COLIN DICKERMAN

EDITORIAL SERVICES

Proposal Writing

Crafting a great proposal is a crucial first step to getting published. I can help you hone your ideas and showcase your talents. We will work on structure, voice, and narrative strategy to present your work in the most dynamic, compelling, and selling manner.

Developmental Editing

Whatever the subject of your book, ensuring clarity, providing adequate context, developing a coherent argument or central premise, and keeping up narrative momentum is essential– but it can be tricky to pull it all off. Through a series of conversations and manuscript reads, I will guide you through a revision or series of revisions that will refine and sharpen your manuscript, giving it the best chance for success.

Book Doctoring

If you have a manuscript that needs more significant interventions, I can provide more hands-on guidance–rearranging material, collaborating closely with you to expand sections and trim others, helping you develop an architecture for the book, and making sure all the elements come alive.

Line Editing

If you're near the finish line, but need a fresh set of eyes to make sure your manuscript is performing as gracefully and efficiently as possible, a line edit can bring everything into its sharpest form. I will read through your draft with a focus on fine-tuning cadence and clarity.

Ghost Writing

If you have a great story or idea but don't have the time or comfort-level for writing, I can help capture your voice on the page. Through extensive interviews, we will figure out the best way to tell your story and make sure the book sounds like you.

TESTIMONIALS

"For the past fifteen years, no one has meant more to my career than Colin Dickerman. Beyond the generous spirit, reliability, and brilliant insight, he's a magnificent editor because he has no agenda other than producing good literature."

–Paul Beatty, author of The Sellout, winner of the Man Booker Prize.

"Colin's genius as an editor lies in his ability to see what a book is capable of becoming, and help usher it into the deepest fulfillment of that vision. He doesn't change books, he makes them more themselves-- more daring, more engrossing, truer versions of themselves. Working with him is learning from him, and any writer would be lucky to do so."

–Alex Marzano-Lesnevich, author of The Fact of a Body

"An editor plays many roles– critic, psychologist, cheerleader, literary detective and occasional surgeon. Good ones are hard to find and more valuable than ever, and Colin Dickerman is one of the best. With a firm hand and gentle touch he made my book better. I'd love to work with him again."

–Glenn Frankel, New York Times bestselling author of The Searchers and High Noon; winner of the Pulitzer Prize

"Colin is a gifted editor who took my initial ramblings and expertly guided me to write a successful popular science book. This was my first book, and I relied on him heavily. Not irrelevant (especially for a first-time, struggling author) is that he's fun to work with and offers great support. I actually hired other editors before Colin stepped in, and so can say with some experience that he is unusual in his insight and understanding of how to build an engaging argument. And his years in publishing have given him a finely tuned sense of the book market."

–Wendy Wood, Provost Professor of Psychology and Business, University of Southern California, author of Good Habits, Bad Habits

"If you're looking for someone who's guaranteed to sharpen and polish whatever you've written and extract the very best of your efforts then Colin's your editor. Having worked with him on my fifth book, all the way from the initial high concept, to a polished proposal, and eventually a published book, I can attest that Colin has the rare combination of gifts of having both a sharp eye and skill of line by line editing without ever losing sight of the overall goals of the project. I really could not have been any more pleased with the results of his efforts."

–New York Times bestseller Sharon Moalem, author of The Better Half.

"From my experience, most good editors respond to what a writer has put on the page, pointing out distractions, inconsistencies, clumsy prose, draggy sections. Colin Dickerman is that rarest kind of editor who can also see what is not on the page: the missing chapter, the unexpressed idea, the unrealized possibility. In our work together, I've often had the feeling that Colin understands my writing better than I understand it myself, and I can't imagine what more an author might hope for in an editor."

–Stefan Merrill Block, author of Oliver Loving

"Colin Dickerman helped to shape what was originally a speck of an idea into a grand, sweeping narrative about the First World War. Throughout the process, he offered unique insights that prompted me to think more carefully about the 'bigger picture.' He is a candid, thorough, and efficient editor who helps to create the kind of book that stands the test of time. In short, I am a better writer for having worked with him."

–Lindsey Fitzharris, author of The Butchering Art

"Colin seemed to immediately understand my intentions as a writer. Every suggestion of his, every note, was elegant and insightful, and served to make the book more of itself. He became a true champion of my work."

–Chris Rush, author of The Light Years