This Editing Contract sets out how we will deliver English editing for you, and what each of us can expect while the work is in progress. It applies to the project described in the accepted proposal (including the files, schedule, and price) and it sits alongside any written notes we both agree during the job.
If anything is unclear as we go, we will ask rather than guess, especially where wording, figures, names, titles, or meaning could be affected.
What we will do
We will complete English editing on the documents and file types agreed for this project. You will see our changes and questions clearly, and you will get the final handover items listed under this section.
We can work in Word with Track Changes, on a final PDF with mark-up, or both. If you only send a PDF, we mark corrections on that PDF and we do not retype text or rebuild layout. We will keep to your tone and wording, and where a suggested change could affect meaning, numbers, legal intent, or technical content, we will flag it for your decision instead of changing it quietly.
* Edited Word file * Marked-up PDF proof * Style sheet * Query list * Reference check notes * Clean final version
Payment
To book the work, we invoice 40% of the project price when you sign the proposal. We schedule the project once that booking payment is received and we have the files we need to start.
We invoice the remaining 60% when we hand over the finished English editing. Each invoice is payable within 14 days of its date. If an invoice becomes overdue, we will tell you what is outstanding and pause further work or release of any additional files until payment is brought up to date. If a deadline is time-critical, please flag it early so we can plan sensibly around payment and file delivery.
Revisions and new rounds
This project includes one revision round after handover. A revision round means we make one further pass on the same text to address your responses to our queries, and to tidy any knock-on consistency issues created by those responses.
If you make new wording changes after handover, add new sections, or swap in a different version of the document, that is not part of the included revision round. It is a new round because it needs re-checking for tone, consistency, names and titles, and figures. When that happens, we will review what changed, quote the cost and timing in writing, and only start once you confirm you want us to proceed.
Who owns what
You keep ownership of your content, and you are responsible for the final decisions on wording, meaning, and approvals. Once the project is paid in full, you own the edited deliverables we hand over and you may use them in print and digital formats without restriction.
We keep ownership of our internal working methods, checklists, templates, style-sheet format, and any notes we use to manage quality across the job. We may keep an internal copy of working files for record-keeping and continuity, but we do not share your documents outside our team of four without your written permission.
What we are responsible for
We take care with the work, but editing is not the same as subject-matter verification. We check grammar, spelling, punctuation, and consistency, and we check names, titles, dates, and figures for consistency within the document and against any source material you give us. If you do not provide a source list, we can only check internal consistency, not factual accuracy.
We also will not make changes that could alter meaning, numbers, legal intent, or technical wording without flagging them for your decision. If something is urgent or high-risk, tell us what to watch for, and share any approved names, titles, figures, or reference sources so we can check against them.
Ending the project
If either of us needs to end the project early, we will agree the notice period with you in writing and confirm the stop date. Up to that stop date, you pay for the work we have completed and any committed time we cannot reasonably reassign. If you have already paid more than the value of work completed, we will refund the difference. If you have paid less, we will invoice for the balance.
On termination, we will hand over what is ready in the agreed format: the latest edited file, any mark-up, the current style sheet, and our query list. If we are ending because an invoice is overdue, handover of further files happens once the overdue amount is paid.
Signature
