Frequently Asked Questions: How do I contact you? You can simply enter your information on the "Contact Us" page to generate a form, email at mark@thewordwright.net, or send material to:   Mark Leichliter theWORDwright P.O. Box 11024 Jackson, WY 83002   Why do you prefer snail mail when sending manuscripts?  This is the age of the Internet and you have a website. Writing and editing someone's writing is an act of intimacy and trust.  I rely heavily on mark-up in the margins, I ask lots of questions within the text (and react to it emotionally at times, as you would want a reader to do), and you've paid for line editing.  All of these tasks are difficult to complete within texts electronically.  The best editing and "mark-up" programs are cumbersome to read and editing suggestions as demonstrated by such programs can be hard to follow.  Email is efficient and handy, and I rely on it a good deal, but I like to mark a text by hand and return a copy that shows a real reader has spent some time with your work. Can we correspond electronically instead? Certainly we can after we have talked about the logistics.  If you would prefer to avoid snail mail, we'll talk about either using Word mark-up to critique your text or I will employ highlighting to reference editing changes. I used your services, but I'm not familiar with some of the editing markings you have used.  And what's with the square brackets? I use standard editing/proofreading marks common throughout the industry and detailed in all writing handbooks.  I've charted a few of the most common marks I use below.  As for the square brackets [   ], this is a marking I've used for years to indicate a suggested edit (removal of text).  Where I feel adament about an edit or am responding to a mechanical or grammatical need in the text, I'll simply cross out language.  Often, where an edit is a question of style or perhaps even taste, I use the brackets to suggest an edit, but I am truly questioning the text, trying to get you to ask questions of it as well.  Typically where I employ such bracketed language, I offer an explantion behind my suggestion in the margin.  One of the most common applications of such suggested edits is in instances where I believe something has already been implied by other parts of the sentence or larger passage and is likely unecessary as a result. Some other marks: ^ indicates an insertion of text or punctuation  ۅ  (a squiqqly line extending from a piece of puctuation) indicates removal of the punctuation triple underlining of a letter indicates a need for capitalization a continuous elipsis ............... underneath text indicates a return to the text as written, ignoring a suggested removal / through a letter indicates removal of capitalization  I used your services and have some questions about your suggestions.  Can I call you? Absolutely.  I encourage you to call and talk about questions and approaches to revision.  A fifteen minute follow-up call is free.  For more extensive calls, we'll discuss a fee. I'm confident about my piece, I just need proofreading before approaching a publisher.  Can you help? Yes, I will proofread at $1.00 per page.  Please make checks payable to Mark Leichliter.