Something I've been thinking about
A small idea, not quite ready yet
A quick one for you this week.
For the last 12 years I’ve been editing manuscripts professionally. Fiction, memoir, indie books, the lot. And every week, when I sit down to write this newsletter, I think about how strange it is that you only ever get the polished output: the published book, the finished essay, the writing advice distilled into tidy bullet points.
You almost never get to see the work. The actual editing, the actual feedback, the actual conversation between an editor and a writer mid-draft.
I’ve been thinking about changing that.
Specifically: I’ve been thinking about opening up a small group of writers I’d work with directly each month. Not one-off edits, an ongoing thing, where you’d send me pages, I’d give you real feedback, and we’d build the kind of editor-writer relationship that usually only happens when someone signs a book deal.
I’m not announcing anything yet. I’m still working out the shape of it. But if you’re someone who’d want that, who’s serious about a project and wants a working editor in your corner every month, I wanted to put it on your radar before I open it up.
More soon.
Patrick ✍🏼
P.S. If you’ve got thoughts on what would make this genuinely useful to you, just hit reply. I’m reading everything.
That sounds amazing. I am a few chapters into a rather complex novel (one of a series, in my grand vision) designed to feature a future world government based on Living systems. I'm simplifying the process by writing separate storylines first, intending to weave them together later. This is a retirement activity, reveling in creative juices, not a push to fame or wealth. I am reading different authors, plotting the general storylines, and watching videos of writing dos and don'ts. More doing that than writing, I admit. But that is now shifting towards the actual writing and rewriting. I may not be ready to take advantage of your possible offer.
It sounds amazing, but as a brand new author it sounds like it may be cost prohibitive at this stage, but will keep watching to see.