Editorial Services

I provide consultation and editorial assistance for fiction and nonfiction projects, plus academic essays and application materials.

For MFA information, scroll down, as this is divided into packages for convenience.

  • Seed — $30/hour

    Your project has yet to begin, but a directive has been ordered. Perhaps this comes from a higher power (an employer, a professor) or perhaps a Higher Power (insert deity of choice here).

    At this point, you have ideas and perhaps notes, but nothing has been drafted. We’ll get on a Zoom call and work from wherever you are in the process. By the end, you will have concrete ideas and plans for moving forward.

    This can also be used as an opportunity to check if we’d be a good fit to work on your saplings or oaks.

  • Sapling — $.03/word

    You have a draft, some branches reaching out toward the sky, perhaps boasting some buds. But it’s not where you want (or need) it to be, and you’re not sure how to move forward.

    You’ll send me your work and I’ll return it with in-line comments and a letter of response. You can specify what exactly you’re looking for in editing and I will be sure to respond to those things.

    My responses to Sapling drafts will be content-related, so focusing on voice, character, pacing, style, etc.

    The length of my response letter will correlate to the length of your work. 0-10,000 words = 1 page, 10,001-40,000 words = 3 pages, 40,000+ words = 5 pages+

  • Oak — $.02/word

    Your work now soars. Its leaves are full and cast shadows on the ground. What you need now is a final edit to prepare for submission, publication, or whatever your final step is.

    You’ll send me your work and I’ll return it with in-line comments and copyedits. I will not respond to stylistic concerns except for those that affect the clarity of the work. This is for final, polishing edits.

MFA Application Assistance

  • Full Package — $250

    *Available to Fiction writers only!

    Includes:

    • 60-minute phone call for guidance on conducting research/narrowing down list of programs

    • In-line comments and 1-page letter with edits on both your work sample and Statement of Purpose on TWO drafts of each

    Ideally this is a long-term relationship over the course of your application journey, and the above are spread over several months to be most benefical to you.

  • Work Sample Edits — $60

    *Available to Fiction writers only!

    Includes in-line comments and 1-page letter with edits on your writing sample, up to 30 pages (additional pages at extra cost)

    Additional rounds of edits available for $40 each

  • Statement of Purpose Edits — $50

    Open to all genres

    Includes in-line comments and 1-page letter with edits on your Statement of Purpose

    Additional rounds of edits available for $30 each

MFA Applicant who was accepted to 6 fully funded programs

“Writing about yourself can be so difficult. Helen provided excellent feedback on my statement of purpose, helping me narrow my focus and write about my work with more specificity and conviction. I have no doubt that her help made my application stronger.”

Former Student

“Helen encourages individual exploration and creates an open and respectful atmosphere for diverse voices.”

Editorial Client

“Helen’s service has given me a lot of motivation in the editing process especially when the writing life as a whole can be so lonely. Her edits were incredibly supportive and I am already thinking of her suggestions and observations as I revise portions of the novel beyond just the excerpt she worked on. She’s become like a little ghost reader on my shoulder as I continue editing.”

MY QUALIFICATIONS

I hold an MFA in Creative Writing from Brown University where I won the John Hawkes Prize in Fiction, the top award given to a graduate student. I was a 2022 Tin House Scholar and have been a finalist for residencies from Tin House and Writing by Writers. My work has been published in literary magazines such as Black Warrior Review, Jellyfish Review, X-R-A-Y, and more. You can read my work on my portfolio page.

In addition to writing credits, I have over 8 years of teaching and editing experience in university and community settings. I have worked with writers at Arcadia University, Brown University, and Lighthouse Writers Workshop. I’ve also been a reader and editor for literary magazines such as Witness and Cleaver.

MFA applicants I’ve assisted have been accepted to or waitlisted at University of Washington St Louis, University of Michigan Helen Zell Writers Program, University of Minnesota, University of Mississippi, American University, George Mason University, University of Pittsburgh, University of Washington Seattle, University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign, University of Oregon, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Virginia Commonwealth University, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Colorado State University, Oregon State University, Hollins University, Eastern Washington University, and California College of the Arts.

MY ETHOS

I love to work with clients because it’s an opportunity to collaborate creatively with another mind and soul. My guiding principle is to listen to what writers want out of their work and help them to deliver fully — everyone's goals are different and are worth honoring and centering. My practice is mine; yours is yours; and yet we can meet in the middle and find warmth and generative power there.

My editorial practice is informed heavily by Felicia Rose Chavez’s The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop and Matthew Salesses’s Craft in the Real World. I don’t believe in prescriptive advice but rather, a collaborative approach where I as the editor tap into your vision and help to realize your work’s greatest potential to be itself, your own best product.

This is YOUR time to realize your creative potential, and I am so excited to help you!

Interested in starting a conversation? Fill out the contact form and I’ll get back to you!

Let me know:

  • Who you are

  • What types of services you’re interested in

  • Your budget