Short Story Manuscript Assessment
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Many writers enjoy entering short story competitions. It's a great means for us to practise our art. But there are drawbacks - not least the disappointment if your short story is not shortlisted or selected as a winner! This can be defeating for a writer if it happens repeatedly.
Why get a Manuscript Assessment? Short story competitions rarely offer feedback to the writers entering them, so you never quite know what you're doing wrong. A Manuscript Assessment of your story by an experienced editor may help you take your work to the next level and increase its chances of getting noticed by judges. Often there is a large 'slush pile' at the end of a judging process. There's also a 'maybe' pile and a 'definitely' pile. If your writing consistently remains deselected and you want to elevate it, you need the insights of a Manuscript Assessment. What judges look for A great short story needs good content, assured execution and some attempt at the theme of the competition, if there is one. First and foremost, judges are looking for writing which excels - at the very least it should be competent and assured, at best it should sing from the page. Execution is key - and the one in which most writers fail. In the vast majority of entries, the writing is simply not good enough, but could be improved with some editorial pointers and help. Good writing can take many forms. Different writers have different styles, voices, ideas and subject matter - but writing that has skill, assurance and conviction always stands out. That's what catches a judging panel's collective eye and gets you elevated to the 'maybe' pile - or the shortlist. Short Story MS assessment serviceMy Short Story Manuscript Assessment service is a low-cost, confidential service giving you concrete knowledge about where and how your writing and your story can be improved. I use Microsoft Comments to conduct a line by line assessment, picking out strengths and weaknesses. Where your writing is good, I will tell you why. Where it is not working, I will also tell you why, and give indications and ideas as to what you might consider doing to strengthen it. Occasionally, I rewrite a line to show you how it could be lifted.
What I won't do is conduct a full edit, ghost write, make broad changes to your work for you or rewrite it on a broader scale. This is not an editorial service, it is an assessment service. If you continue to enter short story competitions, your work should be yours alone. Check out the case history in the right hand column to see the type of comments you might receive. The story has been disguised for confidentiality purposes (it's a short story written by a member of my writer's group). GuaranteesQ: What if you still don't win competitions after having a manuscript assessment done?
A: I cannot guarantee to win you that competition! You are up against the other entrants, the judges' preferences, the rules of the competition, as well as how well your story is working. Q: What if my story is perfect and you can't think of anything it needs? A: If I consider your short story competition ready, I will simply enjoy reading it, and return it to you with some observations - and charge you nothing. Get startedSend me your short story by email attachment, with a word count. Let me know relevant details - such as whether you have entered it for competitions, whether you have received any feedback on it to date, and whether there is anything in particular you would like me to pay attention to.
I will do a quick check of what you send me and reply by email confirming that I am able to offer an assessment. I usually return a short story with comments and a summary report, within ten working days - depending on length. Visit my Contact page to get your short story assessment underway. |
Fiona Stocker judging the 2017 Tasmanian Writers Competition with fellow judges Peter Grant and Margaret Johnson
Example assessment
FeesUp to 1,500 words: $70
Up to 2,000 words: $90 Up to 2,500 words: $110 Up to 3,000 words: $130 | ||
Why choose a manuscript assessment with Fiona Stocker?
No, I don't write short stories!! However, I write, ghost write and edit books including short story anthologies, e-books and other sorts of content for other people and organisations. My book A Place in the Stockyard, a history of Tasmanian Women in Agriculture, was published by Forty South last year, featuring the biographies and stories of farming women. The previous year an anthology of stories I wrote and edited was published by Broads Abroad Publishing (see my portfolio page). Since my writing beginnings for my English teacher Mr Warnett at the age of sixteen, I have written every short of material in the corporate world, for small business, and creative writing. My own manuscript is currently under submission to UK crowdfunding and publishing platform Unbound. And in 2017, I had the honour of being on the judging panel for the Tasmanian Writers' Competition. An anthology of the short list will be launched at this year's Tasmanian Writers' Festival in Hobart.
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