Cogitate Studios began as a collective for professionals with differing backgrounds in the publishing industry to be found at one place and to support each other in our work. Over the years, we all still support each other and often work on the same projects. Visit us at our individual sites:
Ghostwriting
Ghostwriters make you shine.
Many different walks of life have hired us to ghostwrite for them and, in each case, we’ve had varying degrees of involvement. Sometimes we’ve been hired to edit and clean up a rough draft, and other times we’ve done the majority most of the writing ourselves, based often on an outline provided by the author. For some projects, a substantial amount of research was required, like taping and transcribing interviews. One non-fiction project took a full year to research, write, and edit for a client. We’ve also completed projects as short as query letters to agents and acquisitions editors, and press releases for book launches.
Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com: in your message, include a description of your project and its word count, as well as a sample of the writing if you want to attach one. We’ll be in touch about availability, turnaround time, and rates.……………………………………………………………………………………………
Book Proposals
Well-read book proposals get published.
Sometimes you don’t have to write an entire manuscript before submitting a proposal. In the case of many non-fiction and graphic novel projects, for example, publishers, literary agents, and commissioning editors will ask for more work based simply on a cogent, stellar proposal with sample material.
However, it’s essential to establish some kind of platform to stand on and to follow the correct format to increase your chances of snagging the book deal you’re after. To ensure this, several areas must be addressed. We can help you craft your proposal so that it fits with who you are and what your work represents.
Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com: in your message, include a description of the work and its word count, as well as a sample of the writing if you want to attach one. One of us will be in touch about availability, turnaround time, and rates. We like to start the whole process off by sending you a questionnaire to fill out. Its focus is on all the questions you want to ask yourself about positioning your book (because they’re the same ones agents, editors, marketers, and publicists will be asking). After you return the questionnaire to us, whichever editor you choose (and/or whoever we think would fit best) reads it and, armed with your questionnaire and any notes, is usually able to build and deliver a targeted proposal in 3–4 weeks, though some can take longer, of course. When it’s complete, we send it back to you with an invoice. Net-30 terms with PayPal or check.
Every project is unique, but in the past, it’s taken anywhere from 30–60 hours to build a proposal from scratch. Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com.
And as always, we follow the Editorial Freelancers Association rates.
Developmental Editing
Developmental editing digs deep.
More radically address the content of your work:
• Main premise
• Plot structure
• Character development
• Overall organization
• Writing style
• Word choice
• Dialogue
This kind of editing, because it requires rewriting and/or reorganization, should be completed before submitting to publishers and agencies, or before self-publishing.
Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com: in your message, include a description of the work and its word count, as well as a sample of the writing if you want to attach one. One of us will be in touch about availability, turnaround time, and rates. Whichever editor you choose (and/or whomever we think would be the best fit) to read your work then marks-up your document using track changes in Word. We ask for a minimum turnaround time of 4–6 weeks for each pass of developmental editing on a full manuscript. When your mark-up is complete, we send it back to you with an invoice. Net-30 terms with PayPal or check.
Our rate for developmental editing is $40–60/hour. As always, we follow the Editorial Freelancers Association rates.
Proofreading
Proofreaders save the day.
Proofreading is the last major stage of the editing process. As always, reading and consistent marking remain essential. When we proofread, we read word-for-word, noting all punctuation, paragraphing, capitalization, and italics, and ensure that any editing has been correctly interpreted. We also watch for the kind of errors missed by a computer’s spell checkers and grammar bots:
• Double-checking word breaks
• Hyphenation
• Typeface
• Font
• Headings and subheads
• Set-off material
• Page numbers and running heads
• Illustrations and tables
• Page length, table of contents
• Article or chapter titles
• Footnotes
• Index
• Cross-references
• Half title and title page
• Jacket copy
• Spine
• Overall sense of appearance
Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com: in your message, include a description of your project and its word count. One of us will be in touch about availability, turnaround time, and rates. Whichever editor you choose (and/or whomever we think would fit best) to read your work then marks-up your proof pages in Adobe Professional. We ask for a minimum turnaround time of 3 weeks for each proofreading pass on a full manuscript. When your mark-up is complete, we send it back to you with an invoice. Net-30 terms with PayPal or check. We follow the Editorial Freelancers Association rates.
