If you’re a Canadian author who has written a book, it is vital to edit it before you send it to a literary agent or book publisher.
The last thing you want to do is reduce your chances of getting accepting by agents or publishers by submitting a poorly written manuscript.
But there’s only so much self-editing you can do.
You can never be sure if your book flows smoothly, whether its content makes sense at all stages and whether its structure is appropriate if you’re editing it only by yourself, let alone be able to catch all the grammar and spelling mistakes.
Your book needs to be edited by a professional editor.
Below you’ll find 19 top book editors in Canada.
Note: Before selecting a book editor including any of those featured below, ensure you start a dialogue with the editor, request samples, and read reviews so you’re confident you know what you’ll be getting before signing any contract and forwarding payment.
1. Jennifer Dawn Foster
Jennifer Dawn Foster is a freelance editor and writer based out of Toronto, Ontario. She has nearly twenty years of extensive experience as a book editor, having worked on a wide variety of projects including adult and children’s fiction. Jennifer also happens to be the co-chair of Editors Toronto, and advisor for the Canadian Authors Association, and a writer and editor for BoldFace, a Editors Toronto-run blog. She’s worked with authors like Richard Scrimger, author of “Downside Up," and Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch, author of “Dance of the Banished."
If you’re interested in working with Jennifer and her editing services, the best way to contact her is via email. She’s more than happy to provide you a free quote for your project, so be sure to mention how quickly you would like the project completed, an estimated word count, and a project sample so that she can get a feel for your work. For more information, feel free to check out here website, Life on Planet Word.
2. Patricia Anderson, PhD
Patricia Anderson is herself an author, an editor, and a book trade specialist. Based out of Vancouver, British Columbia, Patricia runs the website Helping You Get Published. She has a PhD with specialization in history, popular culture, and publishing studies. She offers manuscript consultations and evaluations, developmental editing, mark-up and manuscript coding, proofreading, research and fact-checking options, rewriting, and even stylistic editing.
Depending on the length of your manuscript, a typical manuscript assessment can take her anywhere between one to four weeks to complete. She’s more than happy to provide a free quote for you if you contact her via email or phone. Her fees are calculated on a per-project basis, and she asks that you include a few sample pages with your inquiry to give her an idea of what your manuscript is all about. You can find her contact information here.
3. Lisa Carter
Based out of Ottawa, Ontario, Lis Carter is an editor with over twenty years of experience in the publishing industry. She provides substantive editing, stylistic editing, copyediting, book coaching, manuscript evaluation, and even literary translation services. She’s won several awards, including the Gulf Coast Prize in Translation (2018) and was an International DUBLIN Literary Award nominee (2012). She runs the website Intralingo Inc., which offers business branding packages, translation services, and editing services to authors and publishers.
If you’re interested in working with Lisa, the best way to get in contact with her is via email or through her website’s contact page, found here. She’d be more than happy to provide you with a free quote for your editing needs, just be sure to include your project’s genre, the page and word count, and the type of editing that you think you’ll need. She asks that you include a few pages of your manuscript as a sample to better help her come up with a reasonable estimate.
4. Philip Sherwood
Philip Sherwood is a professional freelance editor based out of Vancouver, British Columbia. He offers manuscript evaluations, editing for non-fiction manuscripts, memoir writing services, ghostwriting, small business copywriting, and author coaching. He’s worked with authors like Sandra Crawford, author of “In the Arms of My Beloved: A Journey Through Brest Cancer" (winner of the 2010 Word Guild Award for Best Independently Published Non-Fiction).
When it comes to fees, his copyediting and proofreading services begin at a rate of $60 per hour, or an agreed upon set rate per thousand words. His coaching and consulting services are sold in four hour blocks for a total of $250. He also offers book design services (including manuscript formatting) beginning at $8 per page, and audio transcription services starting at $110 per hour. For more information on his editing services, or to get into contact with Philip, click here.
5. Lynne Graham
Lynne Graham is based out of Victoria, British Columbia. She has an MA in Professional Communication, a MSc in Microbiology, and a Diploma in Professional Writing. Overall she has almost thirteen years of experience as an editor. She’s worked on several books including “Canada’s Pacific Gateways: Realizing the Vision" by Dr. W.B.M. Hick and “The Ultimate Learning to Drive Guide: Learning Strategies and Advice from a Professional Driving Instructor" by Lana Deets. Lynne is definitely a go-to editor for anyone with a non-fiction manuscript.
She offers copyediting, rewriting, substantive editing, stylistic editing, and web adaption services. She currently runs and operates Words At Work, which provides writing, editing, and communication services. Lynne is able to edit the first three hundred to four hundred words of your manuscript for free to give you an idea of her editing style and to also provide you a quote for your project.
