This is a flexible approach to developmental editing, broken into clear editorial stages so you can work through your manuscript in a structured, manageable way.

It allows you to move through the full developmental process at your own pace, with the option to pause and return when needed. This helps reduce overwhelm and keeps feedback focused at each stage, offering a more tailored and cost-effective way to develop your work over time.

My modular developmental editing is built around five core stages:

1.   Manuscript Assessment: A detailed, big-picture read-through focusing on the overall experience, including structure, clarity, engagement, genre expectations, pacing, and areas of confusion or strength. For right after your first draft or self-edit. Includes inline comments throughout and a report.

2.   Structure, Plot and Pacing Pass: A focused look at how the manuscript is built, including structure, plot progression, stakes, tension, pacing, unnecessary scenes, and any areas where the story isn’t fully holding together.

3.   Character Development Pass: Explores character depth, goals, motivations, emotional arcs, relationships, and consistency, ensuring characters feel fully realised and believable on the page.

4.   Craft Pass: A closer editorial pass on the writing itself, including dialogue, point of view, tense consistency, clarity, show vs tell, and stylistic issues affecting flow and readability.

5.   Condensing Pass: A precise editorial pass focused on reducing word count and refining prose. This includes removing repetition, filler, redundancies, and unnecessary wording, while preserving meaning, style, and voice. The aim is a leaner, more focused manuscript ready for the next stage of editing. This is NOT a line/copyedit.

Each stage focuses on a different layer of the manuscript, from big-picture structure through to sentence-level refinement, so the work develops in a logical, supported progression.

WHAT YOU GET
▪️A comprehensive report for the manuscript assessment module.
▪️A detailed and targeted editorial report for each module, providing clear insight, constructive suggestions, and supportive feedback.
▪️Suggested alternatives for wording or reworking sections at paragraph level to improve flow, clarity, and emotional impact.
▪️Comments for each module focusing on big-picture issues like plot, tone, storytelling, and pacing, with specific areas highlighted for further attention.
▪️Clear next steps for each module to guide your revisions, giving you practical options while keeping you fully in control of the final version.

TURNAROUND
2 weeks per module, depending on word count. This will be confirmed with you before booking.

PRICING
Please email for a bespoke quote to fit your genre, word count, and requirements.

If this feels like what you need, get in touch, and we can talk through your manuscript, where you are in the process, and how to approach the next stage of editing.