Every Rate You Have Ever Set Was Probably Borrowed From Someone Else; But This Book Gives You Your Own.

It's not adapted from a UK guide or copied from a US blog. It is not based on what a fellow editor guessed at when they were starting out.

Professional Rates: How Business-Smart Editors Calculate, Quote and Attract Serious Clients was written from the ground up for African editorial professionals, illustrated in US dollars so it works across every country on the continent, and built on 16 years of real experience inside the African publishing industry.

This is the book that did not exist.

Until now.

Why This Book Exists

There is a quiet crisis running through the African publishing industry. Talented editors are undercharging, not because their work is not worth more, but because they have never had a framework built for their market. They borrow rates from London. They convert figures from New York. They ask colleagues who are also guessing, and they end up with figures that do not reflect their expertise, their cost of living, their clients or their continent. Ghostwriters are doing some of the most demanding creative work in publishing but pricing it like a favour. Publishers are setting editorial budgets based on what they think professionals will accept, not what the work actually costs to do properly. This book addresses all of it, directly, honestly and with a framework that works.

Inside the book, you will find:

A step-by-step system for building your rate from the ground up using your real cost of living, your actual market and your income goals. Not a number copied from someone else's reality. Your number, calculated correctly, for the first time.

How to pivot to professional rates. It covers the mindset shift, the portfolio positioning and the internal preparation that makes raising your rates sustainable rather than terrifying. Most editors skip this step. That is why their rate increases do not stick.

Exactly how to quote your rate with confidence, what to say when a client pushes back, and how to close a quoting conversation without apologising for your worth.

Exactly why foreign rates do not translate to your market, what African clients and publishers actually budget, and how to position yourself as the premium choice without pricing yourself out of your own industry.

Exactly how pricing changes when you scale beyond yourself. How to quote for a team, structure editorial packages and build a business that does not depend entirely on your own capacity alone.

Exactly how your rates signal your positioning and how to use that signal deliberately to attract clients who value professional editorial work and pay for it properly.

With this digital edition of Professional Rates, you can read from the website from anywhere and at any time. You will find yourself searching, making mental notes and returning to specific chapters whenever a new client situation requires it. This digital edition is your working copy.

Who This Book Was Written For

This book was written for you if:

✅ You are an editor — developmental, copy, or proofreader — who has never had a formal, structured system for calculating and presenting your rates

✅ You are a ghostwriter whose high-skill, invisible work has never been priced at the level it deserves

✅ You are a publisher or editorial consultant who wants to understand pricing from both sides of the commissioning table

✅ You are an African creative professional who is done using foreign benchmarks that were never built for your market, your clients or your currency

✅ You have finished a project and quietly wondered whether you charged enough

✅ You have ever lost a client over your rate and did not know whether holding firm was the right call

✅ You are a self-directed reader who wants the knowledge in book form and is confident in your ability to build your own implementation from it

What This Book Includes

This is the online reading edition of Professional Rates, which is delivered straight to your inbox immediately after purchase. It is the complete book. Every chapter. Every framework. Every argument. Nothing removed or held back. What it does not include are the six practical implementation tools – the Rate Calculator, the Client Script Pack, the Client Red Flag Checklist, the Manuscript Pricing Diary, the Ghostwriting Income Guide, and the Freelance Book Editing Business Template – that come with the Stop Undercharging Bundle in Tiers 2 & 3. It also does not include The Editorial Boardroom Mastermind, which is a one-year community of African editorial professionals with monthly sessions, direct access to the author and access to planned getaways and retreats – that comes with the Complete Experience in Tier 3. If you are the kind of professional who reads a book and implements independently, Tier 1 is exactly right for you. If you finish the book and decide you want the tools, the community or both, upgrading is always an option. Contact us by email – [email protected] – and the $9 you paid here will be credited toward whichever tier you choose. You never pay the full amount twice.

A Word From Chisom Utibe Akah

I have spent 16 years in this industry. I have edited thousands of manuscripts that went on to reach wide audiences. I have ghostwritten books that were published. I have sat on the publishing side of the table and seen exactly clients’ budgets for editing work and what they expect when they get a quote that reflects that budget.

