You’re an author, and you’ve finished editing your book. You now want to find someone to proofread it for you – smart move! If you’re submitting to an agent/publisher, you want to give your manuscript every possible advantage. If you’re self-publishing, the last thing you want is reviews saying ‘good story, but it could do with proper proofreading’.

But how to find the right proofreader? There are so many out there to choose from, and you don’t know which ones are the best. I get so angry when I see hard-working writers being conned (yes, conned) by many of the new companies that have appeared since the boom in self-publishing, who make grandiose claims about their clear-up rate. Some try to lure clients in with low prices, but using their services might be a false economy if you then have to get the job done again by someone who knows…