Frequently Asked Questions and Glossary of Terms
Can your business flex with seasonal demand?
Business Plans - who needs this?
All businesses require a Business Plan, especially small businesses. By keeping all the details in your head, you may be missing opportunities to streamline your processes, identify which aspects of your business need to be out-sourced, where you should be focusing to build your core business value. If you do nothing else for your financial security and peace of mind this month, do this - get your Business Plan formalized. We can help you with that.
Confidentiality and non-disclosure
We are committed to discretion and confidentiality in respect of both the work and our business relationship, and adhere to standard privacy practices. Once our engagement is concluded, all copies of your documents are deleted / destroyed.
Contract - what does this cover?
If the work warrants it, for example an engagement to ghost-write, we will draw up a simple proposal based on our understanding of your needs, and the magnitude of the work to be performed. The proposal becomes a contract once signed and delivered, subject to New Zealand legislation. It will stipulate terms and conditions, copyright ownership, a delivery date or schedule, a payment date or schedule, and conditions of withdrawal by either party.
Copyright - who owns this?
The client owns all copyright on the work, after acceptance and final payment, under all conditions.
Copy writing
Copy writing for business or promotional purposes covers the creation of advertisements, web material, client letters, and all material intended to promote a business or product.
Editing
Our editing / copy editing service addresses writing style. The focus of the copy editor is on improving the flow and clarity of text, rather than simply ensuring correct usage and grammar, and may offer suggested re-wording rather than simply drawing attention to problems. The copy editor will consult with the writer, in the review and adjustment of conflicting statements, inaccuracies, and inconsistencies in the text.
Editing covers various levels of textual changes, corrections, and improvements in grammar, syntax, voice, style, et cetera. The editing changes are incorporated directly into the text, using the MS Word Review Function. Comments and suggestions are highlighted, and may be summarized in a brief note.
Copy editing (copy editing = to prepare literary material for publication or presentation) entails:
- formatting your document, ensuring ease of reading and a professional appearance in terms of layout elements;
- confirming clarity of content (simplifying into clear and unambiguous English as required )
- detection and removal of factual, grammatical, and typographical errors
- checking references for consistency (not for accuracy)
- clarification of obscure text, by suggesting improved sentence structure and word select
- reviewing the sequence of information for a smooth flow of ideas.
Estimating your costs
The cost per hour for standard proofreading is NZ $20.00; this equates to +/- 4 pages, or +/-1,400 words.
If you divide your number of pages by 4, or your number of words by 350, and then multiply the result by $20, that will give you a clear idea of the cost of proofreading.
Ghost-writing
Ghost-writing is the work undertaken by the writer, based on an idea / outline / notes / other material supplied by the client, to create an original work. Completion of the work may require interviews, research, et cetera.
Memoirs, Biographies, and Autobiographies - what is the difference?
Memoirs relate specific periods or experiences in a person’s life.
Autobiographies are written by the author, relating most / all of the author’s life story.
Biographies are like autobiographies, except they're written by someone else, not the the subject of the biography.
Power Point Presentation
Slideshow presentations are often used for presenting complex content to a meeting audience; the flow and sequence of the information is critical for engaging the audience.
Proofreading - what is included?
Our standard proofreading service ensures there are no spelling, grammar, syntax, punctuation, or typographical errors, and checks the submitted text for tenses, sense, and consistency.
Standard Proofreading (proofreading = to read and mark corrections) entails:
- checking and correcting headings
- checking and correcting spacing
- checking and correcting punctuation (commas, full stops, apostrophes, bullet points, brackets, hyphens, et cetera)
- checking and correcting spelling
- checking and correcting grammar (tenses, sentence construction, et cetera).
Re-writing - what does this entail?
The work that is submitted to us is completely re-written, and may include creation of / changes to the following: style, document layout, voice, grammar, syntax, vocabulary, and spelling.
Urgent Work
Urgent work may be undertaken if requested; if the work needs to be performed outside of normal business hours, it will attract a higher cost than the urgent work rate - refer to Pricing for details.
What are the process steps from start to finish?
Step 1: You send us an email detailing your requirements, with the material as an e-mail attachment, if possible.
Step 2: If appropriate, you will be provided with a detailed proposal, to sign and return via e-mail.
Step 3: The project will start.
Step 4: The completed Work will be delivered via e-mail for review and acceptance, and we conclude our business.
NOTE: where the Work exceeds the size allowed by e-mail, physical tracked mail methods must be used.
What genres of communication literature do we cover?
What presentation formats do we work in?
All businesses require a Business Plan, especially small businesses. By keeping all the details in your head, you may be missing opportunities to streamline your processes, identify which aspects of your business need to be out-sourced, where you should be focusing to build your core business value. If you do nothing else for your financial security and peace of mind this month, do this - get your Business Plan formalized. We can help you with that.
