction writing, and pursuits within the AI industry. I also have experience in brand development, advertising, public relations, and social media content creation and management. With my versatile background, I'm confident that I can deliver outstanding results across various creative and strategic projects.

From 2007 to 2017 I was the owner of the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography, which published 40 books for total distribution of over 20,000 copies. Along the way, CCLaP's books won or were finalists for a half-dozen awards, including the Pushcart Prize, the Lambda Award for LGBTQ literature, and the Independent Publisher Book Award; and the center itself was named one of the 10 best indie presses in the United States by both BookRiot and Poets & Writers magazine. Now I bring that same award-winning deep experience to your own self-published or small-press manuscript, helping you hone it with a fine knife into the best book it can possibly be. I currently offer three services as a freelancer, the first and main one being editing. I provide not only developmental editing (helping you identify “big picture” problems regarding the story, characters, dialogue, information logic, and more) but also copy editing (including a close-in technical pass for grammar, punctuation, spelling, and usage, also sometimes known as “line editing” or “content editing”) and post-production proofreading (where I review not only the text but also all the book parts, such as headers and footers, the title page and synopsis, etc.). I charge half a cent per word for proofreading, 1 cent per word for either developmental or copy editing, or a bundled discount of 1.5 cents per word for all three. Secondly, I offer graphic design of your book’s interior pages. If you have specific ideas beforehand of what you’d like included, I’m happy to incorporate those wishes; or otherwise we work in an iterative process, where I present you multiple options as far as layout style and typeface choices, and over several back-and-forth discussions we whittle things down to a design you love. For books of less than 500 pages/100,000 words with no tables, I charge a flat $300 for the entire process, plus provide EPUB and Kindle ebook versions for free; please drop me a line if you have a bigger or more complicated book. (My apologies, but I do not offer cover design as a freelance service.) And thirdly, I offer help as a story coach, which you can think of as a creative writing college course but with only one student, you. I meet up with you at whatever frequency works best, review the latest work, give you pointers on where to go next, help you brainstorm ideas, and serve as an accountability partner during mental blocks. You determine exactly what kind of help would work best for you, and the maximum amount of hours I should work per week, at a rate of $30 per hour. See my portfolio section at the bottom of the page for a broad selection of testimonials from authors I've worked with as a freelancer, and praise my books have garnered over the years from such publications as Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, the Chicago Tribune, HTMLGIANT, and more. Proud member of: American Copy Editors Society Romance Writers of America (fellow RWA members get a discount; write for more) Chicago-North Romance Writers ANTI-AI PLEDGE: I promise that all work I complete for clients has been, and will always be, accomplished using only my human brain and ten human fingers, never using AI bots, Grammarly, or other software options.

Good morning/afternoon/evening, Upwork clients! I have had the pleasure of being on Upwork since 2014. Want to work together? Here are my rates. HOURLY EDITING JOBS: $40 per hour to proofread (egregious errors only) (intermediate- to advanced-level writing) $45 per hour for medium-level copyedit using AP Style, proofread (intermediate- to advanced-level writing) $50 per hour for substantive editing, meticulous copyedit using AP style, fact-checking, rewrites as necessary (any level of writing, including beginners) WRITING PRICING BREAKDOWN: $40 per hour for minimal research, mandatory byline, general articles $50 per hour for investigative research articles, fact-checking, editing, mandatory byline ------------------------------------- MORE ABOUT SHAMONTIEL: I am a full-time freelancer with 21 years of journalism experience and editing experience (mainly AP Style), 24 years of administrative experience, 18 years of digital editing experience (including law firms and newsrooms), seven years in mid-level management roles in publishing, 27 years of social media experience, and completed approximately 258 interviews. Everyday tasks for me currently include editing (AP Style); fact-checking news and financial copy for a marketing company’s newsletter packages (often focused on health and real estate insurance, estate planning and money management, tax news, and home improvement); and reviewing SEO. I also write financial copy about money management, estate planning and the basics of stock ownership. On a seasonal basis, I also edit financial copy related to crypto, stocks, bonds and Wall Street news. Ideal Client: My CliftonStrengths results are Achiever, Command, Executor and Influencer, meaning I excel in leadership positions with minimal supervision. I thrive in virtual work environments with clients who communicate well, give constructive feedback and encourage a work-life balance. My long-term clients are also quite fond of Upwork Messenger, Slack, Asana, Loom, Google Meet and DialPad. Does that describe you? I'd love to hear from you then.

Hello! My name is Katelynn and I am an experienced proofreader, editor, content writer, copywriter, beta-reader, transcriptionist, and video editor. I have proofread and edited every kind of writing that I can think of, and I hope to continue being able to do this. I have a superb grasp of the English language and its grammatical rules. By entrusting me to proofread and edit your document, whether a first draft or a final draft, I assure you that you will receive an outstanding deliverable from me. In terms of video editing, I have quite a bit of experience in this area through creating and editing videos for myself and others. Primarily, I utilise Adobe Premiere, Adobe Audition, and Davinci Resolve to edit my videos.

I’m a detail-oriented perfectionist with a passion for language, which makes me the ideal copy editor or proofreader for your magazine/resume/website/pizza menu. I have a BFA in creative writing with a focus on poetry, so I know words matter, and whether I'm writing or editing, I bring that care and dedication to every project. Pro-oxford comma, but if that’s not your style we can still make it work! I’m flexible enough to have thrived in work environments as varied as a hotel kitchen and a theater tech booth, and while most of my editing experience is in Chicago Style, I’ve worked with a variety of style guides, and even created a house style guide for internal and audience-facing documents. I was raised in Scotland and now live in the United States; my fluency in both British and American English is an asset if you're working on both sides of the pond. I have five years of editing and proofreading experience, including literary magazines, interview transcripts, and image captions, and I'm comfortable working with Microsoft Office and Adobe Suite.

Content Contributor (English or Spanish) 9 Years of Curriculum Development and Assessment in Education〡Advanced Knowledge of G Suite for Education〡 Bilingual in Spanish and English Nine years of curriculum development and assessment experience in education. Team leadership and project management focused on instructional design and content creation and development. Focus on extreme accuracy, following regulations, and creating assessments that follow standards. Focus on administrative tasks, documentation, reporting and productivity reporting. Exceptional client relations and customer service. Experience training and instructing participants while working with upper management closely.