Louise Harnby | Fiction Editor & Proofreader
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Online training courses for editors and writers

Being visible gets you found. Being trusted gets you hired. Building skills gives you confidence. ​Learn how to achieve all three ... wherever you live.

FICTION EDITING COURSES
EDITOR BUSINESS COURSES
FREE-FOR-LIFE COURSES

20% discount on courses for CIEP members

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Fiction-editing courses with zero time restrictions

All my courses come with lifetime access. That means you can learn at your convenience, not mine.
SAVE £60!
Editor Website Essentials

The Fiction Line Editing Bundle​

With this bundle of 4 courses, I teach you how to line edit fiction and report with conviction. You get a specific set of tools with which you can hone your stylistic line editing craft and communicate your suggestions with confidence.
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£223.96 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
​​​'The practice exercises went far beyond what I was expecting. Such a great course!' – Beta tester
Course: Branding for Business Growth

How to Line Edit for Suspense

Learn how to identify suspense in a novel and evaluate its effectiveness using the suspense trifecta framework. Edit for improved reader experience and communicate your revisions with confidence.
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£82.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘Told me masses of new stuff, and gave me a set of new tools to use immediately.’ – SoA @ Home Festival​ attendee
Course: Editor Website Essentials

Narrative Distance

This course teaches professional fiction editors and commercial fiction authors how to recognize and control narrative (psychic) distance. The result? Seamless viewpoint transitions that deepen a reader's engagement with the novel's characters.
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£55.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
SPECIAL OFFER FOR STUDENTS:
​Upgrade to How to Line Edit for Suspense and get your money back in full!
Course: Branding for Business Growth

7  Tools for Line Editing Thrillers

This webinar teaches fiction editors about 7 sentence-level literary devices they can use when editing crime fiction and thrillers. Learn how and why to suggest gentle stylistic changes that elevate prose.
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£19.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘This is the BEST event I have been to on how to edit a manuscript. I learned so much!’ – SoA @ Home Festival​ attendee
Course: Editor Website Essentials

Preparing Your Book for Submission

This 30-minute webinar teaches commercial fiction authors 11 pithy line-editing tips that make a substantive difference to writing flow and reader experience.
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£30.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘Will undoubtedly help any sentence-level editor save HOURS of thinking and writing time.’ – Sophie Playle, fiction editor
Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Learn how to craft engaging sentence-level editorial reports efficiently. Save time and increase your hourly rate while providing feedback that demonstrates editorial excellence and builds trust.
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£82.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘I loved it … your insights and advice are insanely valuable.’ – Angela Snowden, editor
Course: Switching to Fiction

Switching to Fiction

Learn how to move from non-fiction to fiction, and edit at sentence level with confidence. The 4-step framework covers readability, narrative, dialogue, and technical correction and consistency. Includes a copy of Editing Fiction at Sentence Level. 
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£61.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE

Courses in development in 2023
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

Editing with Style Sheets

This self-paced course teaches editors and proofreaders how to create and use branded style sheets that improve efficiency and consistency, and demonstrate professionalism.
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

How to Line Edit Fiction: ‘Show, Don’t Tell’

This self-paced course introduces beginner fiction editors to shown and told prose and how it affects the success of a novel. Learn how to identify problems, craft solutions and communicate your guidance.
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

How to edit numbers in dialogue

Learn how to edit numbers in dialogue with respect for character voice, flow and readability, and using editorial judgement that considers whether numbers are telling data or showing emotion. 
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

Narrative Style: Viewpoint, Tense and Voice

This course teaches emerging fiction editors the foundations of narrative style. You'll learn how to identify problems, communicate the solutions, and guide your clients towards more finely crafted prose.
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

How to Line Edit Fiction: Rhythmic Tools

This course teaches line editors and authors how use rhythm to elevate a sentence. Discover how to evoke mood, increase readability and convey meaning – without wasting a word.
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Editorial-business courses with zero time restrictions

