Hiring a Writing Consultant

In this day and age, just about everyone wants to write a book, which is interesting because just about anyone can. If you have the time to sit down and write your book and the money to self-publish it, you don't have to worry about contracts with publishers or submissions to literary agents. That is why writing consultants are starting to emerge all over the Internet. Just because you can write a book doesn't mean you can necessarily do it well.

A writing consultant is someone who has extensive experience in the publishing industry and works with you to complete your novel. Rather than writing the book for you (like a ghostwriter) or editing the final draft (like an editor), a writing consultant works with you from the time the book idea is conceived.

This type of writing assistance has both benefits and drawbacks, as with any professional working relationship. However, many writers have used writing consultants with great success, even though this service can be highly expensive.

First, a writing consultant usually works remotely with his or her clients, serving writers all over the country (or even the world). This means that correspondence must be handled through e-mail, instant messagers and the telephone, which isn't always easy. Most writing consultants have their schedules down to an art so that they can work with more than one client at a time.

You will find that many writing consultants have "Packages" that they sell to their clients. One package might include one-hour phone consultations once per week, while the most expensive package might include one-hour sessions every day. Writing consultants charge anywhere from $50/hour to $500/hour depending on their experience and success rate.

Keep in mind that when you hire a writing consultant, you aren't hiring someone to write your book for you. He or she will likely not have anything to do with the writing itself, but will help you brainstorm and formulate your ideas as you come up with them.

It is also common for writing consultants to provide a free edit or critique of your manuscript once it's been completed. This isn't necessarily the norm, but allows the writer to feel secure in hiring the writing consultant.

Hiring a writing consultant shouldn't be something that you do on a whim, but should be the result of research and interviews. There are several writing consultant businesses advertised on the Internet, which means that you have a large group from which to select.

The most important thing to consider when hiring a writing consultant is the professional's success rate. How many of the authors he or she consults with go on to publish their work? Although there might be confidentiality issues with disclosing the names of clients, you should be able to sign a non-disclosure agreement to obtain a client list.

In addition, make sure that you read over a writing consultant's contract carefully and ask about any "hidden" fees or costs. You don't want to wind up with a large bill at the end of your consulting period, so make sure that you get the full fee statement up front.

I would also advise that you make sure your contract doesn't bind you to your writing consultant's services beyond one session. If you feel that you haven't gotten anything out of your consulting sessions, you should be able to cancel and subsequent sessions without a problem. It isn't just a matter of whether or not the consultant is good at her job; it is also a matter of personal preference and chemistry.

Hiring a writing consultant can prove to be an intelligent and worthy investment, but do your research first and cancel any contract that isn't meeting your expectations. If you have further questions about writing consultants, simply run a "Google" search.