Helen Lane – Editor

I am passionate about books and my super power is speed reading (between fun reads, my query inbox, my agenting work, and my editing jobs, I read about 500 books a year). As an agent I mostly represent adult novels, but I also love YA and am very happy to edit this age range. I am not a good fit for Middle Grade. My sales have predominantly been to big five imprints so far.

For Fantasy and Sci fi I am happy to work on pretty much any book as long as it does not focus on cheating/ abuse/ sexual assault. (My husband likes me to add here that this is nothing to do with him the subjects just make me cry). I am good with gore and violence. With romance a synopsis is helpful for me to decide if I'm a good fit for the project as I don't work as widely in this genres because so many plots revolve around subjects I don't enjoy.

As an agent I am very hands-on editorially. As an editor, I prefer to work on developmental edits rather than line edits, and my strengths are identifying pacing issues and plot holes. I also offer submission package assessments (cover letter, opening chapters, and synopsis).

A developmental report from me will often focus on plot points, listing areas that are working well or highlighting issues that need to be addressed. I am happy to also put comments directly onto the manuscript as well as provide a report, but this is an extra charge as it takes a lot more time to do.

I also tend to focus on characters/ dialogue, pacing, and world building. There is always an overview and conclusion section in each report. I will only mention commercial potential if I'm asked specifically for that. Otherwise, other sections are added in based on what I've identified in your manuscript. If you have specific questions or concerns I am happy to address those as well.

I am also happy to discuss looking at updated versions of manuscripts or problem sections that you would like further help with. Many of my previous clients have needed on going help as they restructure their novels after initial feedback and it can be a helpful service.

I'm afraid that if I offer an editing report, I cannot consider that manuscript for representation, although you are welcome to query me with other projects. This does not apply to query letters, synopsis or opening 5k reviews of a project. If you have any other questions please don't hesitate to reach out. And I look forward to hopefully getting to work with some of you soon.