Write great reports. Demonstrate excellence. Make authors happy.

Validate your work and deepen your author’s craft
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This course teaches you how to write amazing reports efficiently – without compromising on quality or detail – using the ready-to-go template that editors and authors adore.

By the time you've completed the learning, you'll be able to create compelling editorial reports that are:
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  • COMPREHENSIVE: Rich in detail – additional value that will knock your author's socks off.
  • CRITICAL: Packed with honest, professional analyses of the problems you've found and clear explanations of the solutions you've offered.​
  • CONSTRUCTIVE: Mindful of the author's emotional, financial and physical investment in their writing.
I'll show you what to include in your reports, how to structure the information, and how to frame it so that it validates your work and deepens the author's craft.

Order now and start learning today

WHAT YOU PAY ...
82.99
+ tax
No time limits on access
Payment plan available
Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) membership upgrade: 2 points (non-core skills)

The course kit

Here's what's included in the course pack.

Videos

Watch the course tutorials to understand the core learning outcomes.

Booklet

Learn how to create an amazing editorial pack with this bonus booklet.

Closed captions

Students who are Deaf or hard of hearing can access the audiovisual material via closed captions.

Template

A done-for-you report template and guidance on how to make it look stunning.

Sample reports

View sample reports shared with the kind permission of two of my indie authors.

Ebook

Want to read instead? Download the course ebook or access is via the onboard PDF viewer.

Checklist

Use the clickable checklist to keep navigation of your report content simple.

Tutorials

Use these video guides to discover how to create beautiful cover pages and use styles.

Resources

Discover a suite of resources to help you develop your fiction-editing craft.

Who is this course suitable for?
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FICTION BEGINNERS
All beginner fiction line editors, copyeditors and proofreaders.
STYLISTIC IMPROVERS
​Intermediate fiction copyeditors and proofreaders who want to hone stylistic skills.
SPECIALISM SWITCHERS
Experienced non-fiction editors who want to switch to fiction.

Listen to a free chapter from the course!

Show your authors the why of your edits

Fiction editing isn't just about amending a book file or suggesting changes in comments boxes. It's also about communicating the why of our editing practice.

When authors understand why we've made the changes we have, we demonstrate our skills, increase their trust in us, and help them become better writers.

Effective report-writing is therefore essential. ​

Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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Thank you so much. I've never had any training so your report is invaluable.

Jonathan P / Thriller Author (sample report included in course)

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Check out the syllabus!

MODULE 1:  The 7 goals of a standout editorial report
  • Goals that benefit the editor
  • Goals that benefit the client
  • Goal 1: Save time
  • Goal 2: Demonstrate editorial excellence
  • Goal 3: Build trust
  • Goal 4: Compel future commissions and recommendations
  • Goal 5: Offer a comprehensive learning tool
  • Goal 6: Take a mindful approach
  • Goal 7: Provide a solution-based critical review
  • Linking to other editors’ content
  • For you to do
MODULE 2:  Report structure
  • The broad structure
  • Introduction
  • Bigger-picture observations
  • Narrative analysis
  • Dialogue (and thoughts) analysis
  • General punctuation, spelling and grammar evaluation
  • Layout review
  • Any outstanding issues
  • Summary
  • The substructure
  • The editorial report template
  • Knowledge gaps?
  • For you to do
MODULE 3:  On-brand design
  • The client’s state of mind
  • No design skills needed!
  • Cover page
  • How to upload a custom cover page
  • Styles
  • Using more than one brand colour
  • Logo
  • Contact information
  • Fonts – consider size and readability
  • Spacing
  • Clear headings
  • Contents list
  • Save as a PDF
  • For you to do
MODULE 4:  Populating the report
  • The overviews
  • The evaluations
  • The problem examples and solutions
  • The example(s) of good practice
  • Further reading
  • Saving time with the content checklist
  • Fearing repetition when reporting for repeat authors
  • For you to do
MODULE 5:  Repurposing for added value
  • Link to your existing blog content
  • Create booklets
  • Create a video tutorial
  • Create a quick-and-dirty ebook
  • Present your knowledge
  • Social snippet shares
  • Write a blog
  • Scour your previous reports and edited files
  • Record audio content
  • Is repurposing worth the bother?
  • For you to do
MODULE 6:  Case studies
  • Client 1: David U
  • Outcome: How I failed
  • Client 2: Ram D
  • Outcome: How I achieved a win
  • Client 3: David C
  • Outcome: How I persuaded (tacitly)
  • Do no harm

Course reviews

Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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This course was everything that I hoped for. I wanted to find better working practices and adopt more efficient ways of working. This course helped with that in practical ways, but it also offered frameworks that help to shape my mind for consistency and excellence. It helped me to feel proud of where I am now and encouraged me to face the future with confidence.

Stephanie Davy / Editor, The Abundant Word  

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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Louise's How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report is a fantastically clear and comprehensive guide to the process, which comes with very well designed and useful resources. Highly recommended.

Tracey McEvoy / Editor and Writing Mentor 

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I've always written reports for clients but this course showed me how to do it in a professional, clear and comprehensive way, while saving me valuable time. I had fantastic feedback from a client after using the report template and I'm thrilled with how it's upgraded my offering.

Penny Carroll / Fiction Editor 

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I love Louise’s editorial-report template. It’s one of the best things I’ve purchased from her since starting my business.

Lakeisha Bell Cadogan / Fiction Editor and Book Coach

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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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!

Angela Bissell / Fiction Editor

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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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.

Sophie Playle / Fiction Editor

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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This course is incredible; it's bursting with ideas, and packed with nuggets of invaluable wisdom that just keep on coming. It's beautifully presented, comprehensive and, best of all, offers oodles of actionable advice and guidance to get you started in creating stellar editorial reports for your clients.

​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!

Cally Worden / Fiction Editor

Sophie Playle
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Fiction Editor

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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.

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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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!

Rachel Rowlands / Editor & Writer

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I've been writing editorial reports for years, so I didn't expect to learn too much from this course. I'm pleased to say I was totally wrong! This course has revolutionised the way I offer feedback to clients. It has dramatically reduced the time I spend on writing reports but has also increased the quality and usefulness of the feedback I give. Louise is immensely generous with her expertise and resources and already I've had a great response from clients who have been so impressed with the scope and depth of feedback offered. It's the best value-for-money course I've ever done.

Katherine Trail / Fiction Editor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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Your online course, How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report, contains all the excellent qualities and reflects the generosity of spirit I’m now familiar with from your website, podcasts, and other materials. But I wasn’t prepared for the clarity of explanations, many and representative examples, the generous amount of material, and the inclusion of those just-so-perfect extra resources. Thank you, Louise; it was both a pleasurable and enormously educational experience!​

Deborah A Cecere / Copyeditor

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Andy Maslen, bestselling crime author

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I've always written reports for clients but this course showed me how to do it in a professional, clear and comprehensive way, while saving me valuable time. I had fantastic feedback from a client after using the report template and I'm thrilled with how it's upgraded my offering​.

Penny Carroll / Freelance Fiction Editor

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Related courses
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