Shelley Mann Hite is a freelance editor, writer, and proofreader who specializes in book editing, manuscript evaluation, and beta reading. She’s also a feedback editor for Typehouse Literary Magazine. She loves helping people tell their stories more effectively, and especially working with memoirists on memoir proofreading and editing.
As a writer, too, she knows what it feels like to trust another person with your words. Her memoir writing can be found in The Rumpus, HuffPost, Stonecrop Review, Motherwell, and more. She lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her family and in her free time she can be found binge-watching television while doing crossword puzzles or flipping through magazines and newspapers for collage fodder.
EDITORIAL SERVICES
Manuscript Evaluation
Perfect for authors who have completed a manuscript draft and are seeking feedback on how to tackle revisions. I'll approach your manuscript from the reader's perspective and let you know what's working and what's not. You’ll get a multi-page editorial letter detailing your manuscript’s overall strengths and weaknesses, providing feedback on readability, pacing and flow, plot, characters and character arc, dialogue, voice, world-building, and pacing. This critique does not include line edits or in-document comments or mark-ups.
Rate: Based on word count
Copy Editing
Ready to polish your manuscript and get it ready to publish? I can edit your manuscript line by line for readability, grammar, spelling, Chicago Style, and consistency to guarantee your writing shines and is ready to publish. My specialties are fiction, women’s fiction and memoir.
Rate: $.025/word
Proofreading
Ready for one final review before publishing? I can carefully proofread your manuscript line by line, catching typos and editing for grammar, spelling, Chicago Style, punctuation, and consistency. My specialties are fiction, women’s fiction and memoir.
Rate: $.015/word
First Chapters Critique
Want to stand out in the slush pile? I can help polish your first three chapters, ensuring you’re starting in the right place—and strong enough to make an agent, editor, or reader want to continue reading. You’ll get a multi-page editorial letter detailing what’s working and what’s not in your opening chapters, and providing feedback on readability, pacing and flow, plot, characters and character arc, dialogue, voice, world-building, and pacing.
Rate: $250
REVIEWS
“A valuable service to aspiring authors for a very reasonable price. One of the gems.”
“Shelley pays attention to detail (even with the difficult cultural subject matter of my writing), is inquisitive, timely, and offers great suggestions.”
“Shelley's beta read of my travel memoir manuscript was insightful, thorough, and provided me invaluable constructive feedback.”
“Precise feedback with concrete tips on how to course-correct. She was specific, professional, and supportive.”
“Shelley was incredible to work with on a very personal project. She had both encouraging comments as well as comments about what was missing, what needs clarification, and what I should consider removing. Very easy to work with, high-quality professional—I highly recommend her.”
“Spot on with what worked and didn’t work with my manuscript. She was thorough and specific and I came away feeling that my problems were fixable. And I felt good about how I’ve handled my story—she was clear about what I did right, also.”
“I have worked with multiple editors on this project, but Shelley ‘gets it’—she is thorough, empathetic, and respectful of my experience as an author.”
“Very professional and her notes and revisions were insightful. Her work on the memoir will make it a stronger book, and she caught many things I did not see or appreciate about the genre. Highly recommend.”
“I am grateful for the thorough and insightful work Shelley has done in reviewing my memoir. After being ‘stuck’ for a while, I now have renewed energy for this project. Shelley has helped me to see exactly where to go and what to work on, and I'm excited to continue.”
“Candid and helpful without being discouraging. I have a much clearer idea of where I'm going with this manuscript now.”
“Very pleased with the extensive and in-depth analysis of my manuscript. Mine was not a short manuscript to work through, yet the resulting analysis was completed right on schedule. The suggestions were insightful, exceptionally helpful, and delivered in a positive and meaningful way.”
“WOW! Such good advice! Exceptional work. I AM KEEPING HER FOREVER!!!”