Monday, March 12, 2012

Announcement: Brent Taylor's Editing Services

Do you all know Brent Taylor? Or perhaps you recognize him better as the sole proprietor of Naughty Book Kitties? Either way, Brent is opening his keen eye to the public, at prices that you're probably going to be pleasantly surprised by.

Before I get to the details, let me just say a few things about my own personal experience with Brent. I knew him first as one of the best book reviewers on the web, but since then, I have worked with him on my own manuscript, and I can tell you his knowledge is impressive.

Brent has been an intern in publishing for over a year now, and he also writes freelance for VOYA, SLJ, and Lambda Literary. What this means is that Brent has a keen eye for pacing, character arc, plot development, and especially YA voice, and he knows what's selling. But he doesn't deal exclusively with YA novels, and his editing skills can be applied to almost any genre. Here's how he describes his skills at his blog:

My areas of expertise are YA and middle grade in children's; in adult, paranormal romance, urban fantasy, cozy mysteries, and upmarket commercial and women's fic.

The thing that has impressed me most about working with Brent is how fast his turn-around time is, without sacrificing how in depth he goes.

Here are some testimonials from authors who have worked with him:

"I can always count on Brent for a sharp-eyed critique and a quick turn-around. He possesses a winning combination of honesty and kindness, and I know his insightful commentary and agency experience will improve my manuscript. If I was in the process of finding representation, you can bet he would be the first person I would count on to help prepare a killer query and polish up my manuscript."

- Delilah S. Dawson, author with Pocket/S&S and Associate Editor at http://www.coolmompicks.com/

"Brent’s editorial input was absolutely essential in making my manuscript what it is today. He has a remarkable eye for characterization and voice, pinpointing the inconsistencies that were holding my characters back and suggesting changes that fit seamlessly into my voice and vision for the story. Most importantly, Brent didn’t just point out the things that didn’t work in my novel, but the things that really worked as well, helping me use those strengths to my advantage. My novel, and my writing itself, has improved because of his guidance."

- Laura Wettersten, represented by Ken Wright at Writers House

Brent has great prices, but rather than share the details, and give out his email address, here, I'll just direct you to the page on his blog that has the details, since you should be following his blog anyway.

EDIT: Brent shared a tidbit with me that might also interest you: he'll do queries alone, for the bargain basement price of $10.00, and that includes how ever many passes it take before it really shines.

You can also follow Brent on Twitter at: @NaughtyBrent

Any questions?

24 comments:

Sarah said...

This is fabulous! It's been obvious to me for some time that Brent is going to go far in this industry, so this expansion makes a lot of sense. And I think it's notable and worth a lot that his positivity is so often mentioned. It's important to know what works in addition to what needs to be improved.

Natalie Aguirre said...

Thanks for sharing this. I'll have to check it out.

S.A. Larsenッ said...

Thanks for the link, Matt. I'll head over and check out his blog. How have I missed him??

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I'm sure a lot of writers could use him!

Stina said...

Thanks Matt, I'm adding him to my list in case I need him. He sounds perfect!

Unknown said...

Bookmarking this post for future use. Thanks, Matt!!

Marta Szemik said...

I may have to contact Brent. My editor is pretty booked up and since I have another project almost finished it'd be good to have an edit done sooner:)

A Beer for the Shower said...

I don't need editing because my writing is perfect, but I'm sure he could be so useful to other people!

Kidding aside, if I actually had money (which unfortunately, I do not) I'd have this guy check out some of my writing in a heartbeat. Sounds like he really knows his stuff, and it never hurts to have more eyes on your manuscript.

Talli Roland said...

Fantastic. It's good to have an endorsement for someone, and to hear lots of great stuff!

Bish Denham said...

Wow! Thanks for passing on the information!

LTM said...

I think the number of freelance editors will keep increasing as folks keep self-pubbing. I guess I should've thought to have you plug my services at some point... ;p

In other news, you know Delilah's one of Agent Kate's minions. Do you guys know each other? She writes steampunk stuff~ <3

Karen Baldwin said...

Thanks Matt.

Carolyn Abiad said...

I have to check this out. Thanks!

Nancy Thompson said...

I'll definitely keep him in mind. Only wish I knew about him sooner.

And uh...oh yeah...happy birthday!

Sarah Ahiers said...

Ummm, sweet. I'm definitely off to check him out

Johanna Garth said...

Wow! The query thing alone would be worth it...not that your blog, in and of itself, isn't sufficient ;)

Adrienne said...

Wow! Thanks for sharing! I'll definitely check out the link.

Jessica Salyer said...

Thanks for the introduction Matt! Checking out his blog now. :)

Michael Offutt, Phantom Reader said...

Oooh. I'm gonna have to check out Brent. I follow his blog and stuff because he's "family" so to speak..."purple persuasion" and all that. But I had no idea he was an editor too and then on top of that...not so busy that he could help out writers with a little extra money. That's just cool.

Unknown said...

Sounds like the right man for the job. All the best for those who go with him :)

Abby Minard said...

Ooh, I may have to check him out. Thanks Matt!

Huntress said...

I'm definitely bookmarking his site :)

Donna K. Weaver said...

Nice of you to get the word out, Matt.

Unknown said...

How wonderful tp hear such news. I don't know Brent but am happy for him.