Do I need an editor?
Every writer needs a close, experienced reader—which is what an editor is. You might have friends or a partner with great literary taste, you might have the most brutally honest mother in the world; none of these people can show you precisely and frankly what is on the page and help you think about improving it. We’re not sure why this is, though if we had a dollar for every time a writer has said, “My girlfriend loves my novel, and thinks it’s better than anything she’s read in ten years,” well, you know the rest. Writers need editors. All writers—even the great ones—have editors, so it’s not that you aren’t yet skilled enough to do all your own editing; it’s that no one is that skilled. An editor can show you things you hadn’t considered, and can push you to see your work anew.
What happens when you edit my manuscript?
An editor strives to be an ideal reader. We read as attentively as possible, eager to see where the story will take us, and alert to moments of confusion, boredom, or infelicity that signal places where the manuscript needs attention.
As we read, we write notes that ask questions and make observations. We examine the structure or shape of your narrative and the way its elements work together; its scenes and summary; its sentences and their logic, cadence, and flow.
We read in several different ways. Substantive editing deals with structure, shape, and movement. Stylistic or line-editing addresses the shape and mechanics of sentences and paragraphs. Copy editing deals with the rules of writing and aims to make the prose clear, consistent, and correct. Most manuscripts require attention at all three levels, though in differing amounts.
The package we send back to you will include the comprehensive editorial notes we've written, along with anything we think might help you with your revision. It will likely include our guidebook on revision and advice on reading an editorial letter. It may also include a manuscript markup, answers to your questions about craft or process or the specifics of your project, and/or other forms of guidance helpful to your project and your development as a writer.
As we read, we write notes that ask questions and make observations. We examine the structure or shape of your narrative and the way its elements work together; its scenes and summary; its sentences and their logic, cadence, and flow.
We read in several different ways. Substantive editing deals with structure, shape, and movement. Stylistic or line-editing addresses the shape and mechanics of sentences and paragraphs. Copy editing deals with the rules of writing and aims to make the prose clear, consistent, and correct. Most manuscripts require attention at all three levels, though in differing amounts.
The package we send back to you will include the comprehensive editorial notes we've written, along with anything we think might help you with your revision. It will likely include our guidebook on revision and advice on reading an editorial letter. It may also include a manuscript markup, answers to your questions about craft or process or the specifics of your project, and/or other forms of guidance helpful to your project and your development as a writer.
Can you tell me if my manuscript is any good?
A better question than “Is it good?” is, “Is this getting close to being all it could be?” or “Have I produced the thing I set out to produce?” Often when writers read their early drafts, they do not see that they haven’t yet set the entire story down clearly on the page. You may not realize that there are gaps in your story, or saggy bits—that there are details missing, or that the structure is wonky. Or you may realize that something is wrong, but feel unable to diagnose the problem, never mind fix it. That’s where we can help.
After you edit my manuscript, will it be ready to send out to publishers or agents?
We would always encourage a writer to think of the development of their craft (their art and skill) as a process that can, and usually does, take years. It's a process with inherent rewards quite apart from the sense of arrival that many think publication will deliver. Publishers have specific tastes—many won’t accept manuscripts that are not submitted by an agent, and their choices are not only guided by quality, but many other factors. We would encourage you to write for the reasons you write, to tell the stories you need to tell, to learn all there is to learn about what good writing is. The only real control you have over getting published is to write something very good, something irresistible. That has to be your goal. Once you have done this, sure, we can help connect you to an agent or publisher, we can help you write focused and effective submission material, and we can advise on a number of next steps. But in so many ways, that’s the easy part—and not what we would encourage you to think about until all the work on your writing has been done. We promise you that putting your writing first, allowing it to become what it has it in it to become, is what will reap success, however you define it.
How much will it cost?
It’s hard to generalize since manuscripts vary so much. Fees depend on the nature of the project (length, stage of development, style, complexity, etc.) and the kind of attention it might need. We assess your manuscript carefully in order to design an editorial plan tailored to your needs, and we strive to deliver helpful manuscript commentary as efficiently as possible. If you’d like to send us a small sample of your manuscript (5–10 pages), along with its word count, we’d be happy to give you an estimate.
What kinds of writing do you edit?
All kinds. We read a lot of literary fiction, memoir, and narrative nonfiction. We’ve also worked on projects in prose genres as diverse as speculative fiction, historical romance, YA, mystery, political thriller, and espionage—and we love the variety!
What happens in a workshop?
We lead several different kinds of fiction workshops. A workshop for new writers—what we usually refer to as a series of craft classes—is pretty different from a workshop for writers who have drafted some stories or chapters already.
In a craft class we might draft a story as a group, talking about the decisions we make as we go. Over the course of six or eight weeks we look in detail at the elements of fiction—plot, character, dialogue, point of view, etc.—and talk about how to make them work, and how they work together. After the first week or two, there’s usually a fair bit of writing happening, around the table and between sessions, and people might share paragraphs or pages they’ve written, if they feel like doing so.
In a workshop for more experienced writers, everyone submits a story, a chapter, or a ten-page novel fragment in advance. Then each week we all carefully read one of these manuscripts, making notes in advance on what works especially well and what, if anything, seems puzzling or vague or unclear. During the workshop session, every writer has a chance to read from their notes and talk about the manuscript under discussion before we have a conversation about it together.
We collaborate to reflect the story’s successes back to its writer. If there are places where the story bogs down or becomes confusing, we’ll find those and try to learn about them, but we don’t spend a lot of time dwelling on flaws. Every writer has a different skill set and every story contains plenty of fascinating detail and technique to marvel at. People come away from workshop inspired by what their fellow writers have seen in their story and fired up with energy for revision.
In a craft class we might draft a story as a group, talking about the decisions we make as we go. Over the course of six or eight weeks we look in detail at the elements of fiction—plot, character, dialogue, point of view, etc.—and talk about how to make them work, and how they work together. After the first week or two, there’s usually a fair bit of writing happening, around the table and between sessions, and people might share paragraphs or pages they’ve written, if they feel like doing so.
In a workshop for more experienced writers, everyone submits a story, a chapter, or a ten-page novel fragment in advance. Then each week we all carefully read one of these manuscripts, making notes in advance on what works especially well and what, if anything, seems puzzling or vague or unclear. During the workshop session, every writer has a chance to read from their notes and talk about the manuscript under discussion before we have a conversation about it together.
We collaborate to reflect the story’s successes back to its writer. If there are places where the story bogs down or becomes confusing, we’ll find those and try to learn about them, but we don’t spend a lot of time dwelling on flaws. Every writer has a different skill set and every story contains plenty of fascinating detail and technique to marvel at. People come away from workshop inspired by what their fellow writers have seen in their story and fired up with energy for revision.
I have another question . . .
We’d love to hear it, and will do our best to give you an answer. Please write to us!