Is Your Manuscript Ready?
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 Your First Five Pages: Quick Writing Checkup
You have five pages to prove you're a writer with commercial
potential. Be sure you avoid the common mistakes of new writers: point-of-view
switches, logic holes, overwriting, murkiness, passive voice,
excess exposition, repetitions, stilted language, and overuse of adverbs and
adjectives.
Send us the first five pages of your manuscript to review.
We'll e-mail an evaluation citing strengths and weaknesses, with specific examples and suggestions for your next steps.
Don't be bewildered! An objective review can get you moving toward fantastic fiction writing.
Cost: $US55.
Here's how it works:
1. E-mail a file of your first five pages. (Use standard format of Times New Roman 12
pt, DOUBLE-SPACED, 1-inch margins.)
2. Mail your $55 check payable to:
AuthorAssist
1109 Oliver Avenue, #1
San Diego, CA 92109
3. We begin the work as soon as we get your check.
4. We e-mail your review within five days.
Should you opt for a full manuscript review, we will credit the $55 fee.
Is Your Manuscript Ready?
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The Manuscript Review (Substantive Editing)
Whether you are on your first, second, third or final draft, we help keep your writing focused and moving in the
right direction.
As we read your manuscript, we take note of the critical aspects of writing:
- structure
- plot
- setting
- character development
- voice
- dialogue
- motivation
- logic
- point of view
- continuity
- pace
- veracity
of facts
- word usage
- tone
- your specific concerns about your writing
In your e-mail report, you'll find suggestions on how to improve
common problems such as overwriting, unclear writing, use
of passive voice, and exposition. You'll see where you have repeated words, used stilted language,
or overused adverbs and adjectives. Best of all, the rewritten sample passages from
your manuscript will show you how to turn bewildering passages into marvelous
prose.
Your 10+ page report will be like an entire course on writing -- all of it applied to your manuscript.
Cost: Based on the length of the manuscript
(number of words or double-spaced pages).
To get started, complete our convenient form or
e-mail us the following information:
- the working title
- the specific genre, e.g. mystery, memoir, how-to, children's fiction/nonfiction, etc.
- the stage you've reached in the project, i.e. first, second, third draft
- the total number of words (Hint: open the document in MS Word, click TOOLS, WORD COUNT)
- any concerns you have about your work/li>
- anything else we should know about your project
 Traditional Publishing--
The Query/Synopsis/Agent Search Package
So you want to get published. You've spent years, months, or perhaps only weeks, pouring out your heart, your ideas onto the page. Your manuscript is great--says your family--and your friends like it too. Way to go! Or is it? Is your material really ready? Is it commercially viable? Does it have a chance? Or should you figure on self-publishing right away? Based on your publishing goals, AuthorAssist helps you strategize the best course of action for your manuscript.
Knowing that literary agents get 100+ queries a week (nearly 5000 a year), how do you get your query materials to stand out? How do you write with the sizzle to hook an agent? What's expected in the letter? What should be in the synopsis? Is the manuscript really good enough?We can help you determine the status and prospects of your manuscript.
We understand your doubts, your hopes, and your dreams so we make the agent search process as painless as possible with our Query/Synopsis Development Package. Our collaborative process results in a polished query letter, compelling synopsis, agent list and contact directions. and, access to our agent search expertise 24/7. Here's how it works:
1. Synopsis: We'll send instructions
for writing the synopsis. You'll write/revise the synopsis and e-mail the
draft(s). We'll make comments/edits until we're sure the synopsis is stellar.
2. Query letter: We'll send instructions/samples
and you will write/revise the letter and e-mail the draft(s). We'll make
comments/edits until we're sure the letter is compelling.
3. Agent search: We e-mail customized and targeted contact
information regarding agents interested in your genre.
For the literary agent directories, those agents who have made recent sales
are listed first, followed by those who live in the major metropolitan
areas for book publishing, followed by those living outside of the major
areas. Instead of being overwhelmed, you will know exactly where
to begin -- with the top selling agents interested in your genre.
You will be e-mailed 15 Tips for Getting
on the Fast Track to Agents -- step-by-step directions for contacting
agents efficiently and effectively.
More on the Agent Directory
Plus: As a client, you have access to our expertise 24/7 as questions arise about the agenting process.
To get started, complete our convenient form or
e-mail us the following information:
Getting your book published: Our clients talk about our fiction writing services ...
Trish, Your review of my manuscript dazzled me with its
clarity. Your writing is direct, pithy, to-the-point,
and professional. Thank you for your concrete
suggestions for improvement, your keen observation of
details, and your comprehensive list of remedies.
Well done!I will use your suggestions. I accept them in good
faith. Your work is worth every penny of its price.
A great value! With sincere thanks,
Steve Barley, New York
Wow. I went over your edits to my
story this weekend. I am extremely happy with the editing you have done.
