Christian Editor & Author Services
Editing & author services for
fiction & nonfiction
Present your message with confidence.
Looking for a Christian editor?
Are you an aspiring writer? An indie 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’ve studied with The PEN Institute and am the director of The Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network. And as an award-winning 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.
Maybe you’ve written a novel that explores what it means to trust God (like my historical novel Preacher on the Run). Or maybe your book tells the story of a WWII soldier forgiving an enemy. Maybe your book is nonfiction, and you know its message can change lives.
In any of these cases, 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.
Am I the right Christian editor for you?
That depends. I offer primarily copyediting and proofreading services, and my goal as a Christian editor is to provide my full support for your project. If I can’t do that, 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
- Light 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 significant or graphic violence
- Horror
- Anything that’s not PG-13 or cleaner
I especially enjoy working with Christian historical fiction. If you don’t see your genre on either list, feel free to ask. I may be able to give you a referral if it’s outside my field of expertise.
When it comes to Christian nonfiction, I’m happy to take a look at your project. Please note, however, that while I strongly support the right of others to express their own beliefs and disagree with mine, I reserve the right to decline any project that promotes beliefs opposite my own for the simple reason that I can’t give such projects my best work.
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. Please don’t hesitate to contact me even if you’re on a tight budget. Here’s what I can do for your project:
Editing Services
Please note: I do not offer developmental editing services for most books. This “big picture” editing is typically one of the first rounds of editing that a book needs (possibly after an evaluation or critique). If your book has not undergone professional developmental editing, I’m willing to look at your project and assess its needs, but I may refer you to other resources.
Project Guidance | The starting point
Don’t know what you need or where to start? This service offers a quick skim through your manuscript and advises you on recommended next steps, whether that’s hiring a developmental editor or writing coach or pursuing an evaluation or line edit. You’ll also receive a fact sheet tailored to your manuscript that explains the various levels of editing, describes important points for you to know, and recommends resources for success in publishing. Standard rates: $30–$50 per project.
Evaluation/Critique | The overview
This service provides an overview of your book’s strengths and weaknesses with suggestions for improvement, broken into sections on various narrative techniques or structural elements. It is not a replacement for full developmental editing, but it can help you “DIY” some of the changes a developmental editor might recommend. 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: $10.00 per 1,000 words (rounded up to next $10).
Copyediting | The deep clean
A must for all writing, copyediting (also called line editing) comes after developmental editing (“big picture” editing) and 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–$0.04 per word.
Copyediting Christian fiction is one of my specialties. Learn more about my copyediting services here.
Proofreading | The final polish
The last step before publication, proofreading catches grammatical errors, misspellings, typos, and other mistakes that mar the reading experience. Proofreading also checks for errors that may slip through the formatting process. Standard rates: $0.01 per word.
Proofreading Christian fiction is one of my specialties. Learn more about my proofreading services here.
Author Services
Back Cover Copy | The sales pitch
Every great book needs great back cover copy! A strong description, whether long or short, highlights your work’s best points to capture readers’ interest. Standard rates: $30.00 flat fee.
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.
I offer free samples of my editing 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!
Testimonials
Fiction Clients
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 (evaluation, editing, & back cover services)
Working with Jayna on my project was a delight! Her editing was precise but kind, and her knowledge helped give my book the final polish it needed. She went above my expectations with her fact checking and attention to the message behind my words. By the last page, I felt confident that my book was ready to share with the world thanks to her thoroughness.
—Alena Mentink, author of A Time of Proving (proofreading services)
I can’t say enough nice things about Jayna. From her kind and helpful suggestions to her uncanny ability to spot grammatical and typographical errors, I remain forever in her debt for helping me cross the finish line with a highly polished manuscript. She is thorough, detailed-oriented, and a trustworthy professional. In a world with so many options for authors, she’s at the top of my list. I can only hope she’s available when I complete my next project.
—Joy Cleveland, author of Lucy in Bloom (proofreading services)
Nonfiction Clients
[Jayna is] 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 (editing, back cover, & design services)
Jayna was incredible to work with. Not only was she reliable, communicative, and thorough, but she also provided biblically sound and rich feedback and suggestions for my book. I felt like she was invested in the process with me. I was truly blown away and look forward to working with her again in the future. Thanks, Jayna!
—Dr. Garrett Nogan, author of 7 Biblical Truths for Teenagers (editing services)
✎ Pro Tip
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.
More about Jayna Baas
Jayna Baas (pronounced as in “baa, baa, black sheep”) is the award-winning author of the For Liberty & Conscience series and serves as director of The Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network. She writes and edits from beautiful northern Michigan, where she strives to give readers faith-filled adventures bursting with courageous characters and biblical truth.
In between writing her own books and editing other people’s books, Jayna seeks out new adventures on the screen, on the page, and in the kitchen. She also loves to spend time with her great family of real people and the family of pretend people who live in her head. (Yes, she does know her characters are not real. No, she does not want you to tell them she said so.)
Although her love of words extends to multiple genres, Jayna’s favorite story is this: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Jayna is a Christian copyeditor and proofreader who specializes in Christian fiction genres, particularly Christian historical fiction, clean romance, and light suspense fiction or adventure fiction (no graphic violence or explicit language or content, please). Her copyediting focuses on creating a smooth reading experience through clarity and accuracy, vivid word choice, consistent style, and attention to narrative technique like point of view and character voice. Her proofreading focuses on presenting a polished product through correction of typos, spelling, grammar, punctuation, and word usage, along with checks for formatting consistency if your book has already been typeset. For both copyediting and proofreading, Jayna pays special attention to the faith elements of authors’ books to ensure their beliefs are accurately stated in a way readers will understand.
Her services are best suited to books that have already undergone developmental editing, or “big picture” editing to assess structure, character development, etc. Jayna doesn’t offer developmental editing, but she does offer a project guidance service to help you figure out what your book needs and where to start. This is a great fit for independent authors who would like a little extra advice on the editing and publishing process. She also offers evaluations or critiques for a select number of manuscripts, assessing the story’s strengths and weaknesses and providing suggestions for improvement.
Jayna’s editing work on her own Christian historical fiction series in conjunction with another professional proofreader resulted in the 2025 Editors’ Choice Award for her novel Patriot at the River, which was also a 2025 Carol Award finalist. Testimonials from clients describe her editing as thoughtful, knowledgeable, professional, and easy to work with. Her proofreading and copyediting rates range from $0.01–0.04 per word depending on the service you request, and she offers project guidance for $30–50 per project. Evaluation/critique rates are based on project length, typically $200–$500 per project. These rates are comparable to industry standards, but Jayna is always willing to discuss rates based on individual budgets.
If you have a Christian fiction book in need of copyediting or proofreading, Jayna would be happy to hear from you. Contact her by filling out her editing services request form.
