for outstanding text
Literary consultancy
Gale clearly knows the business and her suggestions, always thoughtful and kind, were invaluable in helping me clarify exactly what kind of novel I was writing and what I needed to do to make it appeal to readers. Gale has the clear eye of a reader and the objectivity that every writer needs. But she always emphasized the important thing was that I was happy with what appeared on the page.
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Shirley Skeel, author
Literary consultancy involves detailed editorial advice on both general and very specific issues, at different stages of your writing,
Critiques and manuscript evaluation consider the big-picture aspects of your text (e.g. structure, plot, character, pace, etc.) and offer suggestions on how any issues might be addressed.
Book doctoring not only identifies the problems within a text, but also incorporates any necessary revisions to the text itself, thus fixing the issue.
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See below for more information.
Critiques and manuscript assessment
Reading through your comments I realized what a skill critiquing is. You pointed out a few things others have suggested in the past, but the way you expressed it was so different, I was inclined to listen and not get defensive.
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Ulka Karandikar, author
Critiques/manuscript evaluations include:
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reading your work to see whether it is suitable for publication or submission in its current state, and whether it is appropriate for your proposed audience
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can be based on a whole manuscript, or only the opening chapters of a book
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offering feedback on your plot, characterization, use of language, marketability, standard of writing and so on (fiction)
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providing an assessment of your presentation, structure, accessibility of material, clarity, language, marketability, standard of writing and so on (non-fiction)
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submitting a written report
Depending on your requirements, they can also be combined with:
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detailed editorial feedback on your manuscript
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highlighting areas of your text that could be improved and offering specific suggestions for doing so
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emphasizing your strengths while offering constructive criticism about the weaker elements of your work
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a full copy-edit of the manuscript
I much appreciate the time and serious attention and thought you've given to my draft, the well-structured way you've done it and your tone – that your advice (wise words borne from your intelligence and experience) isn't the last word, but for me to consider.
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Jeff Probst, author
Some authors may also require coaching, which I am very happy to provide.
Book Doctoring
What a superb job Gale has done on my manuscript! It was in three chunks and I couldn’t see how to put it all together, but Gale spotted the links and has melded it into a coherent piece of work, exactly as I had wished.
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Ann Burnett, author
Book doctoring can include some or all of the following:
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​Adapting material for a specific readership
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Re-ordering/restructuring your text
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Rewriting problematic areas of text
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Writing additional text
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Shortening text
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Anglicizing text where American usage is inappropriate for the proposed audience
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Checking and rewriting text written by authors whose first language is not English, to ensure it makes sense and expresses correctly what they wish to say
Gale has a wonderful ability to polish a writer's prose without changing its creative shape.
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Sonja Lewis, author and vlogger
Other Services
Gale's brilliant advice and assistance was invaluable ... A truly remarkable service. I cannot recommend Gale enough.
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Cyrus Chainey, author