All my courses come with lifetime access. That means you can learn at your convenience, not mine.
SAVE £125!
Editor Website Essentials

The Editorial Business Bundle​

With this bundle of 6 courses, I teach you how to nail your website, build a brand identity, create an emotional connection online, develop a content strategy, and get work fast.
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£268.94 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
AVAILABLE NOW!
Course: Branding for Business Growth

Emotional Marketing that Gets Editors Work

This 7-step framework teaches you how to evoke emotion in your ideal clients, and generate sales and income without having to pitch a sale. ​
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£45.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘An absolute gem of a resource that covers all the bases. Thank you! This is just what I needed.’ – ​Tom Cavendish, editor 
Course: Editor Website Essentials

Marketing Toolbox for Editors

This toolbox is packed with tips and tactics to help you with promotion, pricing, brand consistency, blog content, and your website. The goal: to get editing and proofreading work with a variety of different client types.
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£67.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘A brilliant course packed full of information and resources.’ – Angela Bissell, fiction editor
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Course: Editor Website Essentials

Editor Website Essentials

This course teaches you how to craft a visible, loveable editorial web presence! The 10-step framework takes you through the essentials of SEO, navigation, structure, visitors, UX, branding, web page copy, home page design, content and analytics.​
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£156.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
​‘Branding for Business Growth is the perfect pick-me-up for any editorial business in need of a refresh.’ – Lucy Ridout, fiction and travel editor
Course: Branding for Business Growth

Branding for Business Growth

This 9-step course on editorial branding teaches editors and proofreaders how to build an emotion-based brand identity. Discover how to stand out online, attract more ideal clients, and build a longer wait-list.
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£82.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
‘Do the work from even just a couple of episodes and your blog will be up and running within a week.’ – Adrienne Montgomerie, editor
Course: Blogging for Business Growth

Blogging for Business Growth

This blogging course teaches editors and proofreaders how to create a discoverable, captivating and memorable blog that drives website traffic, increases visibility in the search engines, and generates editing work.
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£82.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
Course: Branding for Business Growth

Social Media for Business Growth

Discover how to create a purposeful social media strategy that increases online visibility, expands audience, reinforces brand, and generates work.
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£82.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE
Course: Branding for Business Growth

To Visibility and Beyond

Learn how to create reusable, knowledge-rich content that makes you visible online, compels ideal clients to hire you, and saves time in your day-to-day editing work.
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£30.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE

‘Just the kick in the butt I needed. Even those small touches bore fruit the next day with an old client. Thanks so much!’ – Ryan, editor
Webinar: 10 Ways to Get Editing Work Quickly

10 Ways to Get Editing Work Quickly

This webinar on emergency marketing helps editors and proofreaders whose client cupboards are bare. You’ll learn 10 steps you can take today to get yourself out of a fix and secure work fast.
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£30.99 (+ tax)
PAYMENT PLAN AVAILABLE

Hone your skills for free!

These free courses won't cost you a penny. There are no catches or strings. Just dig in!​
FREE LIFETIME ACCESS
Webinar: How to Punctuate Dialogue in a Novel

How to Start a Fiction Editing Business

This free 57-minute webinar introduces you to the different types of fiction editing, some ideas for finding work, and suggestions for training.
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FREE LIFETIME ACCESS
Webinar: How to Punctuate Dialogue in a Novel

Editing in Word: Using Styles

Learn how to introduce consistency to the various text elements in your novel using Microsoft Word styles. I'll show you how to set them up, modify them and import them into other documents. 
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FREE LIFETIME ACCESS
Webinar: How to Punctuate Dialogue in a Novel

How to Punctuate Dialogue in a Novel

This free webinar shows fiction writers and editors how to punctuate dialogue in a novel according to publishing-industry convention.
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FREE LIFETIME ACCESS
Webinar: How to prepare your book file for editing