Copyediting
Hire a copyediting guru.
Copyediting requires attention to every word in a manuscript, a thorough knowledge of the style to be followed, and the ability to make quick, logical, and defensible decisions. This type of editing, sometimes referred to as line editing, is usually undertaken when a manuscript is being prepared or has been accepted for print or online publication, but this is not a hard-set rule.
The full scope of our copyediting services fall into two orders of concern: substantive and mechanical copyediting:
Substantive copyediting
Substantive copyediting deals with the organization and presentation of existing content. It involves:
• Rephrasing for smoothness or to eliminate ambiguity
• Reorganizing or tightening text
• Reducing or simplifying documentation
• Recasting tables and other remedial activities
Mechanical editing
Mechanical editing deals mainly with grammar, syntax, formatting, and usage at the most basic level:
• Consistency in capitalization, spelling, hyphenation, table format, use of abbreviations, and citations
• Correctness of punctuation, including ellipsis points, parentheses, and quotation marks
• Consistency between numbers, tables, illustrations, and so forth
How does it work?
Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com: in your message, include a description of the work, its word count, and attach a sample of the writing. One of us will be in touch about availability, turnaround time, and rates. Whichever editor you choose (and/or who we think would fit best) to read your work then marks-up your document using track changes in Word. We ask for a minimum turnaround time of 3–4 weeks for each pass of copyediting on a full manuscript. When your mark-up is complete, we send it back to you with an invoice. Net-30 terms with PayPal or check.
As always, we follow the Editorial Freelancers Association rates.…
Reader Reports
The fastest, least expensive avenue
Whether it’s a short story, inspirational memoir, fictional novel, nonfiction book, old query letter, or new book proposal, we give the material a full review, covering a whole gamut of pertinent editorial issues, including:
• Main idea(s), theme(s), and book positioning
• Plot and character development
• Dialogue and other transitioning
• Macro/micro organization
• Sentence structure and syntax
• Grammar and mechanics
• Fact checking and use of resources
• Overall thoughts and next steps
Email us at info@cogitatestudios.com: In your message include a description of your project and its word count, as well as a sample of the writing if you wish to attach one. One of us will be in touch about availability, turnaround time, and rates. We ask for at least a 3–4 week turnaround time for every report, but manuscripts of monstrous proportions have sometimes taken more than a month. When your report is complete, we send it back to you with an invoice. Net-30 terms with PayPal or check.
In addition to books, we read many of book-related documents, so rates differ accordingly. Please inquire further by emailing us at info@cogitatestudios.com.
Graphic Novel Editing
Growing up, I had a thing for Peter Parker. Not Spiderman, believe it or not; I thought the sweet, bumbling, ultra-smart high schooler was just my type, not the latex-wearing crime fighter. Anyone mocked for being a nerd and a bookworm was…well, someone who reminded me of me to be honest. And basically, my crush on Peter Parker is, in large part, what prompted me to begin working in comics again.
While still working as an agent and editorial director at Baker’s Mark, my fabulous business partner at the time, Bernadette Baker-Baughman, and I bonded over our adolescent love for superheroes and Archie. After realizing our mutual geekdom and taking in the sights and talents at the Stumptown Comics Fest in 2005, we couldn’t resist delving into the category (seriously, folks it’s NOT a genre) with great enthusiasm. And by some serendipitous events, we began working with some of the most talented creators in comics today (Farel Dalrymple, Sonny Liew, Paul Guinan & Anina Bennett, Faith Erin Hicks, and the list goes on and on…).