6. Kristine Thornley
Kristine Thornley is an editor based out of Toronto, Canada. She has earned certification from Ryerson University in Publishing, and even has a certificate in Library Studies from Memorial University. She served for three years as a judge for the Toronto Book Awards, so she definitely knows what it takes to put together an outstanding and captivating book manuscript that will grab your readers’ attentions.
She offers copyediting, desktop publishing, manuscript layout and design, proofreading, referencing, research and fact-checking, substantive editing, and stylistic editing services. She likes to work on both fiction and non-fiction books, with specific specialization in medical and scientific book editing. If you’re interested in working with Kristine, it’s best to reach out to her via email or her website’s contact form to get a quote for your project. You can find her contact information here.
7. Melva McLean
Melva McLean works out of Winnipeg, Manitoba. She’s a story editor and copyeditor, as well as an award-winning creative writer. In 2008, Mevla won the Tom Fairley Award of Editorial Excellence, and has worked with authors like Jason Dorland, author of “Chariots and Horses." She is an official member of Editors Canada, offering manuscript evaluations, copyediting, developmental editing, proofreading, and stylistic editing services.
The best way to get in contact with her is either by phone or email. If you’re interested in working with Melva, be sure to send an inquiry in order to get a quote for her services. Be sure to mention the page and word count length of your manuscript, along with its genre, estimated return date, and the type of service that you’re interested in.
8. Heather Camlot
With over fifteen years of experience as both a freelance and in-house editor, writer, and translator, Heather Camlot provides a wide variety of services that will help you polish up your manuscript. Based out of Toronto Canada, Heather has a BA in Communication Studies from Concordia University and an MA in Journalism from New York University. In 2014, she even won the 17th Annual writing for Children Competition, hosted by CANSCAIP and the Writers’ Union of Canada.
She offers copyediting, proofreading, research and fact-checking, substantive editing, stylistic editing, and translation services. For a free quote for her editing services, you can contact Heather either by phone, email, or through her website’s online contact form. Be sure to mention which of her editing services you’re most interested in to help her come up with an accurate and fair estimate for your project.
9. Marcel Chiera
Marcel Chiera is the founder of Marcel Chiera Editorial Services, which is based out of Guelph, Ontario. Marcel offers copyediting and proofreading services for a wide variety of topics, including academic papers, business reports, instructional books, and online content. Some of the clients that Marcel has worked with include Ivey Publishing, CSI Global Education, the Canadian Red Cross, and Nelson Thomson Learning.
Service fees depend on a variety of factors, including the length of your manuscript and the type of editing service that you’re interested in. For a free quote, you can contact Marcel to first discuss your project via email. For more information, you can actually visit Marcel’s profile on Editors Canada, of which he is an official member.
10. Matthew Godden
Matthew Godden is an editor and writing coach who works out of London, Ontario. He’s an official member of Editors Canada, and has extensive experience editing scientific manuscript, literary fiction, and self-help books. He is a Certified Structural Editor (2015) and a Certified Stylistic Editor (2016), which speaks to his level of professionalism and skill. He’s worked on projects like “The Lost Machine" by Richard A. Kirk, “Tree Mend Us People" by Bruce Purdy, and “Bound by a Dragon" by Linda K. Hopkins. For a pricing quote, you can contact him by phone or email. He offers free consultations, so don’t be shy!
11. Diana Newton
Whether you’ve written a manuscript in English or French, Diana Newton can edit in both! She operates out of New Perlican, Newfoundland and has over twenty years of experience as an editor in Canada, the USA, and even overseas. She’s worked on an impressive list of fiction and non-fiction works. She offers consulting and manuscript evaluations, copyediting, proofreading, research and fact-checking services, substantive editing, translations from French to English (and vice versa), as well as stylistic editing services.
She can work for a flat hourly rate or a one-time project fee. She offers competitive rates, so be sure to get in contact with her to get a free quote. The best way to reach her is through her website’s online contact form, found here.
12. Sylvia McConnell
As the former owner and publisher of Napoleon & Company, a Canadian trade publishing house in Toronto, Sylvia McConnell knows exactly how to spruce up your manuscript so that it’s agent or publisher-ready. With over twenty-five years of editing experience, she is also fluent in French and German. While her website states that she doesn’t necessary over translation services, she can use her knowledge and fluency of these languages to edit small sections of text should it be required.
Sylvia offers bilingual editing, manuscript evaluations, copyediting, proofreading, substantive editing, and stylistic editing services. You can get in contact with her by email or through her website’s online contact form to get a quote for your project. Be sure to mention what type of editing service you’re interested in, as well as the length of your manuscript so that she can properly evaluate a fair price.