It does have much more punch and gusto now. Working with you has been like taking an intense class on story mechanics. I've really enjoyed the one-on-one working relationship -- especially the convenience of the Internet and
e-mail. I honestly thank God I read about you in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
I have taken numerous creative writing classes at local colleges and I've
attended a couple of writing workshops and I can honestly say I have never
received such professional help on any of my work as you have provided.
Thanks a million.
James Wray, San Diego, author of award-winning "Dark Toast" published in the
West
Wind Review
Trish, I want you to know the dollars I spent for your manuscript review were dollars very well spent. As you said early on, it is a lesson in writing. I am still digesting the curriculum and probably will be for some time into the future. There are a few other areas in which we differ, but all-in-all, I'm very pleased with the review and will take ALL of your suggestions into consideration. You're truly great at what you do and ANY author will benefit from his/her contact with you.
Don Martin, Bellevue, WA
I'm amazed that I could continuously work on this book and, line by line,
taking my time, see how I could slice a word or phrase here and there, to
the benefit of not only pace but impact of meaning. I have truly learned
more in this work triggered by your help than in 20+ years and four prior
novels. The passion and dexterity I have down; but it's really more about craft.
Richard Alther, Ferrisburgh, VT
Trish, I received the review and I was excited to receive it and you did a wonderful job. I must admit I was feeling a little bit overwhelmed too. There is so much to do and I'm hoping that I can get this manuscript to being where it needs to be. Thanks also for the encouraging quotes, I needed that. I'm going to go over one page at a time though and do this, no rushing and thinking about finishing as I usually do. There is still much I need to learn as a writer, so thanks again for your wonderful review.
Jeanine DeHoney, Pennsylvania
I've received a very thorough and highly professional critique which has turned my idea of what constitutes a publishable novel right on it's head. I suppose that, like me, most new writers consider the step from writing a novel to having it accepted by a publisher to be a mere walk in the park. But your review has radically changed my views on that score. And I thank you for it.
Let me assure you that I am truly happy with what you have done for me. I wanted only an unbiased assessment of what I had written and I received not only that but a whole lot more. I expected something good - what I got was something truly outstanding.
IM,Milnerton, South Africa
If it weren't for you and your honest
feedback and critique of my material, I never would have gotten this far
so quickly. I applaud your business ethics. You could have told me the
material was great, good luck, and thanks for the fee. That wasn't the case.
You instructed me to how rewrite the manuscript. You have changed my life
and I thank you.
VS, Cincinnati, OH
I spent more than two hours thinking
about and integrating your comments. I was especially pleased with your
helping me pick up the pace--which is very important.It helped to have
some positive comments. You really read this stuff carefully. Great example
of paying attention to EVERY detail! Thanks.
ST, San Diego, CA
Your review was extremely educational.
It was like taking a complete course in fiction writing.
JR Lake Barrington, IL
I want to thank you for helping
me make my story the best it can be. It is a tremendous help to have
someone physically point out my mistakes. I love the way you use examples.
JG, Bluffdale, UT
I appreciate your thorough, perceptive suggestions regarding my manuscript for young adolescents. I will be working on your suggestions for the rewrite. I feel that your comments are accurate and extremely helpful. Thank you for your expertise. I hope to make this into a book that actually gets published
Sally Landaker, Montague, CA
Trish, I just read your review and have to say that it is quite
helpful--it's exactly what I was looking for. I'm going to add the changes to my manuscript and hopefully it will turn out much better. I would alsolike to send the revised manuscript to you when it's ready. I'll let you know.
Christiana DeFoe,Amsterdam, Netherlands
Thank you so much for your review of my memoir! It's very helpful and
informative. It gives me a clear method for approaching a re-write. I also
appreciate your style suggestions; I hadn't realized how many times I'd
included repetitions and awkward phrasing. After re-reading the manuscript
during these last two weeks, I agree with your comments about continuity,
timelines, and balance. I also like how you complimented the strengths in my
writing and story. I have great respect your analysis. I'm definitely going
to recommend your services to a friend who's working on a novel and looking
for advice. And I plan to seek your help once again after finishing my
re-write.
MP, Los Angeles, CA
Your critique of my novel is awesome. I’ve instituted a rewrite for the most glaring errors. After revising the first two chapters I’m excited. I’ve learned a lot and now question every sentence in the manuscript. Revision, rewriting, and honing are tough, but you’re right, they are necessary steps to professionalism. Your notes are without equal. You perform a wonderful service.
TGC, Lake City, FL
I have had the chance to go over your critique and I'm (painfully) pleased at your insight and the critical points you've made. At least I'm consistent in my mistakes, if nothing else. Also, thank you for your supportive comments. I think you've done a wonderful job of capturing the essence of the situation.
JS, Highland Village, TX
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