IMPORTANT NOTE: If you emailed me between 25 July and 6th August 2011, please send your message again as emails for that period have been lost on the server.
Scroll down for the following page contents:
WHY SEEK EVALUATION?
THE FICTIONFIRE APPROACH
SERVICES: Critique; Close-focus Edit; Kindling Interest Submission Review; Rekindle Review
WHY SEEK EVALUATION?
Writing can be a very lonely business and one of the hardest aspects of it, apart from having to sweat blood while you cover page after page with words, is judging the worth of what you've produced.
It's perfectly normal, in the first flush of post-writing-session enthusiasm, to seek an opinion from a reader. And who's at hand to give you that opinion? A loved one or a friend, that's who. We eagerly - and often prematurely - show our latest effort to somebody whose approval we seek, with hungry 'Look at what I did! Please tell me it's brilliant!' urgency.
What are we seeking when we do this? We're seeking a nod of the head; a gasp, even, of admiration. We're seeking praise. We're seeking validation. We imagine we'll be told 'It's perfect as it is, love. Don't you change a word.'
And is this the reaction we get?
Well, no. All too often, it's the blank stare, the 'I don't get it' look. It's the nit-picking criticism of minor aspects. It's overt hostility, or a more subtle undermining of your faith in yourself. Or it's indiscriminate gushing flattery.
Friends and family may struggle to help you evaluate your work with any kind of honesty, partly because they love you and usually don't actually want to hurt your feelings, partly because although they have an instinctive reaction to the work they may fail to express precisely what is right and wrong with it - and if they do focus on a particular weakness, they can't give you practical advice on how to improve that aspect.
This is where a literary consultant steps in. Editing, critiquing, appraisal - these are all ways of taking a detached yet concerned view of a story or novel. It's about having a sharp eye, a fair mind, a kind and constructive attitude.
THE FICTIONFIRE APPROACH
I've been teaching creative writing for a decade now, have judged competitions and assessed course assignments. As a published author, I am able to offer professional and personal experience of editing and appraising stories.
My ethos will always be this: I will not massage your ego with empty flattery, nor will I be harsh. I will treat you with consideration and encouragement, aiming to help you overcome the challenges of seeking publication. If you are planning to self-publish I will help you to polish your text to make it as professional as possible.
I will give you advice and suggestions but I will always bear in mind that this is your book. By the way, please do not worry about copyright issues: the story you have written is yours and the copyright in it is yours as soon as you put pen to paper. I will treat your work at all times in the strictest confidence.
I hope, if you choose one of the services listed below (see also How to Submit and Fees pages), that together we can maximise your chances of publication, raise your awareness and competence with various writing skills and improve your ability to self-edit effectively in the future.
Finally, remember this: writing can indeed be a lonely business and success as a writer may come hard - but you are not alone!
FICTIONFIRE'S RANGE OF EDITING AND CRITIQUE SERVICES
There are many terms used for types of edit or appraisal: structural, developmental, line-edit, copy-edit ... Some edits focus on whether a comma is in the right place, others on whether sub-plots work or characters come to life. At fictionfire I offer two levels of service when appraising your work.
fictionfire Critique
You can opt for a fictionfire Critique, where I will take an overview of how your narrative is working, looking at such areas as title, subject-matter, pace, plot-construction, characterisation, dialogue, use of location, creation of atmosphere. I will also comment on your writing style: are your images telling, are there certain words or phrases you over-use? Do your sentences flow and is your meaning clear?
I will highlight which aspects are working well and offer advice on how best to improve your text in a very full and detailed report, which will include a chapter by chapter commentary and specific recommendations for revising, restructuring or taking your story forward. The report has no rigid pre-set length as different manuscripts will give rise to varying degrees of discussion, but, as examples, I recently completed a report of more than 10,000 words on a novel extract of 80,000 words and a report of over 16,000 words on a full novel more than 200,000 words long.
SPECIAL BONUS: as an extra benefit you will receive a free line-edit of the first 5 pages of your manuscript. (See my description of fictionfire's close-focus edit service below to see what this involves.)
fictionfire Close-focus Edit
If you have completed your manuscript and are getting ready to send it off or if you are intending to self-publish, you may wish to opt for the close-focus edit. In addition to writing a full report as offered with the critique service, I will annotate your manuscript. I will highlight repetition, inconsistencies, ambiguities and factual errors. I will note where you could improve clarity and flow, where you could sharpen images and vocabulary. I will draw your attention to grammar, spelling, punctuation and layout. This is a very concentrated and detailed service so will involve a longer turn-around time and a higher cost, so if you are in the early stages of your novel, it might be better to opt for the critique and free 5 page edit to flag up areas which may need attention.
Kindling Interest Submission Review
As the old saying has it, you only have one chance to make a first impression.
You don't want to blow that chance when you submit your work to an agent or editor - a person who receives hundreds, if not thousands, of submissions every year and who is going to make a judgement of your work based on, at most, three chapters. In some cases, you may only be allowed to submit five pages. Count them. Five.
It's crucial, then, that you polish your pitch, making it compelling, engaging and utterly professional.
How can I help? Send me your covering letter, synopsis (maximum of 2 pages) and first three chapters, just as you would to an agent or publisher, and I'll give you detailed feedback on how effective your submission is and how you can improve it. I'll line-edit your opening chapters and write a report analysing how well they work in terms of reader-involvement and interest. I'll examine your covering letter and your synopsis and recommend ways of tightening them up. Do they sell the story? Are they focussed, avoiding irrelevance and waffle? Do they show market-awareness? Is your overall presentation good? How are you, the author, coming across?
When you've laboured long and hard over a story, you may well need somebody with a fresh clear eye to take a look at it as an agent would - it's invaluable to have advice and a chance to refine your submission before you send it out. As agent Noah Lukeman says, most agents are looking for a reason to turn you down rather than accept you. Try not to give them that reason.
Rekindle Review
Writing a novel is an act of faith: every writer reaches a point where that faith fails, where inspiration dries up and you lose your way. You know how it is: you had a great idea, the sort that made adrenaline surge through your veins. You wrote the first few chapters in a fever of excitement. Then something happened: the fever cooled, the electricity earthed. You've lost direction and momentum, you doubt your ability to sustain this colossal effort. You can no longer tell whether this story is worth going on with. Is this a squib or a bonfire?
How can I help? If you're stuck, send me up to 20,000 words of your text along with a plot synopsis. Include notes telling me where you think this story was going to go, what your aims, doubts and issues are. I'll review your work. If there are genuine problems with the story's capacity to progress I will advise you of that and guide you towards what is salvageable or towards new directions with it. If there is latent strength and potential there I will remind you of it and help you to re-ignite the enthusiasm and sense of purpose you once had.