Frustrated with self-editing? Don't give up on your writing project!
Our Editorial Service offers authors, writers and screenwriters the chance to have a professional dialogue and voice edit done on their novels or screenplays. Or to have a full manuscript assessment and even to have an LA film producer to critique a script.
A manuscript or screenplay ought to be, by definition, a transcript of real life; a reflection of how we use language in a myriad of contexts with one thing in common: the need to communicate our thoughts, feelings and emotions to others in ways that tell the reader/viewer the truth or a lie about our relationship with another party.
Here is a list of our various editorial services.
5-Page Critique
NEW for 2024, we're offering all writers to receive a 5-page critique tailored to help you hone the first reader impression of your upcoming work. This exclusive feedback package goes beyond a critique. It's designed to be a valuable tool for gaining early reader engagement in your opening scene, in either a novel or a screenplay.
Think of it as a personalized roadmap to take your story to the next level!
Here's what you'll get:
- Expert Insights on Your Story's Opening: Our experienced editorial team will delve into the first 5 pages, analysing your writing style, character development, and the overall grip of your narrative.
- Actionable Feedback for Enhancement: Forget cryptic critiques! We'll provide clear, actionable suggestions to maximize the impact of your opening scene.
- Gauge Reader Engagement: This feedback will give you valuable insights into how effectively your story hooks readers and keeps them wanting more.
This 5-page critique costs £30 per submission.
But wait, there's more! You can also order...
- A scorecard for writing quality, compelling characters, and storytelling potential: This score will give you a snapshot of your strengths and areas for further exploration. Think of it as a beta reader service, specifically focused on your crucial opening scenes.
This 5-page critique costs £35 with the score rating.
Writer Testimonials on our 5-Page Critiques
See some examples of the 5-Page Critiques our editorial team have done for writers.
Editing Process
Our process is simple. It isn’t designed to handle a lot of communication between the writer and editor, simply because time is money, and we want to keep our dialogue edits as cost-effective as possible. Therefore, we don’t include any of that in the price.
- You send in the work.
- The editor does the dialogue and voice editing.
- When the dialogue and voice edits are finished, we return the Word doc to you, so you can accept or reject the dialogue edits.
- That is the process, which has worked very well so far.
Robin Hawke said: "This dialogue and voice edit went hand-in-hand to really bring my characters to life. 'Hearing' the words come out of their mouths really enhanced their character on my pages."
General Editing
A general edit includes:
- A proofread
- Line editing addressing syntax and sentence structure
- Comments and suggestions that target the areas you would expect in a review, such as originality of premise, character development, story and structure, themes, style and dialogue as well as language issues.
Why Writers Need Dialogue Editing
It's very tempting to allow dialogue to become monologue, lengthy diatribes of exposition or inner voice that are more suited to a lecture theatre or a Shakespearean classic than a drama a contemporary audience can identify with.
- Keep it real.
- Keep it brief.
- Say what needs to be said in speech patterns we employ every day.
- If it's going on too long, cut it down or interrupt the speaker.
- Make it relevant to the moment. I
- It can be written into the subtext to make it more subtle and avoid giving too much away too quickly.
- It can be colourful, sarcastic, angry, dishonest or even boring but always realistic and true to character.
As mentioned before, focus on knowing your character from the inside out:
- What makes them tick
- We want to see the parts, not just the sum of who he or she is
- Above all, make sure the way you craft your dialogue reveals the unique nature of each character and sets them apart in some way.
In many ways, we are what we say!
Why Writers Need Voice Editing
It's imperative that the voice of a character is established from the very start. After all, protagonist or antagonist, hero or villain, prince or pauper, they must be clearly distinguishable one from the other. We are what we do, but we're also what we say and how we say it.
This is as much true of your fictional characters as it is in real life. A manuscript must mimic life and the human condition, no matter what the genre might be.
- Allow the reader to become acquainted with each character as early as is possible.
- Make them stand out by the language, the syntax, the vocabulary, the phrasing, the grammatical errors, the high or low brow manner in which they converse.
- Through their voice we will discover who they are, develop our feelings towards them, positive or otherwise and by doing so, recognize and remember them.
- Remember that we learn about a character by what others say about them.
- Language and character are indistinguishable, as individual and unique as a thumbprint.
- Of course, we use the same language, but that doesn't mean we all abide by the same rules.
- It's time to play God, or Doctor Frankenstein, if you prefer.
- Breathe life into your character!
Don't forget, you're a writer. Words are everything.
