I offer a range of services that will help you to tell your story in the clearest way possible. I specialise in fantasy – I can never decide whether my favourite author is Tolkien or Jacqueline Carey! – but I’m also experienced with romance, literary fiction, women’s fiction and historical fiction.
Below you will find a short description of each of the services I offer, but please do get in touch for more information. Each project is different and will have different requirements.
Below you will find a short description of each of the services I offer, but please do get in touch for more information. Each project is different and will have different requirements.
Manuscript critique
A thorough read-through of your manuscript, providing you with a report on the big picture of your work. Do the plot and structure work? Are your characters well-drawn and consistent? Are there any specific areas pulling the rest of your story down?
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Developmental editing
Working with a completed draft, this edit looks in detail at whole-story issues such as pacing, plot, character development and overall structure. With comprehensive, in-text feedback I will help you ensure your story is the best it can be.
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Copyediting
I will take your final draft sentence by sentence to bring out your unique author voice, clear up any issues with spelling and grammar and ensure consistency throughout.
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Proofreading
Working with an edited manuscript, I will do a thorough read-through to pick up any small errors that have slipped past earlier stages, ensuring that your final product is as error-free and polished as possible.
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How do I know which type of editing is right for my story?
Before engaging any kind of professional editor, you should always make sure you have done as much work as you can yourself. This will ensure you get the best value out of the money you pay a professional. Why pay someone to point out that it's Tuesday on page three, but by page fifteen three days have passed and yet it's still Tuesday if you could have fixed that yourself? You should be paying someone to help you do the things you can't do on your own, either because you don't yet know how or because you've simply read your story so many times now you can't see the wood for the trees anymore!
Manuscript critique
This is a good first step, once you've completed your story and read it through a few more times yourself. You feel you've fixed the glaring plot holes but the story doesn't quite flow as well as you think it should, or you're not sure your characters' actions always make sense. A manuscript critique will give you a good overview of how you can improve these big-picture aspects.
Developmental edit
This could also be a good first step, depending on how experienced you are and how much help you want with your story. A developmental edit will focus on the same issues as a manuscript critique, but will provide more practical help with how to improve those aspects. This might be particularly beneficial if this is your first novel, or perhaps just your first novel in a new genre.
Copyediting
This should only be undertaken on a completed draft, where you are confident all those big-picture aspects like plot, pacing and characterisation are as good as they need to be. Copyediting will focus on individual sentences, so you don’t want to be rewriting sections because you need to add more interior monologue to give a character better motivation. After a copyedit, you shouldn’t be making any further changes to your text because if you do then you risk introducing new errors.
Proofreading
Proofreading is the last step and should be completed after copyediting, and ideally after formatting. This will enable me to check the formatting hasn’t introduced any odd errors, but it does depend on what processes you’re using.
I hope this is helpful but if you're still unsure please get in touch and I can provide more tailored guidance!
Manuscript critique
This is a good first step, once you've completed your story and read it through a few more times yourself. You feel you've fixed the glaring plot holes but the story doesn't quite flow as well as you think it should, or you're not sure your characters' actions always make sense. A manuscript critique will give you a good overview of how you can improve these big-picture aspects.
Developmental edit
This could also be a good first step, depending on how experienced you are and how much help you want with your story. A developmental edit will focus on the same issues as a manuscript critique, but will provide more practical help with how to improve those aspects. This might be particularly beneficial if this is your first novel, or perhaps just your first novel in a new genre.
Copyediting
This should only be undertaken on a completed draft, where you are confident all those big-picture aspects like plot, pacing and characterisation are as good as they need to be. Copyediting will focus on individual sentences, so you don’t want to be rewriting sections because you need to add more interior monologue to give a character better motivation. After a copyedit, you shouldn’t be making any further changes to your text because if you do then you risk introducing new errors.
Proofreading
Proofreading is the last step and should be completed after copyediting, and ideally after formatting. This will enable me to check the formatting hasn’t introduced any odd errors, but it does depend on what processes you’re using.
I hope this is helpful but if you're still unsure please get in touch and I can provide more tailored guidance!
Why choose Snowflower Editorial?
Honesty and empathy
I will be honest in my appraisal but gentle, too. As a writer myself, I understand how terrifying it is to have someone else read your work, especially a professional, and I always keep this in mind. I’m here to help you improve as a writer and to make your book the best it can be.
Specialist knowledge
I studied literature to a high level through my Master’s, which was specifically in Nineteenth Century Literature and Culture. I’m a long-time fan of fantasy and am widely read in the genre. I’ve also been working on my own epic fantasy series for over a decade and have read many books on writing in general as well as specifically writing fantasy.
I will be honest in my appraisal but gentle, too. As a writer myself, I understand how terrifying it is to have someone else read your work, especially a professional, and I always keep this in mind. I’m here to help you improve as a writer and to make your book the best it can be.
Specialist knowledge
I studied literature to a high level through my Master’s, which was specifically in Nineteenth Century Literature and Culture. I’m a long-time fan of fantasy and am widely read in the genre. I’ve also been working on my own epic fantasy series for over a decade and have read many books on writing in general as well as specifically writing fantasy.