I hired Alex for my second book, Hope in Oakland, because his work is meticulous.
If you are looking for a fantastic content editor, you found him and you should hire him immediately.
I learned early that your book is not your baby, it is your business. That means you want to release the best manuscript you are capable of writing. The content edit is like the foundation of a house, skimp on this step, the whole structure will collapse. You can paint it any pretty colour you want but people will notice if the roof caves in and they will step away. Once you lose that reader they are gone forever. Not just them but everyone they would recommend your work to. This step is not something you skimp on. I wouldn’t dream of publishing a book without him.
Read on if you would like to know what he did for my books and my career.
In my first book he pointed out that my opening line for the novel was buried in the middle of chapter five. Yes. Chapter Five. I shudder to think what would have happened if I had released that book without his hard work. I should also mention my first book already had a content edit before I sent it to him to sort out the whole sorry mess. He restructured it and pointed out missing key scenes. That book, The Night They Came For Til, launched me into a writing career I am thrilled with, stunned by and desperately trying to keep up with.
Because I believe in giving credit where credit is due, I never, ever do an author night/interview without pointing out that Alex McGilvery is my editor and how to hire him. Ever. Because I know, every review that says “I could not put this book down” is a review we should share. I would have lost those readers somewhere in chapter three with a long flashback that didn’t drive the plot forward if he hadn’t restructured the entire thing! I had a good story that would have bored my readers to tears without his hard work. Alex will pace your novel to be something people can’t put down. Of all the gifts he brings to the table that is the most invaluable.
The second book we finished, Hope in Oakland, was no exception. I had about 40 pages of repetition that I didn’t notice until he pointed it out and I was again missing key scenes.
As I said in my previous testimonial, this edit process will be exactly like a very detailed, very personal writing course. I learned a lot with my first book and I learned a lot with this book too. I appreciate that he tells you what you are doing wrong and what you are doing right. This has created more confidence in me and makes me excited to tackle a new project.
I can tell you from experience. If you chose to work with Alex you will be well on your way to producing the best book you can write and launching a very successful writing career. Don’t delay.
Happy editing!
