What is Editing?

Hello, there! If you came here looking for help with words, you're in the right place. Have you written something but are not able to make it come out quite right? If you have any kind of English text--be it a brochure, a newsletter, a novel, or a menu card--that requires some polish, neatening, re-organisation, perhaps, do get in touch!

What is Editing?

Editing is basically correcting errors in written material, but it's much more than that. Apart from ensuring that written matter is free of spelling and grammatical errors and is punctuated properly, editing takes care of readability, style, flow, coherence, structure, and communication.

A good editor takes your writing and makes it better. She reads what you've written, understands what you want to say, and how, and then she makes sure that your words speak for you. This applies to any kind of writing, be it a non-fiction book, a novel, an article, an essay, a story, website content, or a business letter.

There are many wonderful thinkers and creative writers out there who struggle with rewrites and revisions. Some people enjoy writing, but don't have the patience to tap, file, and polish their prose into the final shape. An editor can do this for you.

My Editing Experience

I take to editing quite naturally, to see order reign over chaos. I'm particular about grammar and punctuation because I admire the power and beauty of language--not highfalutin words but clear, effective communication. Technical and corporate material, especially, tend to suffer from wordiness and obscure vocabulary that hinder the reader from understanding the written matter.

My editing experience includes editing for publishers like McGraw-Hill, India, as
well as for agencies, companies, and individual authors. I've been a published
writer since 1989, and have worked exclusively in the writing and editing field for the last ten years. To know more about my writing, please click here.

I have edited science, technical, and reference books as well as general non-fiction, and fiction book manuscripts. I've edited articles for periodicals, web site content, case studies, brochures, concept visualizations, business letters, résumés, and other material.

I'm comfortable and confident editing any English content for grammar, punctuation, spelling, presentation, organisation, style, readability, consistency, and adhering to style guidelines, if any.

You can be sure that, after my edits, your text will be polished, accurate, and communicate what you need it to.

Please contact me with your requirements for my rates, which are reasonable but vary depending on the material to be edited.

What My Clients Say

¤ "Hasmita is one of our best MH freelancers. She specialises in science and technical books but can manage (efficiently, accurately) absolutely anything you throw at her."

-- Sandhya Iyer, Senior Copyeditor, Professional and Reference books, McGraw-Hill India

¤ "Hasmita is a confident editor. I found her editing skills to be of a high quality. Her suggestions were always spot on and her involvement with the project was much more than I expected. I would love to work with her again and would recommend her to anyone who's looking for an editor."

-- Vinod Pottayil, Author, What Every Indian Should Know Before Investing

"Hasmita collaborated with us as an editor for our business novel. She did a thorough and professional job with a great sense of involvement and humour, and our narrative is tighter and more consistent because of her effort. She is a pleasure to work with."

-- Swapna Kishore and Rajesh Naik, Authors, Aligning Ferret: How an Organization Meets Extraordinary Challenges