my resumé

I am a freelance editor and proofreader and a member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP). I have edited and proofread over 300 books (fiction and non-fiction) for self-published authors and publishing houses in both UK and US English styles. I also have free writing courses available on TikTok and YouTube. This gallery shows just a small sample of the books I have worked on. Many of these books have become bestsellers, won awards and been translated into different languages. If you would like me to take a look at your manuscript then please get in touch via the Contact form below.

Testimonials

“Ian is a diligent, hard-working editor and proofreader, with a keen eye to detail. I would highly recommend his excellent services.”

Betsy Reavley, co-founder and director of Bloodhound Books.

“I've engaged Ian Skewis as editor for both my novels. He’s a highly diligent and consummate professional, who understands detail and provides the highest quality across the full range of editorial services. Whether you’re looking for a structural edit, copy-edit or proofread, I’m happy to recommend Ian Skewis to any author or aspiring writer seeking publication.”

John Harkin, author of The Fear of Falling and A Fear of Dark Places, published by Bloodhound Books.

“I asked a trusted friend if she could recommend an editor to go through my manuscript for me. She quickly came back to me and suggested I contact Ian Skewis and I am so grateful to her for the recommendation and of course to Ian for doing such a thorough job.

Ian went through the manuscript and found and corrected my typos, grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors. Ian was great at helping me to get a sense of what my story needed to really make it pop, he helped me to understand myself as an author and to gain confidence in my ability to bring a story from concept to completion.

Ian Skewis helped greatly in these areas. I would highly recommend his services as an editor to anyone.”

Christie J Newport, author of Whittingham and The Raven’s Mark, the latter published by Joffe Books.

I engaged Ian to proofread the Sturmtaucher Trilogy with no small amount of apprehension – the word count for the three books is 1.1 million – but Ian took it all in his stride. His proofreading was quick, efficient and very thorough – he checked an incredible amount of historical information as well as the usual grammar, spelling and punctuation that I was expecting, and even pointed out errors in dates, characters’ stated ages and characters with similar names that could have caused confusion (there are a lot of characters). Not only that, but he also suggested edits for readability including flagging up and clarifying the character points of view issues in the trilogy too.

Ian was always available for advice and clarification. In fact, he gave nothing but encouragement and support, and was a calming influence despite the whirlwind of tasks he needed to wade through in order to get the books out there in time.

I would thoroughly recommend Ian’s proofreading and editing services – I’ve had no comments or complaints about the books with regards to proofreading errors, which for a trilogy of that size is remarkable.

Alan Jones, author of the Sturmtaucher Trilogy, published by Ailsa Publishing.

EDITORIAL SERVICES

Manuscript Assessment

So you’ve written your book and now you’re stuck and need another pair of eyes to look over it. A manuscript assessment is ideal for this. It can also save you time and money in the long run. Here’s how...

I will assess your manuscript for story structure, character development, layout, inconsistent timelines, common or repetitive spelling and grammar mistakes, unsuitable genre tropes and potential commercial viability.

From this you can go ahead and self-edit which can save you the time and money I mentioned at the start.

Not sure how to self-edit? Then wing your way to the section on Self-Editing!

Price: £350.00

Structural Editing

This is also known as Developmental Editing. So, here I will check that your manuscript has no plot holes and good character development. I will be looking to see if the timelines are running consistently, especially if your novel has several different timelines, not to mention flashbacks, which can often derail a good story if they’re not done correctly.

I will be looking closely at the layout of your book in order to make sure it adheres to publishing guidelines.

I will also help you to clarify the genre of your novel and the tropes expected by readers of that genre so that you know what to aim for. This will result in a sharper, leaner book that will appeal directly to the readers it’s aimed at, which will result in better sales – and more royalties for you!

Price: £10.00 per thousand words

Non-Fiction Editing

I’ve edited many non-fiction books over the years including memoirs and autobiographies.

For non-fiction books I will be checking for the accuracy of place names, specific locations, historical figures and foreign languages.

I will also draw up a style guide which is especially useful for maintaining consistency with spellings, word usage and timelines.

I will also fact-check your book and check for potential libel issues.

Price: £10.00 for editing & £9.00 for proofreading

Agent Query Letter & Synopsis

Writing a letter to a literary agent can be a very daunting prospect for an author.

Many authors feel the need to write as much as possible in their query letter and synopsis but you don’t have to write reams of stuff in order to impress an agent (let your novel do that for you). In fact, your letter and synopsis need only be brief and to the point.

Some tips for you...

Your query letter should be no more than a page long and should explain the genre of your book and include the word count.

Don’t use fancy font or photographs in your letter or synopsis.

Make sure you pay attention to the agent’s guidelines for submissions which can be found on their website.

I can help with refining your letter and synopsis and so give you a much better chance of finding the right agent for your book.

Price: £50.00 per letter & synopsis

Zoom Meetings

Sometimes it’s reassuring for an author to be able to speak face-to face with their editor rather than just via somewhat anonymous emails.

A Zoom meeting can be highly valuable for first-time authors who are new to the publishing industry.

