Ready to enter your story for a coveted award?
Pitching your manuscript or book idea to an agent?
Firstly, many congratulations. Many writers don’t get that far.
But wouldn’t it be a shame after all your work that you came close, but not close enough?
While you’ve done most of the hard work after weeks, months, perhaps even years, of self-sacrifice and rigorous discipline – there’s one significant element missing.
An experienced set of eyes.
The eyes of someone who’s been in the writing field for many years and knows how to smooth out wrinkles and polish text until it shines a bit brighter.
A forensic editor who can see the little - and the big - changes needed to take writers over the finish line and on to an award or a publishing contract.
With 40 years of experience as international correspondent, editor and publisher, author and co-founder and lead tutor of ‘Ireland Writing Retreat,’ Sean Hillen has some pretty impressive credentials.
Not only, Sean was also chairperson of a national US Fulbright Commission, worked at the United Nations Media Center and has hosted a myriad of creative writing events throughout Ireland and the US, including the Nobel winning Seamus Heaney HomePlace.
And he’s a friendly fellow to boot.
That’s why he has three dogs, including two lively Irish collies named after mythical Celtic characters.
Agent/Publisher Query Letter
Whether you have a completed book ready to be sent to an agent or publisher or a partially written one, your all-important query letter
must be compelling enough to capture an agent/publisher’s immediate attention and not end up in the infamous slush pile. We can help you do that.
Fee: 49 euro.
Personal One-On-One Guidance and Editing - for those who have finished, or close to finishing, an early draft of a book (novel, memoir etc) and feel expert guidance necessary to shape it for final publication.
Includes comprehensive editing of maximum 70,000 words and an in-depth, one-on-one discussion about your work-in-progress with someone well-qualified to help you over the finish line. Cost is tailored according to the nature of the work.
These editing services include overall content and context analysis, sentence structure, general story flow and character and plot development.
"If anyone out there has a written a book, whether it be a novel or a memoir, and face difficulty and frustration trying to find a suitable agent or publisher,
I have no hesitation in advising you to turn to ‘Ireland Writing Retreat.’
Without the help of its team’s excellent editing and book design skills, my late husband’s memoir -
‘Scenes From A Life Well Lived,’ by Joe Mara - would probably never have been published.
And for that I am eternally grateful.
If you want your literary work to see the light of day, if you want friends, family and colleagues to enjoy it, don’t waste time - perhaps years - trying to navigate the treacherous waters of the publishing industry. Have your book published now with people who really care about words.
So committed is the team at ‘Ireland Writing Retreat’ to the field of literature, they offer on-line writing workshops on key subjects, week-long international writing retreats and a series of well-respected writing awards, as well as its high-level editorial and design services."
Roe Mara, New York
"There are plenty of editorial services you can choose from. Simply search Mr. Google and you’ll find lots of them. But if you want a genuine, no-nonsense critique of your work with specific suggestions for improvement from someone sincerely committed to the art of writing, Sean may be just the person for you. He certainly was for me."
Barbara Wilson, San Diego