Most writers think typing 'the end' at the completion of a mss. is the end of their work. Wrong. Rewriting brings out the story and heightens what you've meant to say all along. Rewriting brings your setting and characters to life, and adds a depth to your story that you can never hope to achieve with the first draft. Rewriting can seldom make a bad story good, but it can make a good story better and add the pizzazz that makes editors take notice.
As an editor, my job is to point out ways to strengthen your story, your characters and your mss. as a whole. Your style and the way you tell your story is your own; my goal is to help you find ways to polish and craft your work so that agents and editors will want to read it.
Every editing consultation is different. Some writers need full-on line editing. Some writers are almost ready to submit but need help with a final polish. Other writers put words together beautifully on the page but with a monotony of story so that we need to create some peaks and valleys. My job is never to change your writing style or your story - that remains your own - but rather to help shape and craft your work so that it comes alive and compels readers to turn the page.
As I study your submission, I pose certain questions:
I give you notes on everything I find, and concrete suggestions on how to better your work.