Literary Preview Fee — $150
All fees are payable in United States currency and are subject to applicable taxes wherein you reside. Services are invoiced via Stripe at the time of signing with the payment due upon receipt, at which time the contract becomes active.
What is a literary preview or honored opinion?
When you are a writer it’s often challenging to gain an objective opinion that is truly, well… objective. Family and friends are quite willing to read your material, and will probably rejoice over it well enough. However, by virtue of their relationship with you and their love for you, they become partial and biased parties, unfortunately.
The process of writing is truly laborious, even when you love it. Whether you are a novice or professional in the industry, we all hit those challenging points in our creative process when we need an honored opinion. We all get stuck. We all have those moments when we encounter areas where we need some help, just that little push, or perhaps even some time-tested foolproof literary advice. A literary preview is able to serve that immediate need very well for whatever it is you’re facing.
A good objective opinion is granted from a professional in the industry, preferably in your niche or genre, who can give you sound constructive feedback or advice — regardless of where you are on the spectrum of your written work, how experienced or skilled you may be, or the development of your current project. You may have the roughest draft ever, or perhaps it’s the most polished. Regardless, what you’re looking for can only come from someone who has completely fresh eyes for your work, yet who also possesses the experience and skill that will push you over that edge.
A Literary Preview is client-driven. Needs vary widely throughout the writing process. Think about where you are in your project and ask yourself what it is you really need. Is it feedback on a particular scene? Are you trying to write about a sensitive topic? Are you questioning the entire story? Do you need help gracefully articulating a few things? Or do you need a general overview of your voice and style? Whatever it is, a literary preview can often be the simplest way, and yet the most valuable in serving your various needs as a writer, especially when you hit rough spots in processing your craft.
Submission Requirements
1.) Bilateral Contract: Your unpublished intellectual property should never exchange hands freely without a written agreement with those whom you allow to view or obtain it. We understand the opportunity you’re granting us to serve you in reviewing your work is a solemn trust. Your creative work is incredibly valuable. Whenever you are granting someone access to your intellectual property, regardless of the manner of exchange, we strongly exhort you to do your due diligence in protecting it. We want you to know we offer you that protection in a bilateral contractural agreement. We will issue you the opportunity to sign with terms of your choosing that fully protects your intellectual property as copyrighted content. This contract will not only provide proof of our services to you, but it will also negotiate the terms of what we are allowed to view, the access we’re granted, the designated purpose, and any permissions for editing or remarks, should you so choose. We will invoice for full payment of our $150 fee at the time of signing, at which time the contract becomes active.
2.) Clarify Your Needs: Please let me know precisely what type of helps you are needing at this stage in your writing. Consider carefully what you’re looking for and what you really require. If it’s plausible within the scope of a literary preview, please submit your request. If you feel you need more than what a literary preview offers, please consider looking at having a Peer Review performed instead.
3.) Exchange & Correspondence: Your manuscript must be submitted via encryption. Please provide a digital unlocked document (docx is preferred) transmitted via email. Keep all correspondence within one email thread designated solely for this project. Do not mail a hard manuscript. Do not send via Google Docs, a social media platform, via cloud service, or unsecured attachment. No handwritten documents are accepted. If you so choose you may send a document via Docusign or other secured third-party portal which requires verification or signature via email upon receipt.
4.) Deadline: I allow seven days to complete your literary preview. If you have a deadline, please submit your work accordingly. I am willing to negotiate terms if you need the literary preview done sooner, so long as time allows.
5.) Sample Chapters: Provide one chapter of your choosing. Please choose wisely.
6.) Drafting: In contrast to a peer review, a rough draft is acceptable. Because literary previews are generally more focused, help at this stage is often needed. Therefore, any draft, up to the final draft, is acceptable. Please disclose which draft you are submitting so I know what stage you are in with your writing. This can make a difference in how I ultimately critique your work.
7.) Formatting: Please prepare your document with one-inch margins, double spaced.
8.) Pagination: Make sure all pages are numbered at the bottom in the following format: (Page 1 of ___).
9.) Watermarking: Your digital document should readily reflect three things: (1) the manner in which it should be handled, (2) its ownership, and (3) its level of security. Your name and the title of your work should be on every page header including the word: “ORIGINAL” or “COPY”, whichever is preferred. We also suggest you use a watermark of your choosing to protect your copyrighted work. Terms such as “copyrighted”, “confidential”, or “original” are all appropriate examples you may want to consider. You may also use your logo, signature, or other trademark.
The Process
1.) Read: I will read your work three times. With the first read I ponder your work carefully, letting it settle. I never make a hasty judgment on any given area. With the second read I begin to make marks where I notice areas that require attention. With the third read I write remarks in the margins offering practical advice with respect to the areas for which you requested help.
2.) Remarks: Modest written remarks and editorial points are made in the margins using Microsoft Word®. I do not craft a formal written critique. I do not make actual edits to your work. Once complete, we will have a verbal discussion following my read where we can focus on your specific areas of concern.
3.) Discussion: I will review your work privately, one-on-one, in a 60-minute meeting with you via phone or Skype. This is not a formal critique or peer review. If that is what you believe you may want or need, please take a look at Peer Reviews.
The Completed Literary Preview
1.) I will issue your marked document (no changes will be made) using Microsoft Word®, with all remarks and editorial comments in the margins and spacing provided, which will be noted in red. Copies of your original document may be printed for my ease of reading. Any printed copies used will be shredded by default. Or you may have these printed copies submitted to you at the completion of our service either in person or via USPS priority mail for a small additional fee. This marked document will be returned to you digitally. The filename will include the word “MARKED AND PREVIEWED” by Erin Pavlicek of Appointed Time Press, LLC with the title, date, and author name for ease of storage and retrieval. It will be unlocked so you can make any changes if you wish. However, to preserve the work I strongly suggest making a duplicate of the completed peer review immediately upon receipt, changing the filename to “DUPLICATE”, and locking the document so nothing is accidentally lost.
2.) By default I keep an “eternal” copy of the MARKED document. If you ever need a copy in the future, please ask, and I will retrieve and send one at your request. However, if you want my copy deleted from our database and files, we will honor that term which will be negotiated at the time of signing. I will also email a formal letter of closure at the completion of our work. This will outline how we have handled your content and files.
3.) You will receive the the marked document via email.
4.) After you’ve received the completed preview and have had the necessary time to digest it, please let us know when you’re ready for your discussion. This provides you the opportunity to ask questions and obtain further clarification on any points made. Please carefully prepare and have your questions ready. I’m here for you. If you would like, I’m happy to initiate the call.
Please reach out and let us know about your needs. I’d be honored to help you!
If you are an aspiring author, or feel like you need more help in developing as a writer, I invite you to read my post: Mastering the Art of Writing: Six Ways to Hone Your Skills & Develop Your Craft
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