Whether your book is fiction or non-fiction (business, memoir, how-to), its “gold” is what will garner the serious consideration it deserves in the marketplace, and its obstacles are what will send it to the circular files of publishing professionals. An Analysis and Recommendation report (A&R) by a Certified Ghostwriter will show you both.
After you’ve slaved over your manuscript for months (or years), I bet you want to be competitive in the marketplace.
But before you prematurely send out your manuscript to agents or publishers—or spend more time and money on edits, proofreading, design, or marketing—the A&R will show you
- where your manuscript is strong (it’s “gold”)
- where it needs re-structuring to increase content or plot flow (the “deal breakers”)
- content disruptions (also deal breakers)
- suggestions for areas that may require more research or verification
- recommendations for what will make it catch the eye of literary agents or traditional publishers
- where it fits into the current marketplace
What It Isn’t
The Analysis and Recommendation report is a proprietary tool used by Certified Ghostwriters. An A&R isn’t a critique, nor is it an over-inflated edit.
Your manuscript will not be returned to you full of red marks, like your English teacher just combed through your punctuation and grammar.
Instead, the Analysis and Recommendation gives suggestions on how to streamline, re-organize, or enrich your manuscript so it’s the best it can be, and is seriously considered by literary agents and publishers.
This analysis is warm, thoughtful, and professional. It’s a realistic assessment in a casual style that shows you how to make the necessary changes, or contract with a Certified Ghostwriter to do them.
Though the report is an honest assessment with a positive perspective, it’s not flattery.
That said, many authors extract paragraphs from their A&R to use in their marketing, query letters, or book proposals.
How An Analysis and Recommendation Report Works
The Analysis and Recommendation takes an in-depth look at your hard work based on the first 50 pages of your manuscript.
You simply send those pages to the Certified Ghostwriter for a thorough assessment.
The ghostwriter will sign an NDA committing to maintaining the confidentiality of your work, and will return your pages along with the A&R in about two weeks.
Some authors get the A&R once their manuscript is midway to finished, so as to know where to change tacks, add info, or fill out backstories (for fiction) or industry explanations.
An Analysis and Recommendation costs $1,500-3,000, depending on the complexity of the material.
With the A&R’a valuable information in hand, you can make changes yourself or arrange for them to be done with the ghostwriter.
This essential tool helps ensure that your manuscript has good structure and content flow, your characters in a novel are consistent and well-rounded, your plot accords with the three-act structure readers expect, or that your industry-specific information builds appropriately.
After all the work you put into writing your manuscript, it deserves to be at its best. Investing in an A&R helps make that possible.
510-593-3925