Editorial Services for Writers
Thornton Sully offers developmental editing for fiction and memoir writers, proofreading, and library marketing for published authors. Time-block pricing. Works-in-progress encouraged.
About Your Editor
Thornton Sully is an award-winning editor, publisher, writer and mentor to a broad range of authors — including a Pulitzer Prize-winner, bestsellers, and first-timers. After writing the lead reviews of books for The San Diego Union Tribune, he founded A Word with You Press in 2009 to assist writers to reach their creative potentials. In addition to publishing three novels, he authored Fire in the Belly: How to Write Your Novel with Purpose and Passion and the 50-session Udemy course for novelists and memoir writers.
Primary Service
Developmental Editing
Your story. Your truth.
You’ve been on the planet long enough to realize you have a novel to write or a story that no one else can tell. As Toni Morrison knew, “There is no greater burden than bearing an untold story inside you.” You’ve got a manuscript in the birth canal.
My job as your editor is to keep your readers turning pages. I ferret out the theme and purpose of your story, and help you present it in the most persuasive and professional manner — whether you intend to seek a publisher or decide to self-publish.
Writers who come to me (most by recommendation) arrive with varying degrees of experience and with manuscripts in varying degrees of completion. Fees are therefore based on a block of my time rather than page count.
| Service | Fee | |
|---|---|---|
20- hour Block Typically six weeks, with back-and-forth email and occasional Zoom | $1,500 USD | |
40-hour Block An 80,000-word manuscript usually requires two 20-hour blocks — save $250 by committing to 40 | $2,750 USD |
With each response you are informed of the hours consumed and the credit remaining. If we exceed the agreed time frame, I will negotiate a lesser fee to continue. All fees are paid in advance.
Not sure yet? Start here — no charge.
Send me 20 pages, double-spaced.
I can spot tendencies, patterns or icebergs that can sink the ship, and I will reply with my comments, pro bono. It’s the best way to get a feel for how we work together before any financial commitment.
You are the world’s leading authority on your own story. I will help you tell it in the most persuasive and professional manner.
Stand-alone Service
Completed Manuscript Evaluation
If you have a complete draft — up to 350 pages — I will provide a written evaluation for you to absorb as a guide to proceed on your own, without an ongoing editorial engagement.
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Written evaluation (up to 350 pages) | $450 USD |
A note on timing: It is best to present your project while your manuscript is still a work-in-progress, and certainly before your first draft is complete. Forty pages is a workable length for an editor to spot tendencies, patterns, and structural problems while they can still be addressed.
Send your draft to thorn@awordwithyoupress.com →
Supporting service
Proofreading
As part of the editing process — which focuses on story arc, character, theme development and style — I correct obvious spelling, grammar, and syntactic errors. To ensure your manuscript meets the professional standard of fewer than four errors per 100,000 words, I also work with a skilled proofreader. Ask about proofreading when you get in touch.
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Proofreading | $1.75 per page |
For published authors
Library Marketing
We will create an eye-catching flyer like the one below, along with a compelling cover letter and book synopsis, and send them to our mailing list of thousands of librarians across the United States. Librarians are often the sole decision-makers of what to purchase — no committee required.
This package is designed to encourage orders. We’ll suggest that recipients print and display the flyer on their announcement boards, and we’ll also feature it in our store so your book gets attention beyond its cover alone.
Note: Your cover must be photo-ready, and you will need an impressive number of strong reviews on Amazon or a similar platform before we approach a librarian on your behalf.
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
Library marketing package flyer, cover letter, synopsis, distribution to national US network of librarians | $450 USD |
Email to arrange a Zoom call →
Common Questions
Rather than charging by the page, fees are based on blocks of my time — 20 or 40 hours — because writers arrive with manuscripts at very different stages. A 20-hour block typically takes six weeks, with back-and-forth email exchanges and occasional Zoom calls. With each response, you’re told exactly how many hours have been used and how much credit remains.
The sooner the better. Forty pages is enough for an editor to identify tendencies, patterns, and structural problems that are far easier to address before the first draft is finished. Waiting until you have a complete manuscript means fixing things that could have been avoided.
Yes. Writers who come here range from first-timers to bestsellers to a Pulitzer Prize-winner. The editorial approach adapts to where you are, not a fixed template. Most people arrive by recommendation.
Send 20 pages double-spaced. I’ll reply with my comments at no charge. It’s the most honest way to find out if we should work together.
Except in rare instances, we no longer publish the works of our clients. We will, however, direct you to reliable associates we trust to treat you well and provide good service. We have no financial connection to anyone we recommend.
Send your draft as an attachment to thorn@awordwithyoupress.com Please use 12pt font and double-spacing.
I accept secure bank transfers, Paypal and Stripe. We can discuss details and payment plans on our first call.
In Their Own Words
The funny thing about working with Thorn is that I can’t exactly say what he does that helps me. I usually start out not agreeing with his suggestions, only to end up following them. Maybe it’s the very act of resisting his ideas that serves as an exercise in clarification… All I know is I’ve become a better writer since working with Thorn.
— Mark Cohen, Attorney at Law
I toiled long and hard for years on my book Raw Man before I met Thornton Sully. He helped me realize that I did have a story to tell and his belief in me raised my own hopes of being a published author. I would never have had such a wonderful experience without his enthusiastic help. He is easy to work with and a joy to be around. He guided me through the rough spots and as a team, we created a work that has drawn praise.”
— Fred Rivera, Published Author and 2015 Winner Isabelle Allende Miraposa Award for Best New Fiction and Pulitzer Prize Nominee
Before We Begin: Fire in the Belly
Enroll in and absorb my Udemy course before we start working together. Having that baseline means our time together will be manuscript-focused and hyper-productive — and I will deduct what you pay for the course ($159 USD) from your first block of editing time.