Contract of editing and other services
The following terms and conditions are
provided so that you and I both have an understanding of what is involved in
the process of working together. If you have any questions or concerns, feel
free to contact me so that I can provide clarity and reassurance.
1. General overview
1.1 These terms and conditions apply to any work done on behalf of the
Client (you) by me (Shelley Routledge) | Fiction Editor
1.2 I will provide editing and other services agreed upon (in writing) by
myself and the Client.
1.3 The Client is under no obligation to offer me work; neither am I
under any obligation to accept work offered by the Client.
1.4 The work will be carried out unsupervised at such
times and places as determined by me, using my own equipment.
1.5 The work will be carried out by me. I will not subcontract
proofreading/editing projects, or parts of projects, to third parties.
1.6 I confirm that I am self-employed, am responsible for my own
income tax and National Insurance contributions, and will not claim benefits
granted to the Client's employees.
1.7 I am not VAT-registered.
1.8 The contract of service requires that the Client acknowledges, in
writing (including email via the booking-confirmation form), that they have read,
understood and agreed to these terms and conditions.
2. Project terms
2.1 Prior to commencement of the editing work/other services, the Client
and I will agree, in writing (including email), the terms of the project:
the medium in which the editing service and other services will be carried out (e.g. in Word, on PDF, on paper)
how the material will be annotated (e.g. Track Changes in Word)
the length of time required to complete the project, as advised by me
a fee for the project, based on a quotation supplied by me, in writing (including email), following my evaluation of the material to be proofread/edited and the time frame required to complete the job
any expenses (e.g. postage) that the Client will bear in addition to the costs of the editing
the date by which the material will be delivered by the Client to me
the latest date by which the completed project will be returned, following my advice to the Client
2.2 Please note that if, on receipt of
the project to be worked on (or at an early stage), it becomes apparent that
significantly more work is required than had been anticipated in the
preliminary discussion/brief or from the sample supplied, I may renegotiate the
fee and/or the deadline, or decline to carry out the work.
3. Quotations and fees
3.1 A quotation for the work will be provided by me to the Client
following my evaluation of a representative sample of the materials to be
worked on, and a discussion with the Client as to what is required.
3.2 Once the Client and I have agreed the full fee, it is non-negotiable
unless the Client extends the word count of the job or requests additional
services. In this case, a revised quotation and job-completion date will be
negotiated.
3.3 The Client will pay me an agreed flat fee for the project, as agreed
in writing.
3.4 Unless otherwise agreed, the Client will be supplied with an invoice
immediately upon purchasing a service.
3.5 Payment should be received with the booking form.
3.6 Unless otherwise agreed, the fee quoted is for one pass of a
manuscript. Additional passes are new projects, the terms of which will be
agreed separately.
4. Booking-confirmation form
4.1 The booking-confirmation form is an agreement to the contract
of services between me and the Client.
5. Booking fee
5.1 When the Client has sent the booking-confirmation form at the bottom
of this page, along with payment, I will issue the invoice.
5.2 By filling in the booking-confirmation form, the Client agrees to
secure my editorial services for a specific and mutually agreed-upon project,
at a specific and mutually agreed time.
5.3 By filling in the booking-confirmation form, the Client confirms that
they have read and agreed to the terms and conditions herein. From
thereon, the terms of the cancellation policy (see below) apply.
5.4 The booking is considered confirmed once the fee has been paid by the
Client and received by me.
6. Cancellation policy: Terms, fees and project-commencement reminders
TERMS:
6.1 Both the Client and I have the right to terminate a contract for
services at any time if there is a serious breach of its terms.
6.2 This Client is free to cancel a service for any reason by
providing me with written notice (including email); I must acknowledge
this cancellation in writing (including email) for this to be valid.
6.3 I may cancel a service at any time for any reason by providing
written notice (including email) to the Client. In the unlikely event that
I cancel a service, I will provide a prorated refund of any overages
of fees paid.
6.4 If, in the unlikely event that the Client is touched by extraordinary
or difficult circumstances that cause cancellation or delay (e.g. family
crisis, illness, bereavement), the Client should contact me to discuss the
terms of the cancellation policy. I aim to be fair and helpful at all times.
FEES:
6.5 CANCELLATION DURING THE PROJECT: If the Client cancels the
work during the editing project, I reserve the right to retain 100% of the
agreed fee.
6.6 CANCELLATION PRIOR TO PROJECT COMMENCEMENT:
If the Client wishes to cancel with less than one month's notice, I reserve the right to retain 50% of the agreed fee.
If the Client wishes to cancel with more than one month's notice, a full refund shall apply.
PROJECT-COMMENCEMENT REMINDERS:
6.7 I will contact the Client two weeks before the mutually agreed
start date with a reminder that the file is due 24 hours before said start
date.
If in the unlikely event that the Client does not confirm in writing (including email) within one week prior to the mutually agreed start date that they will be supplying the file for editing, the project is deemed to have been cancelled by the Client and the slot in my schedule will be released.
If, as is likely, the Client confirms the project, I will ask for the file to be sent to me 24 hours before the start date.
7. Confidentiality
7.1 The nature and content of the work will be kept confidential and not
made known to anyone other than the Client and its contractors without prior
written permission.
7.2 I will not, under any circumstances, upload the Client’s files to
external websites or distribute them to third parties unless specifically
authorized to do so, in writing, by the Client. I do, however, use Dropbox as a
cloud storage system. See my Privacy Policy for how your data is protected.
7.3 Under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998, the Client and I may
keep on record such information (e.g. contact details) as is necessary. Either
may view the other's records to ensure that they are relevant, correct and up
to date.
8. Copyright
8.1 All content delivered to me by the Client for the proofreading/editing
and other services project is owned by the Client.
8.2 In this respect, the Client agrees to hold me harmless from and against
all claims, liabilities and expenses arising out of any potential or actual
copyright or trademark misappropriation or infringement claimed against them.
8.3 Following payment, any content created by me as part of the
editing process will become the copyright of the Client unless otherwise
agreed.
9. Quality assurance
9.1 Please read the What to Expect From Me page. This is my declaration of
what's possible when it comes to perfection, particularly when I'm working on a
file that hasn't been through previous rounds of extensive
professional editorial revision.
10. Legal jurisdiction
10.1 This agreement is subject to the laws of England and Wales, and both
the Client and I agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the English and Welsh
courts.
10.2 The exclusive venue for any arbitration or court proceeding based on
or arising out of this Agreement shall be London, England.
11. Privacy policy and the GDPR
11.1 Please read my Privacy Policy, which explains the data I collect, how
I use it and store it, and my compliance with the General Data Protection
Regulation (GDPR).
12. Acknowledgements in published works
12.1 There is no requirement for the Client to mention me in the published
work's acknowledgements section. However, the Client agrees that I will
have the opportunity to review any such mention prior to publication, or to
decline to be mentioned.
I would like to discuss my project.
If you want to discuss a project, just fill in the form and I will contact you as soon as I can. Or alternatively, drop me a line at shelley@thebookeditorialexpert.com