I conduct meetings via Zoom for authors who are perhaps unsure what direction their book should go in or who need some general advice about writing and/or publishing.

These meetings are especially useful if I’ve just carried out a manuscript assessment and you want to discuss the finer details and they are also highly useful if you intend to do some self-editing, which I can teach you how to do. (See separate section on self-editing.)

Price: £25.00 per meeting

Copy Editing

This is otherwise known as Line Editing. For this I will take a close and detailed look at your book on a line-by-line basis, checking for inconsistencies with narrative, tenses, dialogue tags, and grammar.

This is where the style guide I mention elsewhere comes really handy as it helps you to keep a track on everything, thus maintaining consistency.

Did you know I always create a detailed style guide for every author’s book I work on, whether it’s fiction or non-fiction? No? Well, now you do!

Also, as a member of the CIEP, I adhere to their trading standards, which means you, the author, are protected and you can be sure of a professional edit and/or proofread from yours truly.

Price: £9.00 per thousand words

Photo Editing

Does your book require lots of photo inserts?

I trained at Gray’s School of Art and so I have a good eye for design and layout.

I utilise Apple and Word’s photo editing suites and resize, sharpen and adjust your photos so that they look perfect on the printed page.

I can also create a variety of filters, collages and photo montages for your book if you’re looking for something more experimental.

By the way, I also designed this website!

Price: £250.00 per twenty photos

Blurb & Tagline

In order for your book to sell and for you to get decent royalties you must have a really great back-cover blurb and tagline for your book.

As publishing becomes ever more competitive it’s important that your book stands out from the rest.

The service I provide will help you do just that.

As mentioned elsewhere in this section, sixty per cent of readers see a book cover and judge it based on that alone – so your blurb and tagline needs to be red hot. It should act as a magnet for readers, which will result in more sales and royalties if you’re going to be self-published or it could attract the attention of potential agents and publishers if you’re looking for a traditional publishing deal.

Either way, it’s a potential win-win situation for you!

I can help with the above by ensuring you have red-hot copy on your back cover and a really great tagline.

Price: £50.00 per blurb & tagline

Self-Editing

If you want to save yourself some money I can teach you how to self-edit using Word.

I will show you what to look for in your own manuscript and how to create your own chapter breakdown (great for keeping a track of those pesky timelines), character breakdown (just to make sure your main character doesn’t change age, eye colour or height halfway through!) and the all-important style guide.

Don’t know what a style guide is? It contains all the relevant details of your story, character traits, timelines, locations, spelling preferences and layout. It’s especially useful for authors who intend to write a series of books.

Price: £250.00

Proofreading

Many authors get this mixed up with copy editing but proofreading takes place further along the book’s editorial schedule. In order for your book to merit a proofread it would have to be in a good enough state that we would only need to focus on the finer details.

For a proofread I would be focusing primarily on spelling, punctuation and grammar.

Once the proofread is complete you would then be ready to publish – provided you have everything else in place...

If you intend to hire an agent you will need a covering letter or if you intend to self-publish, then you will need a blurb and tagline for your book. I can provide these services, which are available elsewhere in this section.

Price: £8.00 per thousand words

Book Cover Design

Do you judge a book by its cover?

The answer is a resounding yes! Did you know that sixty per cent of readers do just this? That’s why it’s so important for your book to have an eye-catching cover.

I have experience in designing book covers and I know what can make a book stand out for readers.

If you scroll further down you can take a look at some of my book cover designs for my short story paperbacks.

See also the Photo Editing section for further info on how I can make your book cover work for you.

Price: £250.00 per book cover

Author Protection

As a member of the Chartered Institute for Editing and Proofreading (CIEP), this means that you, the author, can expect the best professional service from me.

In order to be a member of the CIEP I have to show that I can maintain a good standard of professionalism with the service I offer to authors.

This means that I have and continue to train on their editing- and proofreading-related courses in order to progress through my CPD (continued professional development) and stay abreast of any important changes in the publishing world.

As you will see, my prices are transparent and they are well within the recommended rates as set out by the CIEP for editors and proofreaders.

My testimonials should speak for me but I wanted to write this so that you know you are getting the best possible service from me. Thank you for visiting my website.

                 Contact

Ian Skewis is an editor, proofreader and author. If you want to contact him about these or any other projects, then please use the form below. Thank you.

contact@ianskewis.com

meet the author

Events

As an author I have appeared at many events including Bloody Scotland, Newcastle Noir, Noir at the Bar (Edinburgh, Newcastle & Harrogate), European Championships (Glasgow), Waterstones (London & Glasgow), Aye Write! and Book Week Scotland, appearing with other authors including Ian Rankin and Ramsey Campbell.

I have also chaired many events in Waterstones and Newcastle Noir for the following authors: SJI Holliday, Anna Mazzola, William Ryan, Lesley Kelly, Tana Collins, Jackie McLean, Natalie Fergie and Shona Kinsella.

If you wish to get in touch regarding any of the above then please send me an email via the Contact form above.