What's All This Then?
Hey author—you, yeah you—did you know that, despite all your efforts, your multiple passes over your manuscript, your critique partner’s input, your developmental editor, your line editor, and your copy editor, you very likely still have an error or ten in your published book?
I get it. I really do. My name is Leslie Kelly and I’ve published about 100 books in various romance subgenres. I'd be willing to bet that at least half of them have errors I never spotted. I’ve had some doozies that made it past me and several editors on the way to both traditional and indie publication.
My point is it happens to everyone. No matter how carefully I try to read, my eyes glaze over on my own work. I’m so familiar with it, I can’t even see the errors on the screen. My biggest issue is that my fingers type a word I’m certain is the one I want…but it isn’t. And it’s often something a spell check won’t pick up: (say, like, the title of this little proofreading business of mine! :hee:)
But here’s the thing. I’m a crazy-fast, crazy-avid reader. I’m one of those KU subscribers who’ll pick up an interesting book based on a Facebook ad, read it, and then glom every single book in the series, one after the other…sometimes all in a couple of days. If you watch your KU numbers on a day I’m reading, you’ll probably see the pages adding up every minute. 😉
Unfortunately, I often find errors in the books I glom. Usually it’s small stuff—those wrong words that spellcheck didn’t catch, a missing comma at the end of a line of dialogue, etc. I can overlook a couple if I’m really into a story. But if there are a lot, I quickly lose interest and will often just stop reading the book, the series…and the author.
Anyway, after reading more than 200 books last year (not kidding!) all those tiny errors added up in my brain and I came up with an idea that might help some authors out.
Here's the deal: I will give you a “final read” of your already published book and will hunt for those pesky errors. I’ll do it cheap and I’ll do it fast—though there are rules and limitations. (More on that later)
Check out my price list page to see how I’ll charge you based on errors and how it's possible for you to get a last-chance read of a 150k word novel for only $100!
Think of it as a pretty cheap investment to find out that you’re either fantastic or a step to make sure your readers find a few less errors when they're glomming.
Meanwhile, feel free to check out my own books on my websites: I write dark romantic suspense/thrillers here: LeslieAKelly.com, and contemporary romance here: LeslieKelly.com.
I hope you’re having a fantastic writing day and send you all the good-plotting, tight-writing wishes in the world.
So How Does It Work?
"Working with Leslie Kelly was such a joy. She gave quick feedback and turnaround that addressed my needs. I was pleased with the clear and detailed feedback she gave. I am confident that with Leslie’s edits, my manuscript will be a smoother experience for my readers. She’s my go-to for manuscript quick-fixes. I highly recommend her!" - Author Christina Farley
First, I am doing this for two reasons: I LOVE to read and hate seeing errors, and I LOVE finding new authors to read for my own pleasure! But because I’m doing this as a side gig while I’m also doing my own writing, I have some rules. I don’t want to waste anybody’s time—yours or mine—so please read them before you reach out.
1) I am too old and cranky to read books in genres that don’t interest me. There’s a list of what I like. If your book’s not on it, sorry, I am not going to proof it.
2) I am also too old and cranky to read books I don’t like. If I read the first 50 pages of your book and simply can’t bear to read further, I won’t. You’ll get a refund. Note: That doesn’t mean I think you’re a bad writer! It just means that something in the book hit me wrong and I just can’t go on. Preaching a message with which I very strongly disagree might be an example…or on-the-page abuse of an animal--OMG!
3) I don’t want something that hasn’t yet been published. The whole point of this is to see the book on my Kindle as something I and your other readers do.
Read that part again: I will ONLY read ALREADY PUBLISHED books that I can read on my Kindle!
4) I suck at commas. That is all.
5) I’m human and I almost certainly will miss something, which is why, essentially, you’re paying me for what I DO find and not for perfection. (Or for commas, in most cases.)
6) I’m not a developmental editor. I’m not going to give you feedback on the story or how I think it should have gone.
7) I’m not a line editor either—I’m sure you’ve already paid someone to go over the whole book looking for continuity issues. If a character’s eye color changes between page 10 and page 90…chances are, I won’t even notice. If I DO notice, of course I’ll point it out. But I make no promises.
8) I’m not a copy editor doing an initial pass for typos. I’m sure you’ve already had that done.
9) I am, instead, the last line of defense against pesky, difficult-to-spot errors in published books.
So, is having that last line of defense something that appeals to you?
If so...here is what you do:
1) REACH OUT to me using the Contact box below or email me at: LKellyAuthorMail@gmail.com (copy & paste the email addy--this link won't create an email automatically!) and tell me about your book. Confirm that you've read my interest criteria and send me a link to your book on Amazon. I'll get back to you within 24 hours, letting you know if I'm interested and my timeline. If we agree on everything, I'll Invoice you $100 through Paypal.
