Virginia Clark has been copyediting and proofreading fiction and nonfiction for many years, working on more than 200 titles. She specializes in literary and popular fiction, detective/crime fiction, biography, self-help, history, music, and the visual arts, especially film. She was a staff copyeditor for Simon & Schuster in New York starting in 1989 for five years and has continued to freelance for them ever since, as well as for other presses including Algonquin; Duke University; Farrar, Straus, & Giroux; and the University of California. Fiction she has copyedited includes Richard Condon, The Emperor of America; Quinn Dalton, High-Strung; David Freeman, A Hollywood Life and It’s All True; Kem Nunn, The Dogs of Winter; Kate Walbert, The Gardens of Kyoto and Our Kind; and Meg Wolitzer, Surrender, Dorothy. Detective/crime authors include Jan Burke, George C. Chesbro, Nick Gaitano, Alison Glen, Philip Harper, David Osborn, Ian Rankin, and Jan Roberts. She has copyedited autobiographies including Miles Davis, Miles; Faye Dunaway, Looking for Gatsby; Charlton Heston, In the Arena; and Neil Simon, Rewrites: A Memoir; as well as biographies such as Joseph McBride, The Catastrophe of Success: Frank Capra and McBride’s Steven Spielberg. She has also worked on large collections including The Companion to 20th-Century Music, Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide, and The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. In addition, she has been proofreader/copyeditor for October Magazine since 1989, as well as for various other magazines such as for Condé Nast publications.
Virginia holds a Ph.D. in English and has taught writing, literature, and film at the University of Maryland, Frostburg State University, and University of Maryland University College. Her own writing includes several books on film (Aldous Huxley and Film; What Women Wrote: Scenarios, 1912-1929); numerous articles on film history; and several screenplays, one of which won a script writing contest sponsored by HBO, Aaron Spelling, and John Truby, and another which was optioned by Hollywood producers.
Equipped with broad experience, thorough knowledge of grammar and punctuation, and great sensitivity to style, Virginia very much enjoys the editing process, helping the author to say more precisely and evocatively what he or she really means to say.
Specialties
BOOK EDITING, DEVELOPMENTAL EDITING, COPYEDITING, PROOFREADING, WRITING
Feedback
"Virginia applied more editorial improvement than I expected. She also encouraged me to take extra steps in restructuring the story to give it the proper continuity. I didn't have any problem with her changes, they were all very well thought out and correct. I had already been through two previous editors that did not correct the problems my agent expected, so I was a bit hesitant. Once we began corresponding, I could see that I had great luck in finding her, and that she made time for my project. I expect and hope that she will be with me on the book journey as I write the entire story. She was extraordinarily compassionate and professional. That is a very rare combination in any field of work." —Luellen Smiley
"Virginia Clark . . .
saved me from
egregious errors of
spelling and syntax."
--Charlton Heston, In the Arena: An
Autobiography
"I want to thank . . .
my wonderful copy
editor Virginia
Clark." --Faye Dunaway
with Betsy Sharkey,
Looking for Gatsby: My
Life
"For . . .
encouragement and care
in guiding me through
the dangerous shoals
of writing prose, I
wish to thank . . .
Virginia Clark."
--Neil Simon,
Rewrites: A Memoir
I am blessed to have found you! Last night I read through every word of your critique of Leading Citizens and found inspiration and knowledge on how to improve it. . . . Virginia, my profound gratitude for your expertise and generous praise. I only wish I'd found you sooner." --Patty Hutchins, Leading Citizens
"She has an impressive résumé and is very skilled. For anyone who is looking to have some editing work done, she should definitely be your first choice." --Don Stewart, The Slackers’ Guide to U.S. History
"I was extremely pleased with expedience of the network. Everyone was friendly, helpful, accommodating, and supportive. There was not one bit of the network I was displeased with or uneasy about from the first day I found the site." --Joshua Miller, Mine Anomie
"Virginia Clark not only established a professional working relationship with my co-author and I, but also made our final editing process a much less onerous task. It was a pleasure working with Ms. Clark. She was consistently enthusiastic, supportive, and knowledgeable about our subject matter, and provided valuable insight regarding the finishing touches our work needed for it to meet the demands of today’s market."
