

Our Book Editors
From the world’s major publishing houses
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‘The Novelry—from the twinkling of an idea through to a publishing-ready novel.’

‘Recommended by leading literary agencies.’

‘All aboard a different kind of writing school.’

‘A remarkable world-wide writing school (...) with classes run by tutors including brilliant authors and former editors from Penguin Random House.’
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‘The Novelry—from the twinkling of an idea through to a publishing-ready novel.’

‘Recommended by leading literary agencies.’

‘All aboard a different kind of writing school.’

‘A remarkable world-wide writing school (...) with classes run by tutors including brilliant authors and former editors from Penguin Random House.’
Big Five publisher expertise
Our editorial team members are professionals with experience at Penguin Random House, Macmillan, HarperCollins, Hachette, and Simon & Schuster — where they have worked on bestselling and award-winning novels published to international acclaim. They are in-house, wholly dedicated to our writers, and work as a team under the direction of our Editorial Director.
When you choose The Finished Novel Course, you work with publishing professionals who know exactly what a manuscript needs to reach publication standards. They will oversee every aspect of your novel as you progress toward a finished draft — and when you’re ready, introduce you to the literary agents and publishers they know personally.
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Professional publishing experience
Previously, leading literary agents submitted novels to our editors in their capacity as acquiring and commissioning editors at major publishing houses. Now our editors are submitting to those same agents — on your behalf.
Our editorial team brings years of experience across every type of editing role, with a focus on the developmental edit: the creative, structural work that transforms a promising manuscript into a publishable one. They also bring their knowledge of the acquiring and publishing process — so when it’s time to pitch your book, they know exactly what agents and publishers are looking for.
At The Novelry, you get the same quality of editorial attention as an author at a major publishing house.
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Join us today
Follow a clear, proven path from first idea to a finished, publishing-ready novel.

The Big Idea
From idea to outline

The Big Write
Write your novel

The Big Edit
Edit and polish your novel

The Finished Novel Course
The complete journey. A proven path from first idea to a finished, publishing-ready novel.

Expertise to finish your novel
‘My story whisperer book editor took my submission package to the next level. She gave me the perfect premise line, went over my first three chapters with her brilliant editorial eye, and gave masterful advice on how to reorganize my book’s timeline to jack up suspense. She then handpicked the perfect agents and gave me the benefit of her industry wisdom throughout the entire submission process. I couldn’t recommend The Novelry more highly.’
—Helena Echlin, now represented by Janklow & Nesbit after manuscript preparation and submission by The Novelry. Clever Little Thing has been sold to Pamela Dorman Books/Penguin Random House and Penguin Canada, Grijalbo (Spain), and Nord (Italy).
Published books from our alumni
We’ve taken complete beginners all the way through to secure world-class literary agency representation.