I have also watched talented editors undercharge for years. I have seen ghostwriters accept rates that did not come close to reflecting the skill, the time or the emotional investment involved. I have watched publishers set editing budgets based on what they thought editors would accept, not what the work was actually worth.

I wrote Professional Rates because that conversation needed to happen in a book, written for African professionals specifically and in a format that travels across the continent. I built Tier 1 for the professional who is ready to go all the way.

If that is you, welcome. Your seat at the table is waiting.

What Pre-Order Buyers Are Saying

"I want to increase my rates professionally and confidently."

-        Elizabeth Sam

"I want to learn how to price my work and worth more professionally. Secondly and more importantly, because I know everything from you is GOLD. You walk the walk, and I believe you’re the most qualified person to talk about this because you have decades of experience as a professional editor and have worked with different clients across diverse industries and continents."

-        ChinyereDistinguished Chimezie

"I invested in professional Rates to get acquainted with current pricing structures, as it concerns manuscript editing. More importantly, I made the investment because I believe the book is written by an author who has specialised knowledge and experience in the subject matter."

-        Victor Eyo

“I paid for this book to enable me charge professionally without having to battle indecision.”

-        Sonnie Nkanu

“I ALWAYS receive questions from my mentees and many others who are building, so I need this. More so, I love what this author represents."

-        Ijeawele Chiamaka Ogbonna

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this book only for editors?

No. It was written with editors at the centre but covers ghostwriting pricing in dedicated detail and is relevant to anyone who prices, commissions or manages editorial and publishing work , including publishers and book consultants.

What currency are the examples in?

US dollars — specifically chosen so the framework is usable across every African country without currency conversion complications.

I am just starting out. Is this for me?

Yes. There is a brand-new chapter on preparing to make the shift to professional pricing — which is exactly where beginners need to start. The book covers pricing at every career stage from just beginning to building an agency.

I have years of experience. Will I still learn something?

If you have never been formally taught how to calculate, structure and present your rate — yes. Experience and pricing knowledge are two different skills. Most experienced editors are still undercharging because experience alone does not teach you how to price.

Is this the complete book or an excerpt?

This is the complete book. Every chapter. Every framework. Full and unabridged digital edition.

How do I receive my order?

Immediately after purchase you receive a confirmation with full download details. The book is delivered digitally straight to your inbox – no waiting, no shipping.

Can I upgrade to Tier 2 or Tier 3 after purchasing?

Yes. Contact +2348038994417 with the word UPGRADE and the $9 you paid will be credited toward whichever tier you choose. You only ever pay the difference — never the full amount twice.

I have questions before I order.

Send a message to +2348038994417 with the word 'RATES' and you will receive a personal response within 24 hours.

A Small Reminder Before You Order

If you are on the fence between this tier and getting the Stop Undercharging Bundle in Tier 2, the difference is $8. For $8 more you get six practical tools built specifically to help you implement the book immediately. If there is any chance you will want those tools, as most readers do, Tier 2 at $17 is worth serious consideration before you finalise your order here. And if you are ready for the complete transformation — the book, the tools, the hardcover edition, a full year in The Editorial Boardroom Mastermind and access to the Getaway & Retreat, Tier 3 at $97 is where that happens.

All three options are available. The right one depends entirely on where you are and what you need right now.

Your Price

Price for the online reading edition is $9

The Framework Exists. The Book Is Ready.

Your Rates Can Change This Week.

For $9 you get the complete Professional Rates framework with every calculation method, every quoting principle, every African market insight, and every argument for why your work deserves to be properly paid for. It is written by someone who has spent 16 years doing this work, publishing this work and sitting on both sides of the editorial table.

For African editors, Ghostwriters and Publishers.

Finally.

ORDER NOW — $9

Delivered to your inbox immediately after purchase.

Questions?

WhatsApp +2348038994417 or email [[email protected] with the word PROFESSIONAL RATES. Every message receives a personal response.