Confidentiality and non-disclosure
We are committed to discretion and confidentiality in respect of both the work and our business relationship, and adhere to standard privacy practices. Once our engagement is concluded, all copies of your documents are deleted / destroyed.
Contract - what does this cover?
If the work warrants it, for example an engagement to ghost-write, we will draw up a simple proposal based on our understanding of your needs, and the magnitude of the work to be performed. The proposal becomes a contract once signed and delivered, subject to New Zealand legislation. It will stipulate terms and conditions, copyright ownership, a delivery date or schedule, a payment date or schedule, and conditions of withdrawal by either party.
Copyright - who owns this?
The client owns all copyright on the work, after acceptance and final payment, under all conditions.
Copy writing
Copy writing for business or promotional purposes covers the creation of advertisements, web material, client letters, and all material intended to promote a business or product.
Editing
Our editing / copy editing service addresses writing style. The focus of the copy editor is on improving the flow and clarity of text, rather than simply ensuring correct usage and grammar, and may offer suggested re-wording rather than simply drawing attention to problems. The copy editor will consult with the writer, in the review and adjustment of conflicting statements, inaccuracies, and inconsistencies in the text.
Editing covers various levels of textual changes, corrections, and improvements in grammar, syntax, voice, style, et cetera. The editing changes are incorporated directly into the text, using the MS Word Review Function. Comments and suggestions are highlighted, and may be summarized in a brief note.
Copy editing (copy editing = to prepare literary material for publication or presentation) entails:
- formatting your document, ensuring ease of reading and a professional appearance in terms of layout elements;
- confirming clarity of content (simplifying into clear and unambiguous English as required )
- detection and removal of factual, grammatical, and typographical errors
- checking references for consistency (not for accuracy)
- clarification of obscure text, by suggesting improved sentence structure and word select
- reviewing the sequence of information for a smooth flow of ideas.
Estimating your costs
The cost per hour for standard proofreading is NZ $20.00; this equates to +/- 4 pages, or +/-1,400 words.
If you divide your number of pages by 4, or your number of words by 350, and then multiply the result by $20, that will give you a clear idea of the cost of proofreading.
Ghost-writing
Ghost-writing is the work undertaken by the writer, based on an idea / outline / notes / other material supplied by the client, to create an original work. Completion of the work may require interviews, research, et cetera.
Memoirs, Biographies, and Autobiographies - what is the difference?
Memoirs relate specific periods or experiences in a person’s life.
Autobiographies are written by the author, relating most / all of the author’s life story.
Biographies are like autobiographies, except they're written by someone else, not the the subject of the biography.
Power Point Presentation
Slideshow presentations are often used for presenting complex content to a meeting audience; the flow and sequence of the information is critical for engaging the audience.
Proofreading - what is included?
Our standard proofreading service ensures there are no spelling, grammar, syntax, punctuation, or typographical errors, and checks the submitted text for tenses, sense, and consistency.
Standard Proofreading (proofreading = to read and mark corrections) entails:
- checking and correcting headings
- checking and correcting spacing
- checking and correcting punctuation (commas, full stops, apostrophes, bullet points, brackets, hyphens, et cetera)
- checking and correcting spelling
- checking and correcting grammar (tenses, sentence construction, et cetera).
Re-writing - what does this entail?
The work that is submitted to us is completely re-written, and may include creation of / changes to the following: style, document layout, voice, grammar, syntax, vocabulary, and spelling.
Urgent Work
Urgent work may be undertaken if requested; if the work needs to be performed outside of normal business hours, it will attract a higher cost than the urgent work rate - refer to Pricing for details.
What are the process steps from start to finish?
Step 1: You send us an email detailing your requirements, with the material as an e-mail attachment, if possible.
Step 2: If appropriate, you will be provided with a detailed proposal, to sign and return via e-mail.
Step 3: The project will start.
Step 4: The completed Work will be delivered via e-mail for review and acceptance, and we conclude our business.
NOTE: where the Work exceeds the size allowed by e-mail, physical tracked mail methods must be used.
What genres of communication literature do we cover?
- Training Material and Manuals
- Power Point presentations
- Self-improvement / Self-help / How-to guides
- Corporate Information Brochures
- In-House Newsletters and Publications
- Quick Reference Guides
- Business Proposals
- IT Technical Writing and System User Manuals / Guides
- Procedure and Policy Manuals
- Business and management
- Health and wellness publications
- Curriculum Vitae / Resume.
What presentation formats do we work in?
- Books
- Newsletters
- Articles (websites, magazines)
- Academic Papers (e.g. Masters' degree thesis)
- Websites (for content, links, usability review, as well as proofreading).
