a service of Simcomserv Australia

Agency for Literary Review offers unpublished authors and first-time writers the opportunity to have their work assessed for free.

Free Advice and Assistance for the Novice Writer

Agency for Literary Review

How are you progressing

It is sometimes difficult to see where you are going with a story you are writing.  You do have an ending in mind (I hope) and you probably have a route planned to get you to that ending.  Still, whenever you read back what you have created already, you find that you seem to be floundering and you have no way to see what the problem is. 

Maybe we can help.  Sometimes all it takes is an objective viewpoint.  It may need someone to say that the writing is perhaps confusing or misleading.  You may not have drawn a clear picture of what is happening thus far, hence no clue as to where the story is leading; no sense of expectation.

There are times when an author gets carried away with setting a scene and forgets that he set out to tell a story.  Sometimes too many characters are on stage at the same moment and the reader is having difficulty keeping up.  This may especially be the case when you are using dialogue.  Were it a stage play, the audience can tell who is speaking, even if they can't remember what his name is.  It is hard for a reader to keep all of the names in his head if too many people are on stage at the one time.  Don't make your reader do all the work.  Remember, you started out to entertain him.

These (and others) are faults that you, the author, might sense but simply cannot see.  If you start to walk down a leafy lane, it may be a pleasant enough stroll, but if it doesn't lead to where you were heading, then you might want to stop before you get too far. 

If you would like someone to read through the first few chapters and give you some idea of just how well they flow and if the current is strong enough to carry the reader further downstream in your tale, then allow us to offer our help.  Contact us by email.  Use the subject heading: Chapter Review.  Tell us what you think the problems might be, for I am sure you already recognise the symptoms, and what you would like us to do.  We will reply asking that you submit a couple of chapters and a synopsis.

This is a free service provided by Simcomserv and is performed without obligation or fee of any kind. 

We would rather you not submit material without prior contact.  We need to assign you to our service and receipt of unsolicited material just gets confusing.  Moreover, we need to discuss with you the best method of transfer of the material.