Sometimes you need some help at the beginning of the project, right after you finish the draft to get initial feedback. That’s where beta reading comes in.

In my experience the best beta readers are people you know. Typically other writers, sometimes your ideal reader. As long as you’re clear about wanting honesty and not admiration, these people can give you the best feedback because they know YOU and they’re invested in your success. If you have someone like this in your life, please ask them, not me. It will be more useful and will let you leverage your financial resources for other things.

But what if you don’t know anyone like this, or you’re not ready to share such intimate work with someone you know, or you already have but feel like you need one more opinion? In that case a paid beta reader can be a great asset. They give you feedback on general readability and can also answer specific questions you may have about your story and whether something is working.

What You’ll Get:

A a high level summary of observations, suggestions, and feedback on overall reading experience from the 10,000 foot level.

Pricing:

$.007 per word

A second level read can be a great next step after revising with beta read feedback. Not a beta read, not a full developmental edit, its an in-between look that can help you understand the manuscript’s strengths and weakenesses, get more specifically actionable feedback, and a closer look at things like point of view, structure, pacing, characters, overall story arc, and general readability. It can also look at specific questions you may have about your story and whether something is working, or serve as a second set of eyes so that you can feel confident moving forward with querying or publishing, or get help deciding whether or not to invest in a full developmental edit.

To be clear: this is not a beta read, it is designed to be the next step, an in-between, and its expected that a manuscript will have undergone at least one read-through and revision. This is also not a professional edit, though we have trusted editors to whom we can refer you, if needed.

What You’ll Get:

• A summary of high level issues (a view of the forest).

• Inline comments on the manuscript (a view of opportunities specifically at the tree level).

Pricing:

• $.009 per word

This is the last step before an author will begin querying. Once you’ve reached the point where your manuscript has been beta read and edited, your query and synopsis are written, and your list of target agents is developed, you may need help with the final polish. A submission packet review can help be sure you’re ready and presenting yourself and your story in the most professional way possible.

What You’ll Get:

• Inline commentary and suggestions on the query and synopsis.

Pricing:

• $100 (query must not exceed one page, single spaced, and synopsis must not exceed two pages, double spaced).

  • A second pass can be added on for $40.

• Opening Page Reviews

  • Up to 10 pages of the manuscript can be added on for $50.

  • Up to 25 pages can be added on for $100.

  • Up to 50 pages can be added on for $200.

  • A second pass on the pages can be added on for half the rate for the page count.

This is the final step in the editing process, and it happens after everything else, when your brain leaps over the words when you read them because it just remembers, when you love your work but might also be nearing a point of being very very tired of it. Proofreading is for when you need fresh eyes, when you need someone to catch the last few things you missed, because our brains simply can’t see everything. This type of read is focused on finding typos, and more minor errors in the areas of grammar, punctuation, spelling, and formatting. Proofreading is often the final step before publishing or querying.

What You’ll Get:

• Track changes document with direct edits.

Pricing:

• $250 for full manuscripts up to 80,000 words, $25 for each additional 5,000 words above 80,000.

Note: this is only available for manuscripts that have been previously professionally edited.

Other services include:

• Read two manuscripts and assess which has more viability.

• Query prep: manuscript review and extraction of key points and best angle for querying, pitching, or publishing.

• Pitch prep: coaching on in-person pitching, including video practice sessions.

Please contact us for pricing for these services, or to inquire about anything not listed here.