Manuscript Critique
Get detailed feedback on your story from a professional author
How does it work?
Detailed feedback on your story will be provided in the form of an in-depth report. This will be broken down into areas such as plot and structure, pacing, characterisation, narrative style, and dialogue. It will not include a line-by-line annotation of your manuscript. The aim of the report is to point out areas of your story that could be improved so that you can develop it in a further draft.
Who will do my critique?
Lisa Firth is an award-winning author of romantic comedies and World War II sagas, who writes professionally for various UK publishers under the pen names Mary Jayne Baker, Lisa Swift and Gracie Taylor.
How much does it cost?
Costs are approximately as follows, depending on specific word count:
Up to 8000 words (equivalent of first three chapters): £50
20,000-50,000 words (novella): £100-250
50,000-100,000 words (novel): £250-350
If your novel is longer than 100,000 words, then depending on genre, it may benefit from cutting before it is submitted for critique. Please get in touch for a quote on longer manuscripts.
What genres will you critique?
I will critique most genres, but specialise in commercial women’s fiction, contemporary romance, romantic comedies and World War II-set historical novels.
Please note I will not critique the following: horror/paranormal, erotica, very dark thrillers, non-fiction.
Do I need a critique or an edit?
Choose a manuscript critique if you need help developing and redrafting your novel. This will take the form of a report on the story as a whole rather than a line-by-line edit. If you have had no previous professional feedback on your work, it is likely this is what will help most in the first instance.
Choose copy-editing if you need a thorough, line-by-line check of your completed manuscript for typos, grammatical errors and inconsistencies. This is the best option if you are happy with your story and attempting to get your manuscript publication-ready, or preparing to submit to agents and publishers.
Choose proofreading if your novel has been typeset/formatted ready for publication and needs a final professional check for errors.
Will the feedback upset me?
The feedback provided is designed to be constructive, fair and polite, picking out both what works well in your writing and what might work better if developed. Like you, I want your novel to be the best it can be and feedback is given with that aim in mind. However, it can be hard to receive criticism on something we’ve poured heart and soul into, no matter how constructively it’s delivered – as an author myself, it still hurts a little to get a structural report from my editor even after nine published books. But all I can say is, the suggested amendments from my editor, once made, always make the book better!