Manuscript Assessment

In a manuscript assessment, I provide concrete suggestions for resolving broad issues of organization, analysis, pacing, tone, or style in order to make your book manuscript more effective for your target readership. I offer feedback on the manuscript as a whole, paying special attention to argument and throughline. I can help you identify and refine the book's central thesis and the arguments of individual chapters, with an eye to making sure that each chapter both builds on the others and advances your central thesis.

I offer three versions of the manuscript assessment: the Stylistic Assessment, Standard Assessment, and In-Depth Assessment. My goal in all versions of the assessment is to give you concrete guidance to help you tackle your revisions. With the In-Depth Assessment, which is my most intensive manuscript assessment, I offer an optional add-on of chapter-specific-feedback, as well as two possibilities for what format my feedback takes. I provide quite a lot of detail in all versions of the assessment, both when identifying issues and when suggesting solutions. My goal is to give you the concrete guidance that you need to tackle your revisions. I’d be happy to talk through the differences between the different versions of the assessment—and discuss which would best fit your needs—in an initial call.

All versions of the assessment include a follow-up Zoom call (after you have reflected on my feedback) so that we can discuss my recommendations and any questions that you have. You might then choose to implement all revisions independently, or you might request further assistance.

If you’d like feedback on just your book proposal and sample chapters, I also offer a Proposal Package Assessment. Or if you are confident in your book manuscript’s overall argumentation and organization, I might able to skip the manuscript assessment entirely and jump right to line editing.