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Edit to publishing standards
The Big Edit phase of The Finished Novel Course takes you through every aspect of the editing process — structural and developmental work first, through to the technical writing skills on a sentence-by-sentence level. You will learn to self-edit to a professional standard: a skill that will serve you for the rest of your writing life as an author.
Our editors are not solo freelancers — they are an in-house team, working together on your manuscript, connected to the literary agents and publishers who matter. When you invest in editing your novel at The Novelry, you are working with professionals who know exactly what a submission-ready manuscript looks like..
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From the developmental edit to a final review
We guide you through the full editing process down to line-by-line style — so that you become your own best editor.
Our lessons draw on contemporary examples from across the genres: the architecture of bestselling novels, prose technique, and treatment decisions that elevate the great novels. We teach Lucid Compression® — our own technique for prose that opens books with authority and keeps readers turning pages.
When your manuscript is ready, we help you build a complete submission package with a standout synopsis and a pitch letter that makes agents want to read on. Our regular program of live classes and industry guests ensures you understand exactly what agents and publishers are looking for — from the people who know.
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Editorial feedback on demand
Once you join a course, you can book Paid Feedback Sessions with one of our professional developmental editors — available at any point in your program, on up to 5,000 words at a time. Each session includes a written editorial report and a 45-minute video debrief where you can ask questions directly.
We recommend saving these sessions for the second half of your program, when your story is settled and the feedback can be applied to work you know you're keeping. They are most valuable during The Big Edit phase — when you are moving from structural work to sentence style and word choice.
Editing is the core skill that differentiates published authors from new writers. Invest wisely. Learn from the best.
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Working with an editor
A final draft begins with a big idea. Make sure you are packing a great premise before you begin writing. Come up with a strong idea for your story and follow a clear, proven path from first idea to a finished, publishing-ready novel with The Finished Novel Course.
A good editor sees the big picture — what’s working structurally, and where the story needs to be pushed further. But they also know how to execute your vision on the page at the sentence level, word by word. They bring objectivity to material you're too close to see clearly, and the literary expertise to help you fix it.
At The Novelry, our editing team members are experienced publishing editors who have worked with bestselling and award-winning authors at the Big Five publishing houses — Penguin Random House, Macmillan, HarperCollins, Hachette, and Simon & Schuster. They will help you deliver a page-turning story.
Serious writers work with serious editors.
Work with a team of professionals. Book editors tend to have genre specialisms — and publishers will only acquire books that perform well within a genre. So you need to ensure your editor specializes in your chosen genre. A solo freelance editor brings their own personal taste and judgment to your work, which may not align with what the market expects currently. A broader market-savvy editorial view is very valuable.
At The Novelry, our editors meet weekly to discuss our writers’ works-in-progress, pooling their combined knowledge and experience. You have access to the whole team — finding the right editor for your book and your stage of development. Your editor works with you directly across multiple rounds, becoming genuinely familiar with your intentions and ambitions for the story. The best editors respect an author’s style.
Work with an editorial team that understands the current market for your book.
An editor can identify the problems. Fixing them is the writer’s job — and ours is to make sure you know exactly how to go about that.
With our team of editors and working authors, we are well placed to find creative solutions to story problems at every level. Our substantive editing approach moves from developmental editing through to copy-editing, covering the full range of craft decisions that take a manuscript to publishing standard.
You will work with your editor directly across multiple rounds. Each session builds on the last — your editor reviews the storyline, assesses the draft, and gives you the precise feedback you need to move forward. We will review your manuscript before submission to ensure it is genuinely ready.
An editor cannot write your book. But the right editorial team can show you how to write it well.
Editorial services can be expensive, and as a writer, you place a great deal of trust in your book editor. What seems cheap today can prove expensive in the long run. Not to mention downright destructive. Don’t economize on your editorial investment after all your hard work so far. It’s the last gasp—and clinches the deal.
Many literary consultancies and editorial services farm out their editing work to freelance editors, often paid at very low rates, who work by the manuscript and move quickly onto the next. With this model, you neither meet your editor nor have the chance to ask questions. Some well-known companies follow this practice.
Be aware that some professional editing services also take a 10 or 15 percent commission on your publishing royalties. Always check the terms before you commit. At The Novelry, we take no commission — ever.
We are able to offer the expertise of in-house professional editors at a more accessible price point through our considered combination of course-based training and editorial services that empower writers to become their own editors.
Invest in editors who are invested in your book.
Typically, a consultancy, proofreading service, or freelance editor’s work ends when they hand back your manuscript with corrections and a report. The hard work of revision falls entirely to you — and they take no further steps toward publication. Not so at The Novelry.
Your book editor, from a respected publishing house, will give you detailed line-by-line feedback, assessing your manuscript’s potential to meet the standards of a traditional publisher before advising on changes. If your manuscript is a match for one of our trusted literary agents, you will be invited to enter our submissions process.
We work with over 40 trusted literary agencies — including WME, CAA, The Book Group, and United Agents — who actively look to us for new fiction.
The Novelry is recommended by world-class literary agencies.
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