13. Allister Thompson
Allister Thompson is another Canadian editor who is an official member of Editors Canada. He’s worked with several authors who have gone on to win awards for adult and children’s fiction and nonfiction; awards like the Arthur Ellis Award for crime fiction and the Silver Birch, Red Maple award, and the Hackmatack Children’s Choice award. Based out of North Bay, Ontario, Allister has nearly twenty years of experience working as an in-house publishing company and freelance editor.
He offers substantive editing, copyediting, book layout and design services, can help you come up with a literary agent or publishing submission package, proofreading, and even marketing services for when your book is published. You’ll need to contact him through his website’s contact form in order to request a quote for your project. Be sure to mention the genre of your manuscript, along with its length and word count so that he can get you an accurate estimation of his services.
14. Ruth E.R. Wilson
Ruth E. R. Wilson has a ton of experience in the publishing industry, with a combined thirty years of editorial experience both as a freelance editor and as an in-house publishing company editor. Ruth is a partner with West Coast Editorial Associates, and spent ten years as a managing editor for Self-Counsel Press.
Based out of North Vancouver, British Columbia, Ruth offers copyediting services, developmental editing, proofreading, rewriting, substantive editing, and stylistic editing. She prefers to work with non-fiction books like self-help, guidebooks, educational material, and trade non-fiction. You can get in contact with Ruth and her team at West Coast Editorial Associates by phone, email, or through their website’s online contact form, found here. Be sure to ask them for a free quote with regards to their editing services
15. Barbara Pulling
Barbara Pulling is an editor based out of Vancouver, British Columbia. As a testament to her skills and experience, she won the Tom Fairley Award for Editorial Excellence (2000) and has been a long-time member of Editors Canada. She’s worked with clients like Joy Kogawa, author of “Gently to Nagasaki," and Grant Lawrence, author of “Dirty Windshields."
Barbara offers manuscript evaluations, developmental manuscript editing, research and fact-checking services, substantive editing, and stylistic editing service. She’s happy to work on manuscripts from a wide range of genres, including anthologies, children’s books and young adult fiction, self-published works, and trade non-fiction. The best way to get in contact with her is via email. Be sure to mention the length of your manuscript so that she can provide you with an appropriate quote price for her editing services.
16. Sue MacLeod
Sue MacLeod is an experienced editor from Montréal, Québec. She’s a certified copyeditor, proofreader, structural editor, and stylistic editor. She was even a finalist for the 2014 Tom Fairley Award! Some of her clients include the Canadian Center for Policy Alternatives, the Nova Scotia Barristers Society, and even Dalhousie University. She’s more than happy to travel to Ottawa or Toronto for those interested in meeting with her in person.
Sue provides manuscript evaluations, copyediting services, developmental manuscript editing, proofreading, referencing, rewriting, and even substantive editing packages. You can contact her either by phone or email in order to get a quote for her services. You can check out her profile and some more information on her primary interests as an editor here on Editors Canada.
17. Alexandra Peace
Alexandra Peace is an editor based out of Canning, Nova Scotia. She currently volunteers as the recording secretary for Editors Canada, and is also an executive member on the Indexing Society of Canada. She’s worked with clients like David Morrison, author of the “Witness," and Mark Lewis, author of “The Mathematics Behind Biological Invasions."
She offers a variety of editing services, including copyediting, indexing, proofreading, and stylistic editing. She’s happy to work with self-publishing authors, works of trade non-fiction, academic books, government materials, and academic theses and dissertations. The best way to get in contact with Alexandra is via email. For more information on other projects that she’s worked on, be sure to check out here website, found here.
18. Michelle Parker
This Ottawa-based editor has nearly ten years of editing experience, specializing in academic writing and genre fiction. She loves to work with authors of flash fiction, short stories, novelles, and full novels from a wide range of genres.
She offers developmental editing beginning at $0.04 per word, copyediting services starting at $0.02 per word, proofreading services starting at $0.01 per word, and also offers “sensitivity reading" services (intended to fact-check contents to make works more authentic) starting at $0.01 per word. For more information on the services she provides, you can check out her website here.
19. Lois Ross
With almost twenty years of experience in the fields of communications, editing and writing, and print and digital publications, Lois Ross is a seasoned veteran that’s sure to help any author make their manuscripts shine. Based out of Ottawa, Ontario, Lois can provide her editing services in French, English, and Spanish. She’s a recipient of the Award for Excellence in Medical Writing by APEX (2013), and has been a member of the Editors Association of Canada since 2001.
Lois offers structural editing, stylistic editing, copyediting, and proofreading services. The best way to get a quote from her is to contact her via email. For more information on her other services, including content marketing, check out her website here.
Do you know any other book editors in Canada? Please tell us about them in the comments box below!
K. Z. Kwan is a freelance writer based out of Halifax, Canada.
Leave a Reply