PUBLISHING AND DESIGN
Finished your research and need to publish? Or are you struggling with getting your book started?
Do you just want something to share with the family or do you want to share it all online with the world?
Does your group need some cost effective graphic design work for your marketing?
History Helper, with its team of experienced professionals, can help with a huge range of editing, design and publishing tasks. Don't quite know what you need or want? Drop us a line and we can discuss ideas.
Editing can be the making or breaking of your book, but you need to balance that against your budget, your distribution and your audience. Generally there are 3 forms of editing in the process: copyediting, developmental editing, and proof-reading.
When you think of copyediting, think grammar. A copyeditor analyzes how you’re saying what you’re saying. During a copyedit, your editor will correct your spelling, grammar, and punctuation. He or she will even point out inconsistencies and errors in language use.
Developmental edits cover big-picture items. With nonfiction, those might be suggestions to improve clarity, structure, or the soundness of your book’s argument. For fiction, a developmental edit focuses on characterization, dialogue, and plot development.
A proofread typically happens after all the editing is completed and your book is in PDF form. By this point, you and your editors have caught as many typos or mistakes as possible already. This is not the time to make a lot of changes—it’s an opportunity to catch lingering mistakes before your book is finalized for printing.
1 round of copyediting
- Correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and syntax
- Correct errors in sentence structure and language usage
- Note where approval from a third party may be required
- Correct errors in commonly known facts (e.g., changing “Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of Defense” to “Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State”)
2 rounds of copyediting
Round 1 - as for Copyedit Level 1
Round 2
- Correct any lingering typos or errors
- Review non-text elements including, but not limited to: photos, charts, graphs, and tables
1 round of comprehensive edit
- Correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and syntax
- Correct sentence structure and language usage errors
- Advise where third party approval should be sought
- Correct errors in commonly known facts (e.g., changing “Julie Bishop, former Minister of Immigration” to “Julie Bishop, former Minister of Foreign Affairs”)
- Offer suggestions to improve clarity, continuity, and consistency of your non-fiction book and character, dialogue, and plot in the case of fiction
- Ensure that the book’s execution is consistent throughout the manuscript
- Identify incorrect, repetitive, or redundant text
2 rounds of comprehensive edit
Round 1 as for Development Level 1
Round 2
- Copyedit the revised manuscript to eliminate any remaining typos, errors, or inconsistencies
- If new text was incorporated as part of your revision process, your editor will also review this updated material during the second round
3 rounds of comprehensive edit
Round 1
- Correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and syntax
- Correct sentence structure and language usage errors
- Advise where third party approval should be sought
- Correct errors in commonly known facts (e.g., changing “Julie Bishop, former Minister of Immigration” to “Julie Bishop, former Minister of Foreign Affairs”)
- Offer suggestions to improve clarity, continuity, and consistency of your non-fiction book and character, dialogue, and plot in the case of fiction
- Ensure that the book’s execution is consistent throughout the manuscript
- Identify incorrect, repetitive, or redundant text
- 30 minute phone meeting with the editor to review recommendations
Round 2
- Second developmental edit of revised manuscript incorporating changes from first edit.
- Identify any remaining structural flaws or inconsistencies
- Review any new text added from recommendations in first round
Round 3
- Final copyedit
- Review non-text elements including, but not limited to: photos, charts, graphs, and tables
E-book publishing is a great way to spread your message at a reduced cost due to the lack of printing. And the PDF versions can be printed if you want a hard copy! History Helper can help you with all aspects of ebook publishing including layout and design, ISBNs, and distribution.
Check our Shop for ebooks we have published.
If you have decided on a hard copy version of your work, we can prepare your work to meet industry printing standards and organise quality printing of the final copy.
With our long history in family history research, we can design and produce charts for books, frames or other display. Our design agents will work with you to create a format that suits your style and produce electronic or hard copy versions.
Our graphic designers can help with jobs large and small, from logos and flyers to full picture books.
If you need a website but don't have the time or skills to build and manage it, we have very cost effective services to implement sites and ensure that they are kept up to date.
For that special gift, we can create a Heirloom Photo Book to illustrate a life story, or to present someone with a colourful family story.
