Support for Indie Authors discussion

I'm an editor who has just come back after an illness, and so I've been perusing third-party websites with a mind to offering my services through them. While Reedsy, for example, takes 10% (a reasonable commission) plus processing fees, I was shocked to discover some sites were demanding as much as 2/3 of the fees for themselves. For example, one site charges the client $18 USD/1000 words for a line edit but pays the actual editor only $6 USD/1000 words. So if you have a 100K-word novel, you will be charged $1800 (plus sales tax), but the editor earns only $600.

For authors, this has serious repercussions. You're paying top dollar for what you think will be an in-depth edit, but if the editor is only being paid a third of the fees, how in-depth of an edit do you think you will get?

When I edit a work, I create a style guide to ensure consistency of spelling and your style choices; these guides add to the time demanded of me. I will also fix stylistic errors, not just mechanical ones, and draw your attention to factual errors, like if you have a character walking through an open door that was closed five lines earlier. But if I were hired through one of these editing mills and paid only 1/3 of the fee, I'm not creating a style guide or bringing factual errors to your attention: I'm simply not getting paid to do so.

So if you are looking for an editor on one of these sites, I recommend you also click on the links to become a freelancer to see how much the site is taking in commission. That will give you a good idea of what you're really paying for -- a quality edit or the cost to advertise to you.

M.A. wrote: "I'm an editor who has just come back after an illness, and so I've been perusing third-party websites with a mind to offering my services through them. While Reedsy, for example, takes 10% (a reaso..."

Good tip M.A.!!

I'm so happy I went with a freelance editor. She did a great job even though my writing at the time left a lot to be desired. I don't mind paying for what I need. I got taken in by a company one time and said never again. Great advice since you need to go with a reputable company or someone who will do the work you are paying to have done.

Good point - while I can't recall the exact amount, when I hired a cover designer on Fiverr, the site took something like 10-15%. I guess the cut will be the same regardless of what the task is...

B.A. wrote: "I'm so happy I went with a freelance editor. She did a great job even though my writing at the time left a lot to be desired. I don't mind paying for what I need. I got taken in by a company one ti..."

In my opinion, you will always get the greatest value for money by hiring your editor directly. For that same 100K-word book, I would charge 30 to 50% LESS (depending on the level of edit) and do a much more thorough job.

I think many authors are afraid of being taken by an editor because you have to pay 50-75% up front, and what if the editor doesn't deliver? That's scary when you're talking about $1000 (or more!). So authors think the company will stand behind them and between them and the editor. Some do, some don't. But regardless of which way you go, always, always, always ask for references. If the editor has their own website, there are usually client testimonials posted. Avoid any that only give a first name and no book title (those reviews are fake). Then contact any of the authors whose books are on the site.

I don't mind paying for good work. If you are doing editing, let me know how to get in touch with you. My editor is out of business due to life issues. and I'm hoping to need one within the next 4 months.

Great advice. Thanks

I think something can be said for both editing-farms and freelance editors. The former might be able to provide a best-fit editor for the author's genre, while the freelancer might try to take on a work that he/she might not be very strong at. The freelancer, on the other hand, would be someone the writer has selected, after doing some research. I recently had a freelancer edit the first ten pages of a novel I'd been working on for some time, who did a very good job, but the individual wasn't a certified editor, and quoted a hefty price for the work that would've been done on the novel. I decided against using the person.
I think anytime a broker is involved in a transaction, the cost is going to be higher than directly dealing with person who will be doing the work. But, so long as quality is the desired outcome, the consumer should be willing to pay for the product.

Good heads up for anyone in the freelancing field.

Fiverr takes 20% of everything, including your tips, a fact I was shocked to discover the first time I got a payout there. That isn't even counting the processing fees associated with getting that money from one account to the next.

It still might be the easiest way to find clients, but make sure you take it into consideration when set your rate. And if a client brings it up, point out that the platform takes 20%-50% of your earnings and your rates have been adjusted accordingly. In general, clients appreciate transparency in this regard. Lots of them have no clue how much the platform takes and don't realize they could save themselves 20% by hiring the exact same person on a different platform.

Well...the reason Reedsy and Fiver exist is cause its hard to find a place to meet the Editors directly. I went with Reedsy for my first effort. Reedsy hides their info so you cant easily find them outside of their site (but I was able to anyway), but the editors I found still preferred I used Reedsy for the transactions.

Any place that is providing the service of connecting editors to writers will likely want a % to keep themselves afloat and make their efforts worthwhile. 10% from Reedsy was not terrible. Fiver at 20%, including tips, ought to be pricing themselves out of the market. If not now, than soon.

As much as I'd like to hire an editor independently, these sites offer some comforting quality control and accountability: bad ones get filtered out by bad reviews and all have the prospect of negative reviews hanging over them to ensure their best efforts.

I hired a developmental editor who was a waste of money, missing a glaring organizational flaw that multiple others subsequently found. But there was no recourse because I hired him independently.

Oh, and then there's the issue of 1099s. If you hire an editor independently and pay more than $600, you need to issue a 1099. The services save you from that.

Just adding my two cents: I found my first (developmental) editor through the back page of the Martian, but I found out later he was also on Reedsy. Then for the line editing, I went straight to Reedsy.

I was really happy with both. I felt the process let you vet them fully and the pricing was transparent (not cheap mind you, but also not unfair).

I will be very hesitant to hire outside of Reedsy for my second book, simply because the Marketplace lets you see past work, solicit quotes from several editors, and then make a deal.