EDITING & COACHING SERVICES

I specialize in adult nonfiction and memoir with a focus on coming of age, identity, and the body. I accept the occasional fictional story or self-help book, depending on if we are a fit.

I work with authors who need help finding the synergy between their story’s form, structure, and meaning. We engage in the (often) messy process of articulating the cohesive message. Each process varies, author-to-author and book-to-book.

If you have general questions or are interested in working with me, do not hesitate to reach out, I would love to hear from you!

Please note: I do not offer in-depth line or copy editing at this time. If you need line or copy editing, I can forward you to some excellent colleagues.


“Story Whispering” Coaching Session

$200/hour

Sometimes writers get stuck—really stuck—and need a one-and-done meeting with laser-focused ears, eyes, and heart for getting their story moving again. These sessions are a jolt of energy for you and your writing. I bring my 25+ years of experience with storytelling and 15+ years of somatics and mindfulness to our sessions, offering full attention, atunement, intuition, and vast network of resources. Let’s figure out what’s not working (plot? theme? confidence? something in your personal life?) and let’s get you back to your writing!

These sessions typically run 60-75 minutes.

 

Swift Read, Easy Chat

$45/houR

This is my most flexible offering, and is for authors who do not yet have a full manuscript and want ongoing, slower-paced feedback mid-process.

Some weeks I might read and give feedback on a selection of pages, based on what you are looking for such as if the structure is working, if a theme is apparent and effective, character development, pace and tension, point of view, etc. I will leave notes and questions in the margins. Other weeks we might talk about a couple chapters and dream into where you want to write next, and sometimes you might need some empathy and then that magic combo of cheerleading + concrete goals to get you back into the writing groove.

 

Manuscript Evaluation

$4.50/page for reading (+) $45/hour write-up (+) $75/hour discussion

Manuscript evaluations are for writers who have a full manuscript and are looking for detailed big-picture feedback about what to do next on their journey towards publication.

We begin with an initial conversation about your intention for your book. I then read through the entire manuscript and take notes. I create a written document about what works and what is not yet working, and next steps for what I recommend doing next based on your goals. I email my report back so you can review and gather questions. Then we meet for 60 minutes via Zoom or phone to review questions, discuss next steps, and a plan for completion, which may be individual work or may be developmental editing and coaching (see below).

Please Note: If the conversations continue longer than 60 minutes, I charge the call as a Story Whispering Coaching Session (see above).

These evaluations are hearty! Juicy! Heavy with information, inspiration, and attention to detail. They combine my coaching skills with my eye for the overall story with my uncanny intuition. Clients consistently leave feeling oriented, inspired, and prepared for the next step.

I give your work my entire attention for an entire week. Because of this, I may need to schedule you out a ways based on my availability.

 
 
 

Developmental Editing & Coaching

$45/hour reading/editing (+) $50/hour coaching.

A selection process is required.

Developmental Editing & Coaching is a back-and-forth writing and editing process with an author whose manuscript is already cohesive, and who is moving toward publication. This process is labor-intensive.

Because of the labor involved, I am selective about which manuscripts I work with and I only do one developmental editing job at a time. To start, I look over your manuscript to see if it is, indeed, ready for a developmental editor and/or if I am the person best suited for your manuscript. (If not, I will refer you forward to a colleague who will be a better fit.)

If I determine I am a good fit for your manuscript, I may require a manuscript evaluation so we can make a plan for moving forward (see above). After that, we begin a highly collaborative process. We will work through the manuscript chapter by chapter, meeting bi-weekly or monthly. As I edit your chapter/s, you are integrating my feedback from the previous meeting and preparing the next week’s/month’s work.

When I developmental edit, I get right into the text and direct the author on where to add scenes, take out unnecessary parts, which chapters to move here to there…whatever is needed to sequence the details into a story that has consistent tension and a developing message. I focus on:

  • Organizing and streamlining the plot

  • Creating/expanding scenes

  • Adjusting pace in order to craft tension, create emphasis, and build emotional connection

  • Developing characters through description and dialogue

  • Strengthening setting, tone, and details

  • Articulating personal and universal themes

  • Drawing forward the writer’s Voice as an author, through humor, word choice, and sentence structure

When developmental edits are complete, I then refer the client forward to a line and copy editor and/or an agent or independent/hybrid press.

I bring all of my skills to your manuscript, from 25+ years of narrative study and 15+ years of somatics and trauma resiliency studies. Writers who flourish with me are ready to invest time, finances, and growing pains to work toward publication. They are self-motivated and willing to receive substantive feedback and encouragement. The work we do is rigorous and often transformative—for me, for the writer, and for the narrator on the page.

 
 
 

Editorial Publications