“Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. It’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.”
-Dr. Seuss
WELCOME TO THE PACK
You're here because you are a fantasy fiction author. Whatever it ultimately grows into, your story began with a fantasy: the question of "what if?", the lifeblood of so many great works. The world you've created, the characters you've birthed, everything is the result of your fantastical imagination. Even if you take inspiration from existing works, historical events, or the rich realms of mythology and folklore, this story is uniquely yours. There will never be another story told like this, with your voice, with your words, and with your passion.
The Fabulous World Of Fantasy Fiction
Merriam-Webster defines Fantasy as "a creation of the imaginative faculty whether expressed or merely conceived, such as a chimerical or fantastic notion, imaginative fiction featuring especially strange settings and grotesque characters, [or] a fanciful design or invention," and Fiction as "something invented by the imagination…the action of feigning or of creating with the imagination."
✧ What then, is Fantasy Fiction?
Well, for me, Fantasy Fiction can be summed up as follows: "A creation of the author's imagination - a fantastic notion, a fanciful design or invention incorporated into the world we are most familiar with, or a new world of strange settings and otherworldly creatures, a world which may be occupied by characters equally fantastical or curiously common."
✧ So, what does this mean for you and your writing?
It means that if you created it, your story is welcome here. A crime drama thriller featuring a strange new threat and an unlikely hero summoned to the cause, or the creation of a world that would make C.S. Lewis proud, filled to the brim with winged beasts of the forest, old magic, and the age-old clash of "good versus evil" that sweeps your characters up in its plot. If it was born out of your imagination (which, by nature, most ideas are), I would love the opportunity to learn more about it - and about you!
Being One Of The Pack
Here at WolfPack Writing Services, you are a valued member of this wild and untamed pack of fantasy fiction writers. You bring a world created from your fabulously creative mind, inspired by an incredibly personal story that spurred the idea forward, and brought here, to this place, by an equally personal journey.
And it is quite a journey - whether you're just getting ready to begin or you've forged through to the finish line - because writing your story is a trek through the wilderness, rife with obstacles that will make you stumble, decisions that will leave you second-guessing yourself half to madness, and moments that find you in a fog of uncertainty. And, as if your own personal dilemmas aren't enough, you have to navigate plot threads, trip headfirst into plot holes that come out of nowhere, and try to herd an unruly brood of characters that are tolerable at the best of times and, at the worst, will start warming you up to the idea of "thinning the herd."
…But every pack depends on a leader…
Someone to help clean up the lines and straighten up the wayward stranglers, and that's where I come in!
Refining Your Creative Vision
☾ EDITING SERVICES:
Manuscript Evaluation: a "big picture" review of your first draft, looking over the plot, characters, pacing, and voice. I will provide you with an editorial review letter, which will address points where your writing is strongest and where it needs some gentle corrective nudging.
Line Edit: a content review for more specific elements: voice (word choice), style, refining characterizations, dialogue (including overused prompts), hooks and prompts at the beginning and end of each chapter, consistency, and writing habits. A copy of the manuscript will be returned to you with recommendations and suggested edits.
Copyedit: a review of the manuscript for grammar, punctuation, spelling, echo words (using the same words twice), and double-checking consistency with actions. A copy of the manuscript will be returned to you with recommendations and suggested edits.
Proofread: A final review of your manuscript to check for typos, double words, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and formatting issues. A copy of the manuscript will be returned to you with recommendations and suggested edits.
☾ COACHING SERVICES:
Author Coaching Call: For those moments during the writing process when you need some extra support, guidance, or feedback on your project.
"Block Breaker" Call: For those moments when your creativity is lost to the wilderness between your brain and the notebook (or computer screen).
Brainstorming Session: For when your ideas are muddled and twisted, or when you find yourself stuck in the fog of a single element.
Creative Collaboration:
Where Your Passion Meets My Craft
Whether you are a first-time author with the bare bones of a manuscript, desperately in need of direction, or an established author looking for a final proof before you're off to the printing press, this is the place for you to bring your work (and yourself) in whatever state you both may be. For you to trust me with this literary labor of love (and sacrificed sanity) is a gift, a precious thing, and I will treat both the work and its creator with the respect owed. My goal and purpose is to help you feel confident in the quality of your writing and assured that the final product, when all feedback has been provided and all recommendations have been received, is yours. Your voice, your vision, and - above all else - told your way in precisely the way you were created to write it.
In other words, when you look back on this insane journey, you will have a sense of accomplishment for the wild terrain you braved (and survived!) and a sense of pride for the wonderful world you've brought to life.