Editorial & Mentoring

I work with writers of imaginative storytelling in many forms – literary fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, horror, science fiction, crime, thrillers, and popular fiction. I also work in many fields of nonfiction, including memoir and life writing as well as writing about gardens, travel, food, history, current affairs, esoterica, and spirituality.

I currently offer services in the following areas:

I work independently, so I can tailor my offerings according to the personal needs of individual writers and their specific projects and working contexts. Someone I recently worked with thanked me for asking ‘penetrating questions’ about their manuscript, and I take that as a compliment and also offer it as a useful description of the work of a good editor and teacher. No editor can give quick fixes or blueprints for publication, but I try to raise matters that help writers take their work forward and make progress in their writing.

If you’re interested, please get in touch with details of your project. Tell me where you are in your writing and what you’re looking for and hoping to achieve.

If I am unable to help at this time or feel I am not the best match for this particular book, I can sometimes suggest alternative editors or services.

Mentoring

A tailored programme to help you develop a specific project. We start with a foundation unit, where we explore your desires and intentions in writing and publishing. Further units progress with regular exchanges of writing, feedback, and discussion to help you advance your writing.

Each unit usually includes:

  • a Zoom meeting of 90 minutes (two hours for foundation units): part editorial conference, part tutorial, part shot of inspiration and energy
  • reading and review of selections of writing
  • follow-up report and/or editorial notes on writing
  • suggestions for writing experiments in developing your project and your writing style
  • recommendations for reading, resources, and further studies in your chosen genre, the craft of writing, and the business of publishing
  • ideas for professional development

Developmental editing

For writers with a complete manuscript or work-in-progress ready for reading. Depending on what is needed, this might also include:

  • a Zoom tutorial (at least 90 minutes) giving both of us chance to ask questions and explore possible answers
  • an editorial report on content (story, concept and theme, character, setting, genre conventions), narrative style (structure, narration, point of view) and prose style and voice
  • further editorial notes as a list of queries or comments on the manuscript, using specific examples to illustrate broader points as well as discuss details of story
  • an assessment of potential readership and market
  • careers advice and further guidance on creative writing, including suggestions for further reading, training, and other resources

Revision mentoring

Tailored for individual writers and their projects, this includes mentoring sessions that guide writers through the process of self-editing as well as a developmental edit.

Partnership mentoring

Mentoring can be adapted into a personally curated workshop for you and a writing partner across a fixed span of time, e.g., a year. This format is suitable for compatible writers who are seeking structure and guidance for their work together.

Manuscript review

An editorial overview of content, style, and readership, with broad feedback assessing the writing’s readiness for submission to agents or publishers. Currently I’m only able to offer manuscript reviews for writers whose work I know already, e.g., through mentoring, developmental editing, or classes.

Submission review

Feedback on your cover letter, synopsis, and sample writing before you submit them to agents or publishers.

Editorial and publishing consultations

Would you like to brainstorm story concepts, character arcs, or narrative forms for your story, or talk through the potential readership or genre for your book? Or perhaps you’d like some advice on building your own course of studies in creative writing? Or might you want a professional view in talking through particular dealings with an agent or publisher? Or maybe you have some other editorial matter you’d like to discuss in more detail? We can meet on Zoom for an hour.

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