Alex Weinstein Editing

Welcome! If you’re looking for a superlative editor with 20 years of experience, you’re in the right place.

What I Edit

I’ve worked with over 250 scholars on their dissertations, theses, and research articles (see Scholarly Publications: Editing and Coaching).

I edit monographs and higher-ed textbooks (see Academic Books).

I offer thoughtful and careful line editing to poets (see Poetry).

I’ve recently started taking select projects in fiction and creative nonfiction (see Fiction/CNF).

I edit a wide variety of other nonfictional materials (see Other Materials).

I edit documents and book-length projects that need attention at any and every level, from beta reading and developmental editing to final proofreading and formatting.

How I Work

Every project is different and requires a different approach.

• If you’re looking for help with bigger-picture issues of content, structure, or organization, it’s probably best for us to begin with a brief conversation.
• If your work is done and ready for editing, it’s probably most efficient for me to begin by looking at your document and asking a few questions about what you do and don’t want me to work on.
• Either way, I’ll then provide a free sample edit (if turnaround time allows) and a free estimate including a MAXIMUM PROJECT COST.
• At that point, you can decide whether or not you’d like to proceed.

Other Things You Need to Know

• If you accept the estimate and choose to proceed, I require a 1/3 deposit before starting the work. The remaining balance is invoiced as soon as the work is complete and must be paid in full within 2 months.
• I accept university funding, and I offer a variety of digital payment options including Venmo, Zelle, CashApp, and PayPal.
• For those with limited budgets, I’m happy to work only on certain sections or issues and to do as much as I can within your budget. I can also identify recurring issues and give you time to work on them before I do my final pass on your document.
• For those with urgent deadlines, please reach out to see if I’m available within your timeline. If so, we can expedite this process.
• I work in Microsoft Word using Track Changes. If I’m not doing any formatting, I also work in Google Docs, Scrivener, and Pages.

What Makes Me Special

I excel at moving back and forth between the big picture and the small picture. I’m equally able to translate the larger themes that are trying to emerge from the work into organizational structures, find elegant solutions to grammar dilemmas that preserve the writer’s unique voice, and attend to the minute details of style and formatting.

Over the years, writers who’ve done bigger-picture work with me have shared that I helped them to reconnect with the heart of their project, make realistic writing plans and actually follow them, regain their confidence, and make their work a reality. Editing clients have consistently thanked me for the care, thought, and thoroughness I put into their work and have expressed that they were thrilled with the final result. Many different kinds of writers have told me that I was able to address errors and suggest impactful changes while maintaining their voice and style throughout.

When possible, I like to work at every level that needs attention to polish the document from top to bottom. That said, I only do the work that is specifically desired and agreed upon, and I always follow the prime directive of getting the document across the finish line. I adapt my approach to the needs of each project, and I am 100% accountable to budgets and deadlines.

I also have significant experience working with writers for whom English is a second language and have developed a toolkit to address second-language writing issues.

Finally, I’ve been learning how to be a better editor for two decades. Experience matters.

How to Get Started

If it sounds like we might be a good fit, let’s find out!