Developmental Editing Services

Your novel deserves to captivate readers and catch the eye of agents and publishers. I’ll help you strengthen its structure, deepen your characters, and sharpen your style so your story is ready for the next step in its journey.

How I Help You

With 25 years of writing, workshopping, and studying craft, I bring both depth and perspective to my review of your novel. Through in-depth developmental editing, I’ll give you clear, actionable feedback to strengthen:

  • Structure and Pacing: You're hitting the right beats in classic structures like the Hero's Journey or Save the Cat.

  • Character and Motivation: Your characters are psychologically rich, interesting, and clear on their wants and drive.

  • Tension and Causality: You're building tension scene by scene and making the reader want to know more.

  • POV and Style: You have the right POV for your novel, and the right style and word choices for your narrator.

  • Setting and World-building: Your characters exist in a world that's as much a part of the plot as they are.

How We’ll Work Together

I give your novel two read-throughs (first to understand the full arc, second to review the craft elements), making in-document notes as I go. Then I write a 5-page feedback letter giving actionable feedback on the above craft elements to give you a roadmap for your next revision.

Genres I Specialize In

I'm the right developmental editor for adult book club, upmarket, and literary fiction, as well as historical fiction and speculative fiction.

My Experience

My BFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College laid the foundation of my writing craft knowledge and how to critique others' work. My MA in Literature from Harvard helped deepen my understanding as I studied and parsed great literature. In the year-long Novel Incubator program, I helped nine other classmates develop their novels into publication-ready work. I've helped many writers develop and refine their drafts, several of which went on to publication, and I've also applied everything I've learned to my own fiction writing.

Next Steps

Your story deserves its best chance at success. Let's give your novel the strongest possible foundation of craft so that it can truly come alive on the page. Fill out the form below to get started!