Rachel Lapidow, Copy Editor

About

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I love working on science fiction, fantasy, romance, and RPG guides. I’ve worked on four game guides for Nine Dragons RPG including Honour and Flintlock. Indie game designer Biohazard Games hired me to work on Upwind and Blue Planet: Recontact. I edited items for the optimistic science fiction game Return to the Stars by Festive Ninja. I’ve worked on dozens of books in a variety of genres including romance, science fiction, fantasy, young adult, historical fiction, biography, nonfiction, and even instruction manuals. I also proofread and copy edit a local monthly newspaper.

I have a bachelor’s degree in professional writing from Champlain College. I have the Certificate in Specialized Copy Editing from the University of California, San Diego. I earned the Poynter ACES (American Copy Editing Society) Certificate in Editing. I am familiar with the Chicago Manual of Style and the Associated Press Stylebook, but I would be happy to learn additional style guides. I am a member of ACES, the EFA (Editorial Freelancers Association), and the League of Vermont Writers.

  • I will work with you to determine your needs, offer advice, and set project timelines. A huge factor in helping you comes through maintaining communication and delivering updates in the manner you want. Some writers want regular weekly updates, others would rather only hear from me once I’ve completed their edit. Let me know how you want to receive updates.

  • I’ve developed documents from as short as a paragraph to over 122,000 words with an eye for consistency and readability. I review each piece and make recommendations that improve accuracy and target audience appeal for nonfiction and enhance reader interest and buy-in for fiction.

  • Do you need someone to look over your book and tell you what is working and what isn’t? I will examine your work with an eye for holistic effect (overall character development, dialogue, and setting, etc.) and offer recommendations that explain insights and offer multiple ways of addressing them. I won’t just say that something is good or bad, but explain why I think this is so and offer suggestions for fixing rough patches.

  • I am very comfortable editing with either the Chicago Manual of Style (seventeenth edition) or the Associated Press Stylebook. I use Microsoft Word’s track changes feature to show you exactly what changes I propose. I can also edit your document using Adobe Acrobat or Google Docs.

Here is a list of the services I offer:

  • Developmental editing

  • Line editing

  • Proofreading

  • Beta reading

I live in beautiful Vermont, so you may hear me talking a lot about the weather (it’s one of the major pastimes here). I read books from a lot of different genres; my love of cozy mysteries has led me to subscribe to a British streaming service so I can get my fix of Midsomer Murders (I also own the complete set of Murder, She Wrote DVDs). I would love to one day proofread or edit a mystery.

Past projects include:

·       I am currently working as a freelance proofreader for DC Comics. I started working for them in September 2019. Since then I’ve proofread over 20 comic collections to ensure correct style, tone, and grammar.

·       Assessed YA historical novels Split Rock and Suncookers: Ice and Fire (45K and 39K words) for Bradford Evans (2018­­­–2019).

·       Critiqued Colony (88K words), a YA horror-adventure book by Veronica Wolff (2019).

·       Revamped corebook, adventure, and quickstart guide for Biohazard Games (2017–2019), including roleplaying games Upwind and Blue Planet: Recontact.

·       Line edited fantasy game An Atlas of the Horizons (113K words) for Benjamin Williams (2019).

·       Improved articles, blog posts, and short stories for Jacqueline Larkin (2017–2019). These have been published in Maple Tree Literary Supplement, Dote Magazine, Ambrosia, and other magazines.

·       Edited 3 books in the Honour series (49K words total) and Flintlock Roleplaying Game (43K) corebook for Nine Dragons RPG (2016–2019).

·       Transformed email templates, instruction manuals, thank you letters, and more for lifestyle brand Apace EZ Solutions (2017–2019).

·       Edited tabletop roleplaying game Return to the Stars (18K words) and other materials for Festive Ninja (2018–2019). A digital version has been downloaded over 10K times.

·       Edited Vajuvenation a health book (33K words) for Dr. Rosalind Jackson, a respected OB-GYN (2017).

·       Line edited 5 romance novels (50K words each) for Weaver Sinclair Limited (2017).

·       Line edited 5 Regency romance novels (63K words apiece) and 2 erotic romance novels (25K and 61K words) for Creative Publishing House (2017).

·       Proofread Molasses, Fatback, and Biscuits (48K words) for Integrative Ink (2017).

·       Proofread contemporary romance Crazy About Alaska (65K words) for Shannon L. Brown (2017).