Janice signing books at HarperCollins London
Manuscript Appraisal
Have you finished writing a novel but feel you’d benefit from some helpful feedback and constructive advice on your story, style, plot, characterisation, dialogue, and structure? Ideally, from someone whose publishing credentials match your own professional writing ambitions.
If you hope to go down the traditional route, then before submitting to an Agent or to an Editor perhaps you’d appreciate the advantage of getting advice from an author who understands what it takes to work with and to submit to literary agents and senior publishing editors.
If you are planning to self-publish your novel, then you’ll certainly be looking for someone with a track record of successful self-publishing and who knows how to present and format ebooks and paperbacks on publishing platforms.
My Qualifications: With fifteen titles written over twenty years and a knowledge of self-publishing through outlets including Amazon and of traditional publishing through my book deals with HarperCollins – I feel I’m now able to offer ambitious new writers a comprehensive manuscript appraisal service. As well as a wealth of writing experience, I can offer professional writing perspective, gained from working with the BBC Initiative ‘Write Here Write Now’ and from my longstanding status as a full member of the Romantic Novelist’s Association and as a reader on the panel of the RNA’s popular and highly respected New Writer Scheme.
Note: As a writer of romantic adventure fiction, I’m looking to offer my manuscript appraisal service to writers of romantic novels, specifically these are stories that fall within the broad definition of a romance and where romantic elements play a key role. For this reason, I’m unable to provide critiques of books in other genres, for example: crime, thriller, sci-fi, fantasy, children’s books, non-fiction, or books aimed specifically at the US market, or books that are longer than 120,000 words.
PRICES
Manuscript Appraisal and Report: £150
This service provides a structural critique report (minimum of 1500 words) on your manuscript of up to 80,000 words.
Over 80,000 words to a maximum 120,000: £25 extra per 10,000 words
I will give detailed feedback on strengths and weaknesses in areas such as plot, structure, narrative voice, prose style, characterisation, setting, dialogue, and use of language. The aim of the service is to provide you with feedback that will help you develop your work to a publishable standard. Please remember that I cannot do whatever work is needed on your novel for you, but I can suggest areas for improvement, and I will certainly highlight what is already working well. Please understand this is not an editing, copy-editing, or proof-reading service.
Traditional Submission Package Report: £100
An appraisal of your first Three Chapters (around 8,000 words) Synopsis & Submission Letter to a Literary Agent or Commissioning Editor.
Self-Publishing Ebook Formatting Package: £50
Formatting of your edited and complete text only Word Document into Ebook Formats for upload to Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) and also to share with reviewers. You will receive FIVE formatted files – HTML – PDF – Epub – Mobi – AZW – from your Word Document. Please note: if your manuscript contains any illustrations or photographs I would have to provide a quote.
Self-Publishing Paperback Formatting Package: £100
The formatting of a previously edited and completed text only Word Document manuscript into a Paperback Format that is ready to upload to Amazon Publishing to create a paperback book. You will receive a PDF formatted book that is sized to your choice of paperback format with the required covering pages – title page, copyright page, dedication, acknowledgements, etc and all subsequent pages numbered. Please note: if your manuscript contains any illustrations or photographs I would have to provide a quote.
Please note that I do not provide a book cover design service. Once you have uploaded your book’s formatted PDF File to Amazon you will know the required dimensions of your paperback cover that is calculated by Amazon for you from the total number of pages in the file. You then give these dimensions to your book cover designer.
If you’d like me to read and appraise your manuscript and provide you with a report (1500 word minimum) or would like to discuss your requirements with me then do get in touch using my contact form.
The availability of services is dependant on free dates/allocated slots. Once I have confirmed I am reading for you and have received payment (I accept Paypal, Revolut, Bank Transfer) please allow up to ten days for turnaround on these services.
You’ll find that my fees are much more competitively priced than many other manuscript appraisal services. This is simply because I’m genuinely interested in helping and encouraging new writers. For this reason, you’ll see that I’m matching my own Manuscript Appraisal fee with that of the current Romantic Novelist’s Association New Writer Scheme membership, which includes a manuscript appraisal, and is a highly popular scheme with a limited intake each year.
