Four Square Creative

Why should I hire you?

Every big-name writer and veteran editor knows the value of getting a second pair of eyes to double-check material.

At Four Square Creative, we come at your project with precision and focus, and we bring years of experience to the table. Our words and bylines have appeared time and again in newspapers, print magazines, marketing departments, radio broadcasts, and on the web. We’ve been from beginning to end of many a book, and improved each manuscript we’ve been hired to consult on. We know this industry inside out.

We’re not bragging. We’ve just been there.

And we can explain it all to you in common-sense terms so that you can get there, too.

How does the process work?

For print projects and copywriting requests, we start with what you’ve gotten down on paper. Your ideas are the ones that matter most.

If you’ve written four chapters of what will ultimately be a ten-chapter business book, we can take a look at what you’ve composed so far and give you suggestions on which direction to head, which parts sound choppy or superfluous, and how best to market your book when it’s finished.

If graphic services are what you’re after, we’ll start by asking you about your goals, preferred styles and colors, where your design will ultimately be used, and what other similar designs you’ve seen that tickle your fancy. We never, ever use templates. Every design we produce is tailor-made for you.

We will quote you a custom price based on your specific graphic design needs and the complexity level of the project. We’ll chat via email about what you expect, how far you want us to go, and where the work will ultimately be published.

Then, when we’ve agreed on what’s going to happen and how much the actual cost will be, you will send us your material and half of the payment up front. The rest, we’ll collect when we return your finished work.

Our general turnaround time is two weeks. We usually beat it.

What formats can you deal with?

For line edits, we prefer to deal with a printed, double-spaced copy of your manuscript. We will also accept Word, RTF, or text files for some projects.

Images may be submitted in JPG, TIFF, PDF, or Photoshop format. Print work requires a minimum resolution of 300 dpi, and images for the web are rendered at 72 dpi.

We are a PC shop, and we run Windows 7.

Can you get me a publishing deal?

No. Only you can get yourself a publishing deal.

But what we can do is let you know what editors and publishers expect, what the market will tolerate, where to hone and fine-tune your craft, and how to get your foot in the door.

It’s up to you to take action and move toward your dreams, but we can give you the plan.

What if my book is only an idea right now?

If your book is still floating around in your head but hasn’t yet made it to paper, many companies will refuse to work with you outright.

We don’t.

We believe that knowing where you’re going is half the battle, and, depending on your creative style, having a vision for your book can be as important as actually writing it.

If you have an idea you want to run by us, a plot you want to validate, or a few pages of outline you’d like a professional opinion on, we’re happy to help with an email consultation.

What styles and genres do you work with?

We are happy to help you create and polish stories, books, articles, and copywriting of any flavor. No rating level scares us away, and no piece is too long or too short.

The only material we will refuse is hate propaganda.

Everything else? Wide open.

How long will you take to finish my project?

Our standard turnaround time is two weeks.

(Often, we’ll get short pieces and basic design work done much faster than that!)

How much do you charge?

Naturally, that depends on the service you choose.

Our standard editing rate is $0.02 (two cents) per word, with half due up front and the remainder due when we return your marked-up manuscript. That rate will cover you whether we’re talking about proofreading a single query letter or sharpening a 950-page novel.

Many of our competitors charge per page instead of per word, but that leaves you paying for white space if your project’s text is less dense than the average manuscript (as it would be, for example, if your material happened to be poetry, a children’s book manuscript, or a recipe collection.)

We think that’s unfair, so that’s not how we do things. By charging a flat rate, you only pay for the amount of work we actually do–you won’t pay extra simply because of your layout choices.

For design work, our price will depend on how complicated your ideas are, how many formats you’ll need for displaying your final image, and how much time the project actually takes us. Book covers, for example, average around $100 each. A brochure or a stationery set might be extensive or simple; everything we do is custom and one-of-a-kind, not a template, so talk to us and see what we can offer.

All of our design quotes automatically include a proof, up to two rounds of changes, and a final deliverable.

We accept payment by cash, check, and Paypal (which easily processes most debit and credit cards regardless of whether you have your own Paypal account.)

See something we’ve left out?

Ask your question via the “Contact Us” form, and we will be glad to respond.