Claire Wingfield Editorial and Literary Consultancy

 How can a literary consultant help with your writing goals and career?

A literary consultant brings specialist industry knowledge of books and publishing as well as skills in editing, producing and promoting books to focus on your work-in-progress or writing career.

This can take the form of a reader report on your manuscript, or a section of it. Feedback on a submissions package (opening three chapters, synopsis and cover letter to publisher / literary agent) or full manuscript is a common request. Here, the literary consultant appraises the manuscript with the same critical eye as a potential publisher or literary agent would, but with the aim of illuminating where improvements can be made, and supporting the author in doing this. Therefore, I like to think of my work as a literary consultant as offering a fresh eye, rather than a critical eye.

This professional appraisal of a manuscript or section of a manuscript is helpful before a manuscript is submitted to publishers or agents, or prepared for publishing - though I have worked with some writers following the rejection of their manuscript by a publisher or agent, to strengthen their offering and sometimes decipher the publisher or agent response to their manuscript.

Typically, using a combination of a written reader report and direct suggestion on the manuscript using Word’s track changes function and comment boxes, areas for interrogation and improvement are highlighted. This might include: opportunities to increase the stakes in a narrative; highlighting an inconsistency; showing where there is a passive or redundant character; indicating areas of unintentional repetition or slow pace; tidying up the presentation of the manuscript for submission.

Areas of the manuscript that are working well are also illuminated, helping the writer to do more of this and also to see the strengths of the book and how they might sell it in a submissions pitch or product description if publishing independently. Where a manuscript is ‘submissions ready’ or ‘publication ready’ I will indicate this, so the author can move to the next stage with confidence. Where a further stage of revision is needed, working with a literary consultant can help to ensure this is efficient and effective.

Sometimes literary consultancy can take the form of a consultation rather than work directly on a manuscript. This is where a submissions, publishing or promotional strategy can be planned, supported by the literary consultant’s industry knowledge. The literary consultant can consider progress in your writing career and give advice on what to focus on next - whether that’s a new skill or aspect of the writing craft, or developing industry connections or an understanding of contemporary book production. For myself, I try to learn from every book-production job I undertake or manuscript I edit, and bring this knowledge to each of my clients in my role as literary consultant and mentor.

When might you contact a literary consultant?

• You’d like to know if a manuscript is ‘submissions ready’ or ‘publication ready’.

• You know there is something not quite working in a draft but are stuck. A reader report can interrogate your manuscript, highlight which areas to work on and leave you with a clear plan.

• You’ve lost enthusiasm for a work-in-progress. Professional feedback and engagement with your work can reignite your passion for your book.

• You’re enthusiastic about writing but your book is taking too long to write. A literary consultant can keep you on track and show you what to focus on, helping to streamline the process. Booking your manuscript in can also give you an impetus to get it as far as possible before your slot in the queue. (Many literary consultants will have a fairly long turnaround time from booking in, due to the time each manuscript takes to work on.)

• You’re happy with your manuscript but feel lost as to the next stages. You don’t know where or how to submit your manuscript, or would like to discuss the differences between partnering with a mainstream publisher or publishing independently.

• You’d like help to interpret publisher / agent response to your submissions and to decide on the next steps.

• You’d like help with pitching your book to publishers and agents. You’re tying yourself in knots writing a synopsis and would like support until it is ‘pitch perfect’. You’re unsure if what you’ve included in your cover letter is relevant, or if you’ve missed something important.

• You’d like to understand today’s publishing landscape better, so you can understand if your publishing plan is sound or if a contract you’ve been offered represents a good deal.

• You’re writing for pleasure but would enjoy professional engagement with your work and would like to understand where and how to improve your writing.

• You’d like to publish a book for your own personal use and would like to understand your options.

• You’ve read a lot about writing and publishing online but would like help to make sense of what you’ve learnt, including how to prioritize and sequence your actions. You’d like one-to-one support with your writing and publishing plans, so you can shut out the online ‘noise’ of other authors and concentrate on your own path.

• You want to focus on an aspect of writing and publishing that you love, but would like professional support with other areas of the enterprise.

• You’d like to increase your confidence in discussing your work in anticipation of working with a publisher or agent, or promotional opportunities.

• You have a question about an aspect of writing or publishing you’d like to discuss with an industry professional.

• You’d like some supportive encouragement to help you reach your writing and publishing goals.

• You’ve published several books but would like to discuss what’s next for your writing and publishing career, and to optimise the impact and reach of your existing books.