Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Guild “Editing Extravaganza” Offers Consultations with Experts


Sign up now for editing consultations at the St. Louis Writers Guild’s Editing Extravaganza! 

Submit the first five to ten pages of your manuscript to be reviewed by an editor and have a 20+ minute one-on-one consultation at the Sept. 14 event. That day’s workshops feature editing tips by local editor Catherine Rankovic (“Manuscript Preparation”) at 10 a.m. and author Andrew Jobling from Australia (“How to Write A Book Publishers Want”) at 11 a.m. at The Lodge Des Peres, 1050 Des Peres Rd., St. Louis, MO 63131. The workshops are free to Guild members; $5 for nonmembers.


Consultations are $40. To sign up, click the “editing consultation signup” button on the St. Louis Writers Guild website’s home page (www.stlwritersguild.org) or Event page. The form asks for your editor preference. If you sign up before all the editors have been announced, you will be contacted for your first choice. Pages are requested by Sept. 1 to allow editors time to review them. Editing consultations will be held between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., Sept. 14, by the following: Catherine Rankovic (fiction, nonfiction, and poetry), Meghan Pinson (fiction and nonfiction), Kortney Price (picture books through middle grade and young adult), and Andrew Jobling (nonfiction). 


CATHERINE RANKOVIC is a deeply experienced professional editor of book-length novels, novellas, and nonfiction, and a mentor to new authors; her BookEval clients have 41 books in print. She doesn’t simply edit, but teaches you how to write like a pro. M.F.A., Washington University; M.A. Syracuse University, B.A., Marquette University; author of five books. Professional editor since 2000; member of St. Louis Writers Guild and St. Louis Publishers Association. www.bookeval.com

ANDREW JOBLING (of Australia) is an unlikely athlete and an accidental author. He somehow played senior-level professional football with the St Kilda FC for seven years, and has 30 years experience in the wellbeing industry, fifteen as a personal trainer. Then, with no time, no training, no experience and no clues, he ‘accidentally’ wrote his first bestselling book, Eat Chocolate, Drink Alcohol and be Lean & Healthy. To date he has written nine books, which have sold in excess of 200,000 copies. His latest book, The Wellness Puzzle, is helping him fulfill his purpose to empower people to take control of their wellbeing and create a wave of wellness all around the world. Andrew is an in-demand speaker and mentor in schools, for companies and for aspiring authors. He works with teams and groups, large and small. He spends his time sharing a perspective that is changing many lives. www.andrewjobling.com.au/



MEGHAN PINSON of My Two Cents Editing provides expert editing, engaging critique, and fearless consulting to authors of novels and nonfiction manuscripts. She specializes in story development and author education. Current favorite genres: historical fiction, crime/mystery/suspense, middle grade adventure stories, and prescriptive nonfiction. Connect with her at www.mytwocentsediting.com.  


KORTNEY PRICE is a Literary Agent with Corvisiero Literary. Having grown up in a small town, Kortney has always valued the stories that allow readers to escape into fantastic worlds and visit far away places. She loves reading about the things she loves so stories featuring an awesome sense of humor, art and artists, antiques and old buildings, and strong and quirky families are always welcome. Because of her 15+ years working in the special needs community, Kortney is always looking for stories featuring characters with special needs. Her preferences are picture books through middle grade, and young adult. She is not the best fit for books about cancer, suicide or school shootings. www.corvisieroagency.com

Learn more about the St. Louis Writers Guild at www.stlwritersguild.org.