How to Prepare Your Book File for Editing

​This webinar offers writers 12 tips on how to make a book file ready for an editor and avoid wasting time on unnecessary design.​
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FREE LIFETIME ACCESS
Webinar: Unboring Business Planning

Unboring Business Planning

This webinar shows editors and proofreaders why business planning is worth investing time in and needn't be boring when it's framed around 2 questions: What do you want and how will you get it?
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FREE LIFETIME ACCESS
Webinar: The Differences Between Developmental Editing, Line Editing, Copyediting and Proofreading

The Levels of Editing

This webinar helps new fiction authors, editors and proofreaders understand the differences between developmental editing, line editing, copyediting and proofreading, and the order of play.
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What people are saying about my courses ...
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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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SAVE HOURS OF WRITING TIME
Holy moly, Louise! I’ve just finished working through the course, and what you’ve provided is so very generous – and all presented clearly and beautifully. This will undoubtedly help any sentence-level editor save HOURS of thinking and writing time.
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Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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A TEMPLATE I CAN'T WAIT TO USE
Just working through the course has already saved me masses of time and mental gymnastics, and given me a template that I'm proud of and can't wait to use for my future clients. Thanks so much, Louise!
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Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Cally Worden
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I'VE SEEN A BIG UPTICK IN ENQUIRIES
I just wanted to say a huge thank-you for your blogging course. It's given me such a boost and lots of inspiration for content. I’ve also seen a big uptick in enquiries, which has led to me booking even more work. Your course is invaluable, especially the areas on tracking/analytics, sharing, and repurposing content. I just wanted to let you know how helpful it was!
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Course: Blogging for Business Growth

Rachel Rowlands
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Editor & Writer

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I'VE PURCHASED
I love Louise’s editorial-report template. It’s one of the best things I’ve purchased from her since starting my business.
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Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Lakeisha Bell Cadogan 
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Fiction Editor and Book Coach

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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AN EXCELLENT INVESTMENT
This course was an excellent investment and a joy to work through thanks to the beautifully presented material and Louise's lovely, upbeat delivery style. The report template is a fabulous resource that will save me time with every job and delight my future clients. Win–win!
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Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Angela Bissell
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I GOT SO MUCH OUT OF IT
​Louise's courses are super helpful. I just finished Switching to Fiction and got so much out of it! Highly recommended for nonfiction editors who want to get into fiction line editing.
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Course: Switching to Fiction

Erika Steeves
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Copyeditor and Proofreader​

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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A BRILLIANT COURSE ... EASILY DIGESTED MODULES
A brilliant course packed full of information and resources, all presented in easily digested modules. I now have the confidence and know-how to create an attractive, functional website with content tailored to reflect my brand values and attract my ideal client. Thank you, Louise!
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Course: Editor Website Essentials

Angela Bissell
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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LOUISE EXPLAINS EVERYTHING SO CLEARLY – I COULD LISTEN TO HER ALL DAY!
I highly recommend this course for anyone thinking of editing fiction. I learned so much from it and it gave me the confidence to offer fiction copyediting in addition to my board game editorial work. The webinar is excellent and Louise explains everything so clearly – I could listen to her all day! A copy of the book Editing Fiction at Sentence Level is included, which is packed full of information and examples that you can refer to time and again.
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Course: Switching to Fiction

Rachael Mortimer​
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Copyeditor and Proofreader​

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I CAN'T AFFORD NOT  TO LEARN FROM LOUISE
Being an editor is a rewarding but challenging profession. Imagine my relief when I discovered Louise Harnby and the resources she provides for editors to build our businesses! Louise really gets down into the nitty-gritty of a topic and crucially, you come away being able to put those tips into action.
 
I recently delved into three: How to Earn Passive Income (book), Editor Website Essentials (multimedia course), and How to Create a Pricing Strategy (book).
 
All three came at the perfect time for me. Professional enrichment is not a one-off. If we really want to flourish, we editors need to continually examine how we conduct our editing businesses and represent ourselves online.
 
