MANUSCRIPT REVIEW AND CRITIQUE
FOR NOVELS AND NON-FICTION
Our Manuscript Review service will give you comprehensive, high-level feedback on your entire manuscript or a shorter section of it. Within 4-6 weeks* of booking, you’ll receive a detailed feedback document in Word, covering critical areas like structure, concept, clarity, prose, character development, and dialogue. We’ll also assess how well your manuscript aligns with market expectations and what publishers and literary agents might be seeking/how they might react to it. Along with high-level commentary, you’ll receive specific suggestions on scenes and ideas to enhance your manuscript, as well as creative suggestions for plotting or character changes, as appropriate. For a full book, you should expect a report of around 2000 words.
*We also offer one- or two-week turnarounds. See Pricing below
Process
In the first instance, please email us using the contact form to tell us about your project (most importantly, its word count and broad genre). We will then reply, answering any questions you may have and asking you to send us your manuscript in Microsoft Word only (not PDF) that only includes what you want us to review. We will send you a payment request through Paypal and will start work when payment is received. Within 4-6 weeks, you will receive a detailed feedback document. If having received your critique, you wish to purchase mentoring hours of ten hours or more or order a second review, we will offer you a £50 credit. Otherwise, you can book a Zoom call based on our headline fee of £70GBP per hour.
Pricing
We offer a simple, transparent pricing for manuscript review. Multiply your word count by 0.006 and add 100.
This is your inclusive price in UK Pounds Sterling (GBP).
So, a 75,000-word manuscript would cost 75,000 x 0.006 plus 100 = £550 GBP (approximately 725 USD)
A 90,000-word manuscript would cost 90,000 x 0.006 plus 100 = £640 GBP (approximately 845 USD)
A 120,000-word manuscript would cost 120,000 x 0.006 plus 100 = £820 GBP (approximately 1080 USD)
OUR MINIMUM CHARGE IS £150. We will provide you with a final quote upon receipt of your manuscript, so this formula is for guidance only.
For a 2-week turnaround, add 25% to this price. For a 1-week turnaround, add 50%. Please state you want this when contacting us. If we are unable to offer this at any time, we will advise you before proceeding any further. All prices are GBP. At time of writing £1 GBP = US$1.32 EUR1.18 CAN $1.77 AUS $1.94 (This is for guidance only and will change over time. You will be invoiced in GBP.)
Can you provide a close line-editing of a whole manuscript?
Yes. This will be approximately 50 per cent more expensive than a manuscript review. You will receive back a regular manuscript review report plus a line-edited, marked-up copy of your manuscript, with comments and suggestions at a sentence level. Email us with the request and we will confirm the price.
AGENCY QUERY/SUBMISSION PACK REVIEW
How To Write offers a review of your agency query/submission pack, to include covering letter/email, synopsis, and first three chapters, with a maximum word count of 5000 words. You will receive a detailed feedback the submission, with a view to increasing chances of literary agency representation. Please note that this does not include an agency introduction. This has a flat fee of £150. This can also be done within a Mentoring purchase, just as part of your hours bought.
Should I choose manuscript review or mentoring?
If you have a full or partial manuscript that you just want feedback on, without any other support or developmental work, or without 1:1 discussion, manuscript assessment is best for you. If you want a more flexible approach based on a supportive working relationship, in which you can have regular face-to-face Zoom meetings and flexible email contact to develop your skills, brainstorm ideas and receive general guidance and encouragement, mentoring is best for you. You can still have your entire novel read, provided you have purchased sufficient hours (we calculate 8000 words per hour of reading but this can vary).
Can I start with manuscript assessment and then buy mentoring or vice versa?
Yes, of course. We’ll even credit you £50 if you buy more than ten hours' mentoring or a full-manuscript review.