Manuscript Edits And Assessments
- For editorial or manuscript feedback, upload only a Word Doc.
- Anything other than what is stated above will be rejected.
Script Editing
Here is how a dialogue edit can enhance your story.
Robert Ellis said: "Please send my thanks to your script editor. He did a wonderful job giving me feedback on my script. He was honest and to the point. I see where most of my technical errors were and how I lost the reader in my description of places and events through tense of time. Your script editor understood what I was trying to do with my script's story. Good script coverage and editing is a bonus to your awards."
Screenplay Critiques
- Screenplay critiques submissions must only be in a script format. Our LA film producer who is giving this feedback will not give feedback on manuscripts or novels.
Screenplay Edits Directly Into Your Script
You can simply submit a PDF, but our screenwriters find that having their edits done directly in their screenplay, as writers would have edits done in their Word document, is valuable to be able to see the edits right in the screenplay.
Novels Adapted To Film
Having a novel adapted to a screenplay is a very costly business. Many experienced screenwriters working in the film industry will charge anything from £5k up to £20k to adapt a book.
We have a team of screenwriters, all with different screenwriting skills and experiences. Depending on what your book adaptation requirements are (see below for the difference between basic book adaptations and creative book adaptations), we will place your book adaptation with the most appropriate screenwriter.
We have been extremely lucky to find an experienced screenwriter who has retired from Hollywood and now spends his time helping screenwriters to enhance their scripts. He will adapt your book to a screenplay for you, as a basic book adaptation or a creative adaptation, and he can do it as a ghostwriter, so you take the credit for the script, or you can offer to give him a writing credit.
For creative adaptations, we also work with skilled screenwriters on our sister site, Page Turner Awards. The screenwriting team offer script edits and book adaptations. These focus on editing dull dialogue and enhancing it to jump off the page - the type of dialogue that actors love. It also focuses on turning slow plots into a fast-paced cinematic flow. And it focuses on adding scenes where necessary for transitions or for plot plausibility and character development and consistency.
Either way, this is your chance to get your book adapted into a screenplay at an amazingly low price!
Book Adaptations now open for our summer schedule.
Claire Merchant had her book adapted to a screenplay and said this:
Thank you for my book adaptation script. It's very surreal to read through my story in this format! It reads really well, and I'm really happy with it. Please pass on my thanks to the book adaptation screenwriter!
And Judy Lundquist said this:
The book adaptation screenwriter did a wonderful job of converting my book into screenplay form while having to condense so much story line. Very impressed with his talents!
See what Monique Singleton had to say when her book adaptation sparked the interest of a film producer.
Difference Between Creative And Basic Book Adaptations
A basic book adaptation is taking your book as it is, and adapting it to film, with very little cutting of scenes or dialogue, and very little additional scenes.
A creative book adaptation is taking your book and using creative adaptation to enhance dialogue, adding in a few additional scenes that may be short but desirable to transition the story, checking for plausibility and consistency issues while adapting the scenes to film. This also involves deciding if the body of work is better suited to a miniseries. Regardless of length, all stories are different and not all stories are suited for serialization.
A basic book adaptation will take up to ONE MONTH. A creative book adaptation could take up to THREE MONTHS, so please plan your timings for entering international writing contests or pitching to film producers accordingly.
When J.K.Rowling sold the Harry Potter film rights, she and Harry became household names. How? Why? Because seeing is believing. On the big screen, her fantastic world became reality, her memorable characters larger than life.
From book to screen, it's that simple. Well, not quite.
There's no magic wand, but there is an unseen hand that makes it all possible. The screenwriter. Shaping, moulding, tweaking, rearranging, creating, rewriting, giving the spark of life to your world, no longer just in your head or on paper but on film. If J.K.Rowling could do it (with a little help from a friendly scriptwriter), why not you?
Get your book adapted to script for £££s and $$$s cheaper than anywhere else!
To book for a book adaptation, transforming your novel into a screenplay, please make your payment below.
Adapt Your Own Books
If you can’t afford a book adaptation, but you’d love to see your story on the big screen, you may want to consider our Book Adaptation Boot Camp where you’ll spend a week of intense learning how to adapt your book to a screenplay. That way, you can adapt all your books, not just one. And if you have a trilogy or series, this is ideal to create a TV series. Find out more
Get Your Editorial Service Ordered Below
Order below and watch out for a confirmation page and confirmation email which will give you the details on how to send us your document, so our editors can get started.
