 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 You send me your manuscript via mail and digitally via email. You tell me who you are writing for, and what you want to do with your book. |
 I read your work and give you general editorial direction, as well as specific feedback on the characters, plot, theme, structure, and style. I deliver inline comments as well as overall suggestions. |
 Now, it's your turn to ask me questions, so you can get clarity on my critique and bring up any burning issues I might not have addressed. |
I received my undergraduate degree in English from Bowling Green State
University in Ohio, and went on to get an M.A. in English Literature with
a creative writing concentration from the University of Illinois at
Chicago. After graduate school, I started a family with my husband,
and now we have two children. Here's
where I write about books and writing. There you can get a sense of
the way I look at books and the style of my reviews.
Here's a look at the press that published my
novel and short story collection. I also homeschool my children, and I
write about that here. |
||
 |
||
| Lydia is the
reader we're all writing for. She's smart, generous, intuitive, and
honest, but she's also funny and inventive. So, if she has a problem with
a piece of writing, you'll have it halfway fixed before it even occurs to
you to have your feelings hurt. And then you'll be laughing too hard to
cry. Brenda Mills Lydia's like the talking mirror on the wall;
she shows us our ugly stepsisters (come on, we've all got 'em) as well as
our hidden beauties. The insights she provided have proven an invaluable
guide for revisions. She convinced me to take risks with my work - risks
that none of my previous readers would have been honest enough to demand.
She's helping me write the book I held myself back from writing. Allison Coluccio |
If it
weren't for Lydia, I wouldn't be a writer. I'd be a hack. Her keen
insight, writerly savvy, and savage wit have helped me become the writer I
am today. Lydia is a writer's writer, one with an uncanny ability to get
inside your head and help you write the book you didn't know you always
wanted to write. Susannah Breslin I thought I’d made a tangled mess of a novel. I wanted to fix it, but didn’t trust myself to start. That’s when I hired Lydia. She saw things worth keeping and things worth leaving behind. Her notes rang true, opened up new plot possibilities, and motivated me to keep working. She imagined several different directions I could take the novel in--each direction quite different from the other but each one worthwhile depending on my own vision. Not once did she seem to be forcing her own style onto mine. Lydia kept me from shredding the entire story, and I’d certainly hire her the next time I make a mess of things.
Marta Bacon |
Lydia has been my critique partner for well over a decade now. I have never
found a more insightful, honest, or clear thinking reader. She has a way
of seeing all the way through a manuscript, down to the bone, and
pinpointing the exact moment when a narrator acts out of character or the
pace falters. She can also see how how these flaws impact the manuscript
as a whole, and usually has several routes for solving problems. I cannot
praise her strongly enough.
Joshilyn Jackson Thank you, thank you, thank you! Your work is so good, yet you charge so little. Thanks for your wisdom and willingness to help amateurs like me. Charles Anderson |
| I have worked with best-sellers and first-timers. My specialty is
literary fiction, but I have also read sci-fi, romance, and thrillers for
clients who were interested in a character and story-based critique. I am
not the person to tell you how well your book lines up against the
restrictions of a genre, but I can work with you on layering plots,
tightening scenes, sharpening dialogue, and help you see what your book is
really about. I do not
promise to get your book published, but I do promise you will get new
ideas, fresh insights, and no bullshit. I am brutally honest, ruthlessly
practical, and I will not spare your feelings when the book needs to
change. Before you contract with me
or any other book doctor or independent editor, please read this
web site, which
will help you figure out what you want and need from me.
Ready to begin? First, send an email to
lydia@theharpoonist.com describing your project. If I decide I can take it on,
I will let you know how to submit your manuscript. At that
point, you will pay a $50 reading fee, plus $1 per page, payable via Paypal.
I do not yet belong to the Editorial Freelancers Association, nor do I yet
charge as much money as
they recommend, but I do agree with them that a page is 250 words. I
have my reasons for keeping my prices low, and one of them is the number
of authors who have come back to me with repeat business. |
|
|