John Cohassey and Roy Kotynek, co-authors
"Virginia was most helpful and I look forward to working with her again. She is extremely professional and her attention to detail is astounding. I would highly recommend her to anyone looking for editing services. Thanks so much to the network for putting me in touch with such a competent consultant." --Sandi Glauser, Solving for X
"Virginia Clark provided a superb job of copyediting the final manuscript." --Wheeler Winston Dixon, Visions of Paradise: Images of Eden in the Cinema
"The manuscript benefited from the careful and thoughtful copyediting performed by film scholar Virginia Clark." --Joseph McBride, Frank Capra: The Catastrophe of Success
"Virginia Clark’s copy-editing defined and refined the book even further." --Scott Eyman, Ernst Lubitsch: Laughter in Paradise
"Copy editor Virginia Clark . . . once again enhanced my writing with her film scholarship." --Joseph McBride, Steven Spielberg: A Biography
"Virginia Clark did her usual painstaking copyedit, on which I rely." --Scott Eyman, The Speed of Sound: Hollywood and the Talkie Revolution, 1926-1930
"Proofreader/copy editor Virginia Clark[’s] . . .work was, as usual, impeccable." --Brian Henderson and Ann Martin, Film Quarterly: Forty Years—A Selection
REQUEST FOR ESTIMATE/CONSULTATION
Cut and paste the text that follows into your e-mail editor (e.g., Outlook, Word) and answer each question.
A sample is required to receive an estimate for editing services
6. Describe your project: (e.g., book, business document, dissertation)
7. Describe the level of writing or editing required: (e.g., copyediting, proofreading, content editing, fact-checking, ghostwriting, formatting)
8. Current word count of document:
9. Your deadline date:
10. Required manual of style, if any: (e.g., Chicago Manual, APA, MLA, AP, AAA, CBE/CSE)
11. Number of charts, tables, and pictures:
12. Do you need charts, tables, pictures edited/formatted?
13. Do you have a budget for the project? (Please be specific.)
14. Number of footnotes and entries in reference list:
15. Do you want to contact a particular writer/editor?
16. How did you learn about our service?
16. Attach a sample chapter/section or other important documents related to your project. Please zip large files (max 1MB)
YOUR NAME MUST BE IN YOUR SAMPLE DOCUMENT OR IT CAN BE THE FILE NAME (e.g., johnsmith.doc).
The network coordinator will forward your submission (plus any attached files) to the consultant(s) you select. If no selection is made, your submission will be forwarded to several consultants who might be a good match. Final choice of consultant is yours.
If you do not get a response within 3 hours (M-F) of submission, send a follow-up e-mail to:
Coordinator @ Airmail.net
and/or
EditingNetwork @ gmail.com
You may also use the chat button and/or leave voice mail for the network coordinator: 469-789-3030.
Allow a longer response time if you sent your submission during the weekend or after U.S. business hours.
All of the consultants listed on this site are freelance. They are located throughout the U.S. The coordinator cannot answer cost/timeframe questions for each consultant. You must go through the submission process to receive direct responses from the consultants listed on this site.
Virginia Clark has been copyediting and proofreading fiction and nonfiction for many years, working on more than 200 titles. She specializes in literary and popular fiction, detective/crime fiction, biography, self-help, history, music, and the visual arts, especially film. She was a staff copyeditor for Simon & Schuster in New York starting in 1989 for five years and has continued to freelance for them ever since, as well as for other presses including Algonquin; Duke University; Farrar, Straus, & Giroux; and the University of California. Fiction she has copyedited includes Richard Condon, The Emperor of America; Quinn Dalton, High-Strung; David Freeman, A Hollywood Life and It’s All True; Kem Nunn, The Dogs of Winter; Kate Walbert, The Gardens of Kyoto and Our Kind; and Meg Wolitzer, Surrender, Dorothy. Detective/crime authors include Jan Burke, George C. Chesbro, Nick Gaitano, Alison Glen, Philip Harper, David Osborn, Ian Rankin, and Jan Roberts. She has copyedited autobiographies including Miles Davis, Miles; Faye Dunaway, Looking for Gatsby; Charlton Heston, In the Arena; and Neil Simon, Rewrites: A Memoir; as well as biographies such as Joseph McBride, The Catastrophe of Success: Frank Capra and McBride’s Steven Spielberg. She has also worked on large collections including The Companion to 20th-Century Music, Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide, and The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. In addition, she has been proofreader/copyeditor for October Magazine since 1989, as well as for various other magazines such as for Condé Nast publications.
