Manuscript assessment

Your reports are of such a high standard and I'm grateful on behalf of our authors that you put so much effort into them

I’m really thrilled with Renée’s assessment of my manuscript, including her prompts for deeper thinking, her critiques of some aspects of the representation, feedback on maintaining the reader’s sense of hopefulness, and concrete suggestions about tightening up some other aspects of the writing. This has been a really helpful exercise for me and I’m inspired to get to work on responding to the many suggestions.

Thank you so much for this manuscript assessment. Of course I loved your positive feedback but your valuable critical analysis is most appreciated as well. I am in the process of going through it in detail.

Renée Otmar’s report has greatly assisted me in focusing on the inconsistencies in my work. This story has been a long time in the making. I feel fortunate to have had an editor of Renée's experience offer an accurate and encouraging critique of my story and my writing, assisting me to revisit my work with fresh eyes. As an editor myself, I always advise writers to have their work assessed by a professional editor. As a writer, I am glad I follow my advice! I hope to continue being able to access Renée's expertise in the future.

Manuscript assessment

Renée Otmar provides manuscript assessments for academics, professional writers and novice/emerging writers who need an objective, professional opinion on their manuscript’s readiness for publication.

Renée has been a manuscript assessor for the Australian Society of Authors since 2023. Although she works across academic, creative non-fiction and fiction genres, Renée specialises in contemporary fiction, historical fiction, crime fiction, romance and speculative subgenres. She has been on judging panels for literary, research and other awards and prizes, including the prestigious ARA Historical Novel Prize 2023.

A manuscript assessment provides an overview of the strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript, its readability and suitability for its target readership, and major themes and messages. In a work of fiction this might include discussion of narrative style, structure, flow and pacing, speech and dialogue, plot, character development and setting (e.g. world-building). The focus of manuscript assessment in non-fiction might be on the structure and organisation of the manuscript, use of research and different ways to present complex information. The assessment considers the author’s writing style and engagement with the subject matter.

A manuscript assessment may highlight specific areas for improvement, or may recommend developmental or structural editing, line/style editing or copyediting to prepare the manuscript for editing, submission or publication, but it does not provide these services.

Crossover works

A manuscript assessment can also be provided for authors who wish to convert their academic/professional works to suit new target markets and audiences (known as ‘crossover’ works). Crossover markets include general trade (adult fiction, non-fiction and reference), professional, education, young adult and children’s publishing. Renée also works with life writers to produce auto/biographies, memoirs, tributes, anniversary and service/organisational histories.

Poetry and scripts

If you need a manuscript assessment for your poetry, script or other literary formats, contact the Australian Society of Authors or the Victorian Writers’ Centre, both of which offer excellent services.

Fee estimate

The base fee is $660 for a manuscript of up to 20,000 words, plus an additional $110 for every extra 10,000 words (or part thereof). In return, you will receive a report of about 1000–3000 words, including comments on any areas you have asked us to focus on, and suggestions for improvement. The emphasis will be on providing solutions that you can implement yourself as you revise the manuscript – this will help you save time and money at the developmental/structural editing, line/style editing and copyediting stages.

Next steps – what to do with your manuscript assessment

If you can, avoid rushing to make changes immediately. Take some time to consider the main points of the report (and its implications) before you implement any of its recommendations.

First, read the report and then set it aside for a day or two.
Next, read your manuscript all the way through, from start to finish.
Scribble some rough notes to connect the report’s comments and recommendations with specific areas or parts of your manuscript you would like to focus on in the revision.
Write detailed notes about the recommendations you plan to implement and any you disagree with, including a rationale for each item (in case you need to return to these at a later date).
Set a realistic timeline to complete the revision of your manuscript.

After you have revised your manuscript, you may need assistance from a professional editor, such as developmental/structural editing, line/style editing or copyediting to prepare it for publication or submission to a publisher or literary agent. Click on the button below to request a quote or estimate. If you would prefer a fresh set of eyes, we can provide a recommendation to a trusted colleague, or you may wish to consult the Editors Directory of IPEd.