Whether you have a rough draft or a near-finished manuscript, the most valuable tool you can acquire for yourself is feedback from others, especially professionals. A manuscript review is constructive advice on big-picture elements: structure, plot, character arcs, etc. It's the first round of edits for any book and imperative to turning a Word document into a print-ready masterpiece. When you request one from me, you'll receive an honest review of your project in the form of a four- to eight-page edit letter. I'll celebrate strong areas, identify weak ones, and explain which are which with clarity. A developmental edit is a step further, a closer look at each beat or turn of the plot. I'll return your digital manuscript peppered with insights, observations, and suggestions. Don't let all the red bubbles get you down. My advice? Change the track changes color to green. It's more calming.

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Request a manuscript review or developmental edit.

If your structure is air-tight but you can't stop fussing with syntax, line editing is your savior. I'll take your manuscript one paragraph at a time (this usually entails reading it out loud while pacing around my home), suggesting tweaks and refinements to get your sentences flowing like a well-choreographed dance. Line editing is about syncing your metaphors, refining your style, and improving readability, and the goal is the maintain a rhythm from paragraph to paragraph. A quality line edit will leave your story or nonfiction piece feeling dressed up and ready for the ball.

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Request a line edit.

Once your metaphors are rock solid and your paragraphs flow from one to the next, let me introduce the copy editor. Copyediting is tuning at the sentence and word level, making sure each line is succinct, intentional, and correct. The copy editor suggests a series of micro edits and sometimes sentence rewrites to polish off your hard-earned narrative arc. I'll catch instances where you used "flummoxed" twice in one paragraph or your character repeats herself one too many times. Copyediting is about eliminating nonessential words and making your writing as concise as possible. I'll check for technical errors and typos while respecting and refining your unique style.

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Request a copy edit.

So you had to change your main character's name because you accidentally borrowed the moniker of a celebrity. Ctrl F is handy for this, but it won't catch the time you doubled the vowels for drawn-out dialogue or the moment your character is interrupted by a pesky em dash. Lucky for you, proofreading is standard practice, and you can recruit someone like me to fine-tune everything from proper noun consistency to the missing Oxford comma. Proofreading also consists of minor fact-checking, spelling correction, and grammatical consistency. If you have a print-ready file, the proofreader can also catch blemishes like a missing page number, orphans and widows, or awkward design hiccups. Typos and layout mistakes can dampen your credibility, so a proofreader is a must for everyone. I'll give you peace of mind that your book is as spotless as it can be.

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Request a proofread.