2) After you pay the invoice, you’ll send me the exact version of the published Kindle ebook as a gift via Amazon. I don’t want a review copy, I don’t want a Book Funnel, I don’t want your own working file, I want to read exactly what your readers are reading. There’s no point in me doing this if I don’t see what they see, and I know how books can change between completion and publication. To save you a few bucks, I am happy to borrow books from KU if they are available that way. That means you don't have to pay for a copy of your own book, and you get paid for the page reads. Win-Win!
3) The "Initial Read" fee is $100, no matter the page or word count. After that is paid and I get the Kindle ebook, I will read until I find FIVE (5) definite errors. There I will STOP. Because, let's face it, if there are five, there are going to be more. I'll report them to you and you can decide if you want me to go on. If you do, it’s another $100 for me to read through the end of the book, up to 80k words, finding as many errors as I can. (The price goes up a bit for longer books. See prices below.)
If you do want me to continue, great, just let me know and make the payment. If not, at least you now have five fewer errors to tick off your readers!
Oh, what happens if I find only four, three, two, one, or absolutely NO errors? Well, huzzah to you--you rock and pay nothing over that initial $100!
4) After I'm done, I'll email you a list of the mistakes.
5) If you want the "lagniappe" (look it up) leave me a tip and I'll add a little extra...perhaps my overall impressions of the book, the series, something that just jumped out, or any author-to-author stuff I think you might like to know.
What I Like and What I Don't
What I love and read the most:
ROMANCE (see sub-genre breakdown below)
HORROR
What I read often:
HISTORICAL FICTION (including historical mystery)
DARK THRILLERS
YA and NA books
PARANORMAL FICTION (in most sub-genres)
What I sometimes read:
LIGHT SUSPENSE
PSYCHOLOGICAL SUSPENSE
Books I’m just not interested in:
Anything involving religion.
Anything involving contemporary politics or hotbed political issues.
Women’s fiction/Adirondack chair books..
Generational family sagas.
Non-fiction
Again, please, no UNPUBLISHED manuscripts!
More specifically in each category:
ROMANCE
1) Contemporary Romance—the steamier the better but I’m fine with sweet/small town/closed door books too, as long as they’re sweet-not-sappy, fresh-not-formulaic.
I especially read a lot of: Dark Romance, Erotic romance, Romantic Comedy, College/New Adult romance, Romantic Suspense/Thriller.
Some of my favorite contemporary romance authors are: Rina Kent, Cassandra Robbins, Farrah Rochon, Julia Wolf, S. Massery, H.D. Carlton, Shain Rose, Q.B. Tyler, Jaine Diamond, J.T. Geissinger, Parker Huntington.
2) Historical Romance—again, the steamier the better. But I’ve also read some great closed-door “traditional” Regencies too and love losing myself in a well-researched historical. My favorite time periods are Regency, Victorian, Georgian, Medieval, but I’ll also read old west, Gilded Age and others.
Some of my favorite historical authors are: Lisa Kleypas (OMG give me a Devil in Winter or Marrying Winterborne and I’ll buy every book you ever write!) Tessa Dare, Eloisa James, Julia Quinn, Julie Anne Long, Beverly Jenkins, Loretta Chase, Alyssa Cole, Julie Garwood.
3) Paranormal Romance/Romantasy—I am a bit less flexible on paranormal romance, mainly because I dislike one of the biggest sub-genres. I do NOT read vampire romance. Sorry—just not my thing! But I do love anything with ghosts, psychic powers, aliens, shifters!
Some of my favorite Paranormal Romance authors are: Ruby Dixon, Zoey Draven, Nalini Singh, Jennifer Armentrout, Alyssa Day, Sherilyn Kenyon
Menu / Price List
Initial Read
100
After payment of this "Initial Read" amount, you will send Leslie the book as a Kindle e-gift directly from Amazon or, if it's available, she will borrow it from Kindle Unlimited. She will read it until she finds FIVE (5) errors. If she gets to the end without finding any errors--hurrah for you, nothing else owed! Remember to send: Only A Gifted eBook from Amazon! No docs, no Book Funnels, no review copies, no other formats.
Continuing To Read for Average Length Books
100
After Leslie finds and reports FIVE (5) errors in your book, you can hire her to read through the rest of the novel, up to 80,000 words, finding as many errors as possible. That costs an additional $100 over the "Initial Read" payment, for a grand total of $200.00.
Cost for Longer Books
150
For books from 80,001-130,000 words, the price is an additional $150 over the "Initial Read" payment, for a grand total of $250.
Cost for Even Longer Books
200
For books 130,001 words and over, the price is an additional $200 over the "Initial Read" payment, for a grand total of $300.
Note: Leslie makes absolutely NO promise or guarantee that she'll find every error! But she will most definitely try.
Who's Leslie?
Leslie Kelly is the author of about 100 romance novels in various subgenres including romantic suspense, contemporary romance, romantic thrillers and futuristic suspense. She sold the first book she ever wrote to a major publisher. She's won a lot of awards. Now she's kinda tired but still absolutely loves reading romance...as long as it's well written!
Check out her books online at:
Contact Me
Questions or Comments?
You can send me a message or ask me a general question using this form.
I will do my best to get back to you soon!
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