Author FAQ

Before we'll even consider hiring them, all our editors and proofreaders must, at a minimum:

• Have a university or college degree
• Have at least three years professional experience as an editor or proofreader
• Be native speakers of the language they edit or proofread
• Provide samples of their editing and proofreading work
• Pass a language certification test

A typical Scribendi Word Warrior has two or more degrees, more than 15 years professional experience, and is published in his/her chosen specialization, be it romantic fiction or molecular biology.

You can also see a long list of recent client testimonials on this page.

Absolutely not. Scribendi and its employees make no claim on your copyright, and we don't require credit or acknowledgement on material you've written, or anything else, beyond the fees for the services we render. The only time we would ask for credit for our work is if you commissioned us to write/create something for you (except our CV/resume and cover letter services - you always take all the credit for these, of course), and that's negotiated on a case-by-case basis.

Only Scribendi employees have access to our site and order system, and all staff are required to sign confidentiality agreements before they work for us. All client files are deleted from the site after four weeks, unless a client requests that we keep a copy for future reference. We do not sell, trade or rent your personal information. We also have a secure site - Scribendi uses industry standard (128-bit SSL) encryption for communications between your computer and our site when you upload documents and pay for your order.

Unfortunately, no. Because of the strict confidentiality policies we describe above, we don't release the names of authors or the titles we've edited.

Absolutely. We offer a free, five-page sample edit to anyone with a book-length manuscript. We know your manuscript is important to you and that it's good to be able to "try before you buy" if you're thinking about sending a long manuscript.

While we have no doubt as to the potential of your manuscript to be a bestseller and a major motion picture, it may be a while before you can attract the attention of an agent and a publisher. Unfortunately, our staff have bills to pay in the meantime, just like you. So we're afraid we'll have to say no to this and similar proposals, and settle for the fees as described on our authors services page.

Yes, and yes! You can send in your work in as many sections as you like - just make note of the editor code you get back on your first section and remember to use that on your next order. That will route the manuscript directly to your editor's desk.

If you have questions after we've done some work for you, a customer service representative will be happy to relay your comments and queries to your editor and then send the answers back.

However, we don't have editors and clients talk to each other before or during the editing process, and here's why: Your readers won't have the benefit of a personal chat with you while they're reading your work. Your document or manuscript must be able to stand on its own merit, and your editor has to be able to review your work objectively. Also, when you choose your service from our many options, your manuscript is automatically routed directly to editors who are familiar with, and like, your kind of work.

Definitely! Scribendi is a global company in every sense of the word. As long as you have a valid credit card or PayPal account, or can arrange to send a check or money order, you can use our services.

Yes, we know all about metres and meters, humour and humor, and spanners and wrenches. Just specify what type of English we should be using when you place your order.

No, we're used to seeing all sorts of styles, dialects, special kinds of formatting and other types of creativity. If we're not sure, we'll send an email and ask. If there's something you don't want us to touch, just mention this when you fill in the "Special Instructions" section of our order form.

We're thrilled and touched that you'd like to do such a thing, but we'll have to politely decline. It's your manuscript and we want you to feel confident that the copyright to it is indeed all yours. We don't take any credit for our work apart from the fees for services rendered.

Unfortunately, we have to say no. Any feedback you receive from your editor is strictly for the purposes of improving your manuscript; it is not intended for redistribution under any circumstances. We are also not in the business of endorsing or promoting specific manuscripts.

See our How Do I...? FAQ.

See our How Do I...? FAQ.

Unfortunately, very few word processing programs have anything similar to MS Word's "Track Changes" feature, which allows our editors and proofreaders to highlight changes in red so you can see them more easily. Our staff will have summarized their changes in their notes back to you however, and you can compare what we sent back to you with your original.

It may be that you have the Highlight Changes feature turned off. In Word/Office XP, there's a menu drop-down on the upper left of your screen - change that to the option that says "Final Showing Markup."

In older/other versions of Word/Office, go to the Tools menu, select Track Changes, select Highlight Changes and make sure Highlight Changes on Screen is checked. See our How Do I...? FAQ for screenshots. If you still don't see any changes, contact customer service.