Thankfully, Louise has a rich supply of exactly the learning materials that editors need – all easily accessible and reasonably priced.  Actually, I can't afford NOT to learn from Louise. 
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Book: How to Earn Passive Income
Course: Editor Website Essentials
Book: How to Create a Pricing Strategy

Julie Gray
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Developmental Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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THE PERFECT PICK-ME-UP FOR ANY EDITORIAL BUSINESS IN NEED OF A REFRESH
Doing this course is like putting your editorial business through psychoanalysis. Louise makes you drill down to the fundamentals: who’s your ideal client and how can you attract more of them? This is trickier than it sounds, but Louise guides you with authority and encouragement through the many stages. Branding for Business Growth is the perfect pick-me-up for any editorial business in need of a refresh.
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

Lucy Ridout
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Editor of Fiction and Travel

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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EXCELLENT PRESENTATION AND THE REPORT SAMPLE IS GOLD
As a career editor and a fiction writer, I give 5 stars to Switching to Fiction. Excellent presentation and the report sample is gold. I teach editing for UC Berkeley's certificate in editing program, but there's no fiction component. I'm hoping to be better able to respond to students' questions now and will point them your direction, Louise. Thank you! ​
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Course: Switching to Fiction

Ann Cathleen Neumann
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Editor and Instructor, University of California, Berkeley​

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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Before Louise’s course, I found myself taking jobs I didn’t want (but felt I had to), undervaluing myself, and suffering from impostor syndrome. Post-course, I am confident in my unique strengths as an editor and writing coach, and I understand how to best target and serve my ideal client.
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Course: Branding for Business Growth

Susan Puiia
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​Editor and Writing Coach

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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WILL SAVE SO MUCH TIME IN THE FUTURE
I learned a huge amount from this course. Not only does it provide a template for structuring your own reports, but it also gives valuable examples of what to write in each section. I did fall down a Canva rabbit hole and spent far too long designing a cover sheet! But now I have a template and notes with a beautiful cover for writing my own editorial reports, which will save so much time in the future.
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Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Rachael Mortimer​
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Copyeditor and Proofreader​

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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A TREASURE TROVE FOR EDITORS WHO WANT TO ADD FICTION TO THEIR REPERTOIRE
Louise's Switching to Fiction course is a treasure trove for editors who want to add fiction line editing to their repertoire but don't know where to begin ... Highly recommended for anyone looking to become a confident fiction editor!
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Course: Switching to Fiction

Maya Berger
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Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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BREAKS DOWN FICTION EDITING INTO UNDERSTANDABLE AND WORKABLE SECTIONS
If you’re interested in editing fiction, or just improving your craft as a writer, I highly recommend the Switching to Fiction course. Louise knows how to break down fiction editing into understandable and workable sections. The webinar provides you with a basic road map to the many different areas of line editing. The course book goes into deeper detail.
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Course: Switching to Fiction

Sarah Calfee
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Romance Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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FANTASTIC PRESENTER, AND THE WEBINAR IS CLEAR AND INSIGHTFUL
Switching to Fiction is a great resource. Louise isn’t prescriptive; instead she radiates a cheerful, pragmatic sense of what works in fiction at sentence-level [and] gives you a range of tools to help you understand how to elevate your writing and editing. Louise is a fantastic presenter, and the webinar is clear and insightful. I love the accompanying book, too, which provides even more detail and backs up the messages from the webinar.
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Course: Switching to Fiction

Jenny Williamson
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Proofreader, Editor & Writer

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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THIS REPORT-WRITING COURSE IS WONDERFUL
I found it useful not just for line-editing reports but for my manuscript assessments too, as a lot of what’s discussed can be applied there. I’ve wanted to overhaul my reports for a while; this course was perfect and has given me a lot to think about. And my cover page looks extra lovely!​
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Course: How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report

Rachel Rowlands
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Editor & Writer

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