Just how much could your manuscript benefit from objective feedback?
Commission an editor with a background in academic publishing to carry out an invaluable developmental edit on your work, returning a full manuscript report that will help shape, format and finesse your writing ahead of submission.
Our Developmental Edit service is designed to ask integral questions of your manuscript at a critical stage in its development. Your editor will:
- Check for general sense and cohesion of each section/chapter, and suggest areas which would benefit from further elaboration or that could be shortened/removed entirely
- Make changes and suggestions to improve the general structure of your manuscript, as well as ensuring the tone is appropriate
- Highlight errors, contentious arguments, and problematic or unclear phrasing
- Check that the formatting and structure of the manuscript will translate effectively into a published book, and suggest changes accordingly
- Where the book is significantly under/over the contracted word count, make suggestions as to how to edit the manuscript to fit
What you get
- A practical and constructive bespoke report from an editor with experience of academic publishing, and who can help you craft the manuscript ahead of submission
- A marked-up manuscript with suggested edits and corrections for you to take forward as you continue to revise your work
How it works
Read our short guide to the Developmental Edit (Academic) service.
Please note
The bulk of your editor's feedback will come in the form of their bespoke report, although further details and specific examples may be provided within a marked-up version of your manuscript. If you would like an editor to carry out a full stylistic/copy-edit of your manuscript, please contact W&A Admin on [email protected].
Pricing and next steps
Here is our full range of prices for the Developmental Edit (Academic) service.
Click on the ‘Next’ button to tell us more about your book and select an editor you’d like to work with.
All prices are inclusive of VAT.
You can submit either a partly or fully completed manuscript; if submitting only part of your manuscript, please include a summary of the main arguments of the book, as well as outlines of the yet-to-be completed chapters. Include any commentary notes, but do not include appendices or references.
If your manuscript is shorter than 40,000 words, longer than 80,000 words, or you are interested in arranging a bespoke payment plan, then please click the 'Next' button above. You will then be prompted to fill in a short application form and a member of the W&A team will get back to you to discuss pricing as appropriate. No payment is required until W&A Admin have been in touch with further details.
Accessible to All
It’s of real importance to Writers & Artists that our editing services, events and writing courses remain accessible to all.
As part of our accessibility scheme, Writers & Artists are pleased to be able to offer financial assistance towards selected editing services. Please visit our bursaries page for further information about how to apply.
Our 2026-27 bursary funding runs until the end of February 2027.
Bursary applications for 2026-27 funding must be submitted by no later than 31st January 2027.
Please note that payment instalment plans are available for all W&A events, writing courses and editing services. Contact W&A Admin on [email protected] so that we can find a payment schedule that works for you.