For small presses and publishing houses: I am available for developmental edits and copy edits. I also read and organize submissions (especially during open periods/manuscript contests).
For writers: I offer different kinds of services including a full manuscript assessment with editorial notes and an online meeting to discuss the revision process/way forward (this is helpful especially for fiction writers with early drafts); a one-time reading of your project proposal and opening chapters (especially useful for non-fiction writers); two or three rounds of editing a poetry manuscript (chapbook or full-length) before it goes out to agents/publishers/contest submissions. I am, first and foremost, an empathetic close reader, and will work closely with you on your work-in-progress to arrive at its closest-to-the-dream version. Please reach out and tell me about your project!
My fees are usually hourly and dependent on genre, turnaround time, and the intensity of edits required. I am happy to provide a quote over email. I am also open to negotiation for special projects and for those on low incomes. I do not offer proofreading services.
Areas of expertise: literary fiction; literary translation; creative non-fiction, especially memoirs; hybrid, cross-genre texts; poetry collections/anthologies; graphic novels.
Books I Have Worked On
Testimonials
‘Sohini Basak is a dream editor. She is generous with her time and suggestions, resourceful with her literary connections, and a stunningly close and insightful reader of prose and poetry both. Working with her on The World that Belongs to Us: An Anthology of Queer Poetry from South Asia was joyful. She was always helpful to her authors, and created a very collegial working environment.’
– Akhil Katyal
‘Working with Sohini was such a great experience for me. She quickly understood the strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript and articulated these clearly in our editorial conversation. My discussion with Sohini expanded how I thought about my writing, and helped me see avenues for improvement. I found her notes incredibly useful, and have continued to refer to them as I revise.’
– Mahreen Sohail
‘Sohini holds a panoramic view of the text throughout her editing process. Her hold on substantive editing allows the necessary psychic distance that an author may falter on sometimes. She lets the author retain their autonomy while tirelessly working on the coherent unity of the book. With her calm demeanour she is equally great on alleviating anxiety, especially during the last and very disorienting phase of editing the manuscript.’
– Farah Bashir
‘Sohini Basak and I first worked together on my poetry collection, The Altar of the Only World, and her gifts for seeing the true capaciousness of a work, attunement to lyrical possibility and gentle approach gave me absolute confidence when we subsequently worked on my novel The Queen of Jasmine Country. She is an editor whom I would entrust with any manuscript that is heartfelt and fully-fledged yet not fully-hewn. In those tender moments between creator and creation, she wields insight, craft and perspective that strengthen both one’s work and one’s vision for it.’
– Sharanya Manivannan
‘Sohini copyedited one of our key titles for the year and she was great – communicative, great attention to detail and engagement with the subject of the book which led to very helpful suggestions and feedback, and a pleasure to work with. I would definitely recommend her as a copyeditor.’
– Fritha Saunders, Footnote Press
Sohini Basak 