Editorial Assistance for "An American Pageant," a novel manuscript
Academic Year:
2017 - 2018 (June 1, 2017 through May 31, 2018)
Funding Requested:
$1,100.00
Project Dates:
-
Applicant(s):
Overview of the Project:
I am requesting funding from the CRLT Lecturers’ Development Fund to obtain editorial assistance to ready my novel manuscript for submission to agents and editors. The novel, “An American Pageant,” tells the story of a county sheriff in rural Southeast Michigan whose unraveling marriage distracts him from the search for a missing Detroit teen. After completing several drafts and soliciting feedback from readers, I wish to work with an experienced editor of literary fiction to guide my final drafting process. I have contacted noted novelist and editor Emily Schultz to work with me on this project. Ms. Schultz will assess narrative flow, structure, and development, and recommend cuts to shape the manuscript to a more marketable length. She’ll also review and discuss my revisions over several email exchanges. In addition to polishing my manuscript, this professional practice will help me develop new revision strategies to teach in my creative writing courses. Student mastery of an individualized, comprehensive revision process is a core learning objective in the Residential College’s creative writing program and an essential skill for writers to practice early in their writing lives. I am particularly passionate in my teaching about the creative opportunities revision offers the writer. Refreshing, and challenging, my own revision process under expert guidance will help me to new develop editing strategies to bring to the creative writing classroom.