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How to get the best feedback on your manuscript (and what to do with it)
You’ve finished your masterpiece, or perhaps a first draft.
You showed it to a few close friends who LOVED it.
Their praise feels amazing, but how do you know if it’s legit—especially when one day your gut tells you this is the greatest story ever told, and then the next day you’re certain it belongs in the trash?
At multiple points in the writing process, all writers need feedback on their manuscripts. But not all feedback is equal. Some can be downright detrimental—even when it’s offered from a place of love and respect. So, how do you know when to ask a friend for feedback, or take a workshop, or work one-on-one with a pro? When you actually get some feedback, what on earth do you do with all those notes and comments?
In this 75-minute live class, editor and writer Lisa Cooper Ellison will show you how to navigate the feedback landscape, figure out who to contact, ask for what you need, and—most importantly—make the most of each revision to your work-in-progress.
Say goodbye to editorial overwhelm and hello to sweet, sweet clarity!
This workshop will cover:
- When to ask for feedback on your work in progress
- The best places to get feedback
- The forms of feedback you can request
- How learning to effectively critique someone’s writing can help you get better (and free!) feedback on your manuscript
- When to engage with beta readers and how to work with them
- When to hire a professional editor (and when to hold off)
- How to manage and effectively use feedback that’s been given to you
Who should take this class
- Writers looking for the best feedback on their manuscripts
- Writers who’ve finished a (first, second, fifth, or final) draft of a project they intend to publish
- Writers looking to hire an editor
- Writers who want to be better critique partners, workshop participants, and beta readers
How do I know if this webinar is worth the cost?
This is an important question, and it’s a tough one to answer—especially since so much online education is available free of charge. Furthermore, every student is different, and a valuable webinar for one person can end up being a disappointment to another. For this reason, we offer full refunds if you register, attend the entire class, and fail to get the information you were looking for. Please contact us to request a refund.
Do I have to attend the live class?
No. Everyone who registers will get access to the recording. However, if you’d like to attend live, keep reading.
How do I attend the live class?
This class uses Zoom webinar technology. You will join through your Internet-connected computer or mobile device. When you register, you will receive information via email on how to join the class. If you don’t receive it within 1 hour of registering, please contact us.
- When: Wednesday, March 24, 2021
- Time: 1 p.m.–2:15 p.m. Eastern Time / 10 a.m. Pacific Time
- Fee: $25
The webinar is broadcasted via the internet with live audio delivered through your computer or mobile device speakers. The visual presentation is displayed directly from the presenter’s computer to your computer screen. The Q&A is managed through a chat-style submission system with questions read and answered by the presenter for the entire class to hear.
Closed captions are provided during the live class. We use Rev’s automated closed caption service, which is about 80% accurate. For students joining the class through the Zoom app on a mobile device, you can enable/disable the closed captions through your settings.
About the instructor
Lisa Ellison is an editor, writing coach, and speaker with an Ed.S in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and a background in mindfulness. She has spent the last two decades helping clients and students turn difficult experiences into art and currently teaches courses in memoir, creative nonfiction, and mindful writing practices.
Lisa’s life story and essays have been featured by NPR’s With Good Reason, Hippocampus, Kenyon Review Online, Huffington Post, and The Guardian, among others. To learn more, check out her website.
It’s easy to see from the outset that Lisa is genuine and generous, and puts those traits to work in everything she does.
Phil Quam
student
Lisa is both an accomplished teacher and very talented practitioner of mindful writing. She is a very capable, empathic and insightful writing teacher, who creates and sustains a safe, warm space for students to learn and become successful writers themselves.
Rita Hart
student
[Lisa offers] excellent instruction. She knows her discipline and can convey information from personal experience as well as scholarship in the field. Encouraging!
WriterHouse student
You’ll receive the following
- Access to the 75-minute interactive class. After 60 minutes, Lisa will take questions using in-class chat/text. The class will end after roughly 75 minutes.
- A recording of the class—audio and video. This is especially helpful if you have a conflict with the class time or something comes up and you can’t make the session. Each registration comes with access to the archived version of the program and the materials for 30 days. You do not have to attend the live event to get a recording of the presentation.
- Presentation slides. All participants receive a copy of the slide presentation in PDF form.
- Rough transcript. We use Otter to create an automated transcript of the entire webinar, which we’ll share with you in addition to the audio and video recording.
Event Attendance & Anti-Harassment Policy
We strive to provide an environment where all present—whether attendee, presenter, or staff—can feel supported. In order to ensure a welcoming event, here is what we expect from all who participate.
- That the presenter and the presenter’s work be treated with respect by attendees and that all attendees treat each other with respect and a generosity of spirit.
- That attendees will refrain from harassment of any sort including (but not limited to) comments or questions of a racist, homophobic, sexist/sexual, or threatening nature. This includes actions that disrupt or interfere with anyone’s ability to participate. Offenders will be disconnected from the live event.
System Requirements to Join the Webinar
We will be using Zoom webinar technology.
You’ll need:
- An internet connection: broadband wired or wireless (3G or 4G/LTE)
- Speakers: built-in, USB plug-in or wireless Bluetooth
Recommended bandwidth:
- 600kbps (down) for high-quality video and 1.2 Mbps (down) for HD video
- If you connect through audio only: 60-80kbps (down)
Supported operating systems:
- Mac OS X with MacOS 10.9 or later
- Windows 10, Windows 8 or 8.1, Windows 7
- Linux 6.4 or higher
- For a full list of supported systems, click here
Supported tablet and mobile devices:
- Surface PRO 2 running Win 8.1
- iOS and Android devices
- Blackberry devices
Supported browsers:
- Windows: IE 11+, Edge 12+, Firefox 27+, Chrome 30+
- Mac: Safari 7+, Firefox 27+, Chrome 30+
- Linux: Firefox 27+, Chrome 30+
For a detailed listing of system requirements, check Zoom’s site.