The decision regarding which editorial and formatting service provider will be used will determine the readability of the book once it is published. The editing process ensures that the text is clear and consistent, grammatically correct, and properly structured. The formatting process will make the interior ready for printing and electronic reading. Hence, Canadian writers need to evaluate the following factors when comparing different providers.
Before starting anything, the authors must know what they require — developmental editing, copyediting, proofreading, print layout, eBook formatting or a combination of these things. A company which knows about the complete production process may even help in minimizing any issues regarding the formatting from manuscript to final publication.
The following companies are worth considering because of the services they offer, their dedication towards helping authors and their capabilities to handle different stages of book production.
Book Publisher Canada provides full-service for Canadian writers in the following areas: editing, book preparation, formatting, book cover design, printing, etc. This firm may be recommended to authors who want to arrange all publishing stages through one publisher.
For writers working on physical and electronic versions of their books, the most important benefit of using full service is consistency. Authors may complete editorial changes in advance, before interior design is finalized.
Book Writers.ca provides services such as developmental editing, copyediting, proofreading, and preparation for eBooks. The editing process as described by the company is all about maintaining the voice of the writer while making the text more coherent and consistent.
In addition, the company talks about help with formatting and preparing for publication of books both in print and electronic format.
BookSmith offers services of formatting both printed and eBooks, offering services of creating margins, typography, chapters format, headers, footers, and page numbers. BookSmith claims that it will also format files for platforms like Kindle Direct Publishing and IngramSpark.
The eBook service offered by BookSmith takes into account various problems like reflow, hyperlinks, and other presentation problems in different digital readers.
Foglio Publishing provides a combination of editing, book design, formatting, typesetting, printing, and e-books creation. This firm offers such services as manuscript review, structure editing, copy editing, proofreading, print formatting, and professional creation of digital files.
Also, Foglio Publishing provides such information about EPUB and MOBI creation and validation for the main platforms of e-books.
Canadian Ghostwriters provides formatting services for print and eBooks, which include formatting of pages, margins, pagination, chapter titles, fonts, and other interior aspects. According to its website, it makes files for various websites such as KDP and IngramSpark.
Such kind of formatting is helpful in a situation where your manuscript is good enough in a word processor but requires professional interior formatting before printing the PDF or book files.
ProjectK Publishing is an editorial group from Toronto that specializes in assisting fiction writers to get their manuscripts ready for publication. This editorial service includes developmental, line, copy, and proofreading services, and the firm provides sample editing prior to author commitment.
This kind of editing service can fit fiction authors that need editorial comments before going to the next step of publishing. Given that its main specialization is editing, authors need to find out whether they need interior formatting.
Self Publishing Studio offers help with editing in several genres, such as fiction, non-fiction, memoirs, and business books. The editing philosophy is aimed at enhancing the structure, clarity, grammar, tone, and readability of the text without changing the meaning of it.
Those authors who are not sure about the type of editing that their manuscript needs may find the preliminary evaluation service useful.
Services include developmental editing, copy editing/line editing, proofreading, book formatting, ebook formatting, and consultation. This service offers KDP formatting and is geared towards non-fiction but also accepts fiction and poetry.
An editor who does both editing and formatting may help when authors require editing and formatting to go hand-in-hand during their projects.
Page & Proof is an editing firm from Toronto that caters to both fiction and nonfiction writers and publishers. The firm notes that its editors are fluent in Canadian, British, and American English and work collaboratively.
Its services are more focused on editing as opposed to the entire process of publishing production; hence, clients must ensure that formatting and typesetting are part of their particular projects.
Toronto Copy Editing offers proofreading, copy editing, line editing, and indexing services to book manuscripts as well as other professional or academic texts. Published books and authors seeking detailed editing services are listed among Toronto Copy Editing’s clients.
For writers who need language editing and who already have a formatter, using an editing service like this one would be a sensible approach.
| Provider | Editing | Print Formatting | eBook Format | Best For |
| Book Publisher Canada | Yes | Yes | Yes | Publisher assistance |
| Book Writers.ca | Yes | Yes | Yes | Editing and publishing |
| BookSmith | Yes | Yes | Yes | Printing and ebook formatting |
| Foglio Publishing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Self-publishing service |
| Canadian Ghostwriters | Yes | Yes | Yes | KDP and print format |
| ProjectK Publishing | Yes | Confirm scope | Confirm scope | Fiction editing |
| Self Publishing Studio | Yes | Confirm scope | Confirm scope | Genre editing |
| Deegy Dallong | Yes | Yes | Yes | Editing and KDP formatting |
| Page & Proof | Yes | Confirm scope | Confirm scope | Fiction and non-fiction editing |
| Toronto Copy Editing | Yes | Limited/confirm | Limited/confirm | Editing services |
The author should provide a project brief before quoting. It should contain the word count, type of genre, desired trim size, whether the book will be printed or digital, and the intended platforms to be used.
Another aspect to consider is the inclusion of revision, proofreading after formatting, file validation, TOC creation, image handling, and proofreading after a proof copy in the quoted cost. They could have a great effect on the pricing.
For KDP authors, it is necessary to ensure that the final file(s) have been created in line with the latest requirement of the chosen edition of the book. The KDP formatting varies from the print interior to the reflowable eBook. Treating both formats as one file would result in unnecessary issues.
Those looking for wider publishing services should also ascertain whether the editing, formatting, ISBN guidance, printing, distribution, and uploading services are done by the same company.
Professional editorial scrutiny helps to detect grammar errors, inconsistencies, unclear sentences, redundancy, and structural issues that may have been overlooked by authors who have been working on their manuscript for quite some time. This stage becomes even more useful in cases where the document needs to be formatted, since making any significant changes to the text at this stage may have consequences for the layout.
Finally, the manuscript requires a thorough quality control after the process of editing is completed.
Kindle Direct Publishing is widely used by self-publishing writers to market their books on Kindle and to create print editions. Writers must create their manuscripts based on the demands of each individual format, rather than assuming that a single file is applicable for all formats.
For electronic books, refraction, navigation, hyperlinks, images, and table of contents become significant. On the other hand, fixed-page sizes, margin, page numbers, bleed if necessary, and interior print-ready files are demanded for print editions.
Writers have to judge the suitability of publishers according to the amount of editing assistance, quality of the format provided, the requirements for production, time frame, and extent of the project as a whole. This will enable them to select a publisher who will fit their project and the format they wish to produce.
The choice will depend on the needs of the author rather than on the range of services offered by each company, which is advertised on its website. While some companies specialize in manuscript editing, others offer not only editing but also formatting, printing, and publishing services. It is helpful to compare the two approaches in order for an author to pick up the one that suits him best considering his manuscript, budget, genre, and the preferred form of reading.