Editing & Author Services
Present your message with confidence.
Fiction & Nonfiction
Are you an aspiring writer? A self-publisher? The author of the next Great American Novel?
My name is Jayna Baas, and I’m here to help you!
As a Christian editor, I have multiple certifications from The PEN Institute, a division of Christian Editors Association. As an independent author, I have a special passion for helping Christian writers present their messages with confidence.
Why should you hire a Christian editor? Because the message of your book is as important as grammar and spelling, and only a Christian editor will be prepared to flag biblical inconsistencies, incorrect Scripture references, or inadvertent doctrinal errors—so you can be sure you said what you meant to say. A Christian editor is also ready to help you understand how Christian readers will engage with and respond to your message.
But…am I the right Christian editor for you? That depends. My goal as a Christian editor is to provide my full support for your project. If I can’t do that, whether because of personal beliefs or requisite expertise, you’ll be better served by a different editor. (For Christian books, check out Christian Editor Connection or the member listings at The Christian PEN; for secular books, try Editorial Freelancers Association or Reedsy.)
Fiction genres I do work with:
- Historical fiction
- Contemporary fiction
- Suspense or adventure fiction (no graphic violence)
- Clean or sweet romance (some exceptions)
Fiction genres I don’t work with:
- Speculative fiction (fantasy, sci-fi, dystopian, etc.)
- Suspense or thrillers with graphic violence
- Horror
- Anything that’s not PG-13 or cleaner
When it comes to Christian nonfiction, I’m happy to take a look at your project, whether it’s a devotional book, self-help manual, cookbook, or anything in between. Please note, however, that since the Bible says, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3:3 KJV), I am best suited to editing material that aligns with the following beliefs:
- Forgiveness of sin and a restored relationship with God are freely available to all by grace through faith in the substitutionary death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Good works or Christian observances such as baptism or Communion are not necessary for salvation but will naturally follow true faith. Biblical baptism is by immersion and only for believers.
- The Bible is the inerrant Word of God and is the authority for all faith and practice, including marriage, the sanctity of life, and the literal six-day creation.
- Sign gifts, such as unknown tongues and miracles of healing, are no longer God’s method of revelation, due to the completion of Scripture.
- The return of Christ will be a literal event in the future; the rapture of believers will precede a seven-year tribulation before Christ’s return to earth and literal thousand-year reign.
- Sin exists in our broken world but should not be glorified or given undue prominence in education or entertainment.
While I strongly support the right of others to express their own beliefs and disagree with mine, I am not the right editor for books that openly promote beliefs opposite this list. (If your book is a cookbook, your beliefs about baptism will not affect my ability to support your project!)
My standard rates are listed below, but I estimate rates on a per-client basis and love to help writers at all stages of their journeys, so please don’t hesitate to contact me even if you’re on a tight budget. Here’s what I can do for your project:
Author Services
Readthrough & Evaluation | The first step ←Recommended
Is your manuscript ready for editing? What kind? How much? By whom? This affordable service, which includes a readthrough of your entire manuscript, gives me a look at your writing and gives you a professional opinion on what your project needs, as well as a brief overview of your manuscript’s strengths and weaknesses and suggested resources for self-editing. If you proceed with editing after this step, 50 percent of the evaluation fee will be applied to the cost of the edit. Standard rates: $200.00 per project.
Website Content Review | The best foot forward
Does your website’s text reflect professionalism and authority, or are your pages plagued with typos or weak construction? Present your best face to readers with a website content review. You’ll provide links to all the pages you want reviewed, and I’ll provide a detailed editorial letter listing typos, stylistic errors, and inconsistencies. If desired, I’ll also provide suggestions for improving your website’s layout or focus. Standard rates: $30.00 per hour.
Editing Services
Copyediting | The deep clean
A must for all writing, copyediting (also called line editing) corrects grammar and punctuation and strengthens clarity, sentence structure, and other stylistic issues. Copyediting comes in levels ranging from light to heavy, depending on your needs. Standard rates: $0.02–$0.03 per word.
Proofreading | The final polish
The last step before publication, proofreading catches grammatical errors, misspellings, typos, and other common mistakes that mar the reading experience. Proofreading also checks for errors that may slip through the formatting process. Standard rates: $0.01 per word.
Manuscript Services
Summarizing | The sales pitch
Every great book needs great back-cover copy! A strong summary, whether long or short, highlights your work’s best points to capture readers’ interest. Standard rates: $30.00 per hour.
Microsoft Word Formatting | The industry standard
Are you finished with your project but intimidated by formatting? Meticulous Microsoft Word formatting transforms your manuscript into an industry-standard file ready for your next step, whether that’s submission to a publisher or your own self-publishing goals. Standard rates: $30.00 per hour.
E-book Formatting | The digital touch
Carefully coded for all e-reading devices, digital formatting converts your file to a clean, attractive e-book ready to upload to major platforms or send straight to readers. Standard rates: $30.00 per hour.
I offer free samples of my editing and formatting services. If you’re ready to get started, or if you have any questions, please contact me here and I’ll be in touch as soon as I can!
“Jayna was precisely the editor I needed. Not only is she well versed in the intricacies of language and storytelling but she’s also thoughtful and easy to work with.”
~ D. J. Speckhals, author of The Lord of Luserna
“Jayna was wonderful to work with. She’s understanding and compassionate about her work; she knows biblical references and can often get the intent of what you are trying to communicate. I wholeheartedly recommend Jayna. I know you will not be disappointed.”
~ Creola Thomas, author of How to Resurrect a Dying Church
✎ Pro Tip
Before you contact any editor (yes, including me), try this simple strategy to catch more errors on your own: Read your book out loud. The whole thing. One word at a time. It’s no substitute for a full edit, but you may be amazed at the awkward wording, repetition, and inconsistencies you discover. I once had a character say, “That blackguard Taggart” and thought nothing of it until I read it aloud.
Flex Your Editorial Muscle
The Chicago Manual of Style is the standard style guide for all book publishing, the resource I rely on for accurate editing information. CMOS also provides loads of entertainment for English language nerds, and nowhere more so than in the sixty or so Chicago Style Workouts: ten-question quizzes that let you test your knowledge of Chicago style. This is the stuff editors do for fun. Strange, I know, but if you’re the quiz-taking type and want to match wits with the gold standard of book editing, check it out.
