Editorial Services

Novels, Memoirs, Story Collections

• Developmental Edit: For novels at any stage of composition—partial first draft, completed first draft, or a draft that’s gone through several revisions but is still not quite yielding to the vision you have for it. We’ll read your manuscript and offer a complete evaluation, stem-to-stern: point of view, tense, structure, plot and pacing, characterization, setting, tone, and theme. We provide a comprehensive written assessment, as well as a video conference during which we’ll discuss in detail all the elements of your novel, and how we think it can be improved. The fee for developmental editing is $.04 per word.

• Line Edit: A good option if you feel like most of your novel's moving parts are in good working order, and what you need is someone to really dig into the prose and tell you what is and is not succeeding. Sentence by sentence and paragraph by paragraph, we’ll evaluate the creative content and language of your novel, offering suggestions for improvement without compromising your style or voice. The fee for line editing is $.07 per word ($15/page).

• Full Consultation: Developmental and line editing for a single book can be combined at a rate of $.09 per word ($22.50/page)—more than a 10% discount over the individual services alone!

Personal Coaching

We offer writing coach services as well. Samizdat believes in a holistic approach to improving your practice—craft discussions are fine, but being able to write dazzling sentences won’t do you much good if you don’t actually write them. Therefore, our coaching philosophy engages with all the aspects of your life—financial, professional, and personal—that either help or hinder your writing practice. Contact us so we can discuss your needs and get you started on a path to more and better writing!