FICTION CONSULTATIONS with LOUISE MARBURG
Louise Marburg is the author of a collection of stories,
THE TRUTH ABOUT ME (WTAW Press, 2017), which was named by the San Francisco Chronicle and Entropy magazine as a best book of 2017. The story collection was a Foreword Indie Finalist and a William Saroyan International Fiction Award Finalist.
Her stories have appeared in Ploughshares, Narrative,
The Pinch, Carolina Quarterly, and elsewhere. She holds an MFA in Fiction from Columbia University’s School of the Arts, and lives in New York City with her husband, the artist Charles Marburg. Visit her at louisemarburg.com.
LOUISE MARBURG will critique stories and story collections during the month of February (deadline Feb. 28). Space is limited; don't delay!
Short stories, up to 20 pages in length, $75. SUBMIT HERE.
GUIDELINES
* Submit one story up to 20 pages, double-spaced, formatted with a 12-point font.
* Please do not exceed the page limits, as your manuscript won’t be read if you do.
* If your story is less than 20 pages, please don't add extraneous material, as it will be disregarded.
* Include a cover letter in the field that asks for it. Feel free to include goals and concerns about your writing.
* You will receive your critique by thirty days after you submit your story.
Story collections, up to 180 pages in length, $380. SUBMIT HERE.
GUIDELINES
* Submit one story collection up to 180 pages, double-spaced, formatted with a 12-point font.
* Please do not exceed the page limits, as your manuscript won’t be read if you do.
* If your collection doesn't include 180 pages, please do not add extraneous material.
* Include a cover letter in the field that asks for it. Feel free to include goals and concerns about your writing.
* You will receive your critique by thirty days after you submit your story.
Louise Marburg's Statement of Purpose
My critiquing style can most accurately be compared to homeopathy—it’s holistic, natural, and aims to remedy the impurities that ail a story. As a manuscript consultant, I am simultaneously assessing the story as a single body as well as series of narrative elements. I hold deep reverence for an author’s voice and feel duty-bound to assist in its amplification.
Stories can (and often do) fail to achieve their true potential for countless reasons, including ill-defined or hackneyed characters, tepid prose, shoddy plot mechanics, ridiculous dialogue, inconsistent tone, etc. Over several decades of writing and revising, I’ve learned the importance of capturing a story’s essence and helping the writing to more clearly and effectively distill it throughout the narrative.