I've attached my best rejection to date, which I received this morning. I guess that means that my queries are getting closer to hitting the mark. I've already repositioned it as YA rather than MG, but I feel like I maybe need a manuscript assessment by a professional editor. Ideally, this would be someone who works as an agent as well and knows the market. There are plenty of American agents doing both jobs, but can anyone recommend a UK person for it, please?

Your ideas aren’t the problem. Your editing is. Most writers don’t struggle with creativity. They struggle with clarity, structure, and flow. That’s where editing comes in. Editing isn’t just fixing grammar. It’s sharpening your message. It’s cutting the fluff. It’s making every sentence intentional. If your writing feels “almost there,” don’t rewrite everything. Refine it. Write boldly. Edit strategically.

Hi. I am currently editing my novel. It's in the first person and I was told from a previous writing competition that I should remove the filter words as they create distance between you and the reader. (e.g. I saw, I heard, I realised etc...) However, I wonder if there are situations where it is okay to leave them in and I wanted to check if anyone has any general rules with removing filter words or knows of any good books or online articles about them. e.g. 1) If it is in speech and one of the characters says 'I saw something in the dark'- okay to leave in as it's in speech?. 2) She heard me call her name and ignored me- okay as not the main character in the filter? (e.g. she heard and not I heard?) 3) I saw him on the overhead TV screen. (Okay as the main character is watching a TV screen?) as opposed to 'I saw him come towards me' (which could have the filter removed with 'He came towards me'. ) 4) 'I couldn’t believe no one else heard it.' okay as hearing is the central focus? 5) 'I saw no sign of him'. Okay as a common expression? I'd been really keen to hear other people's experiences and expertise at editing out filter words and if there is a general technique for it. I'm just looking for a general quick set of rules if possible. If anyone knows of any that would be really helpful. Thanks so much.

Hi all! I was lucky enough to attend an Agent led event last night, discussing queries, pitches and the editing process. Here's a couple of (hopefully helpful) things that came out of the discussion: 1. Make your query letters as short and professional as you can. You might want to fill it with loads of lovely detail, but they find it refreshing and attractive when one is brief. 2. Lead with your "comp" books. Don't start by getting into the plot or characters, show that you know the market and have an idea of where your book sits by comparing it to successful, well regarded (recent if you can) books in that area. Then tease the plot in two or three sentences, then end on a question or note of suspense. 3. Don't bother trying to "hide" your genre. People are tempted to claim a different genre because they're worried their novel isn't currently marketable. The agent will know immediately when they start reading the sub, so why bother hiding it? 4. (In the UK) Avoid querying in March or October. The London and Frankfurt book fairs pull a lot of agents away from reading at those times. 5. Agents give EVERYTHING a read... But bear in mind they have existing clients and an inbox of up to 20 subs a day. They also then let some of us pitch to them and get live feedback (which was heartening and super useful), so do keep an eye out for similar events. Even if it's not stated, there might be a similar learning opportunity offered.

Question for those who have written or published more than one book: how long do you leave between projects (if anything)? And how do you juggle promotion (and celebration!) of the finished book with the process of starting your next project? I mean both the mental challenge of jumping from one to the other - and TIME. I usually go straight into the next but just don’t have capacity to promote and write concurrently this time. I’m interested in what others do or feel about this!