Carina Licon, Editor at Macmillan

Carina was great. She was easy to talk to and I felt comfortable with her. It was clear she had carefully read my materials and was able to offer both positive feedback and helpful suggestions. I felt like she was genuinely interested in helping me improve and, eventually, succeed.

Carina was extremely helpful. She went through my query materials step by step, starting with the things she felt I had done right (helpful in putting me at ease), then offering her suggestions for improvement.

It was lovely meeting her, and very worthwhile!

I felt heard!

15 minutes with Carina was a huge help–she had actionable advice for what I need to do to polish up my manuscript, how to better market myself etc. She answered my questions thoughtfully, and even though it was a short session I really feel like I got a lot out of it.

My critique from Carina Licon was fab!

Jessica and Julie,

Carina Licon’s feedback on my query plus 10 pages was so thorough, and her highly actionable comments made my submission package shine. Her email and notes were personable as well, making her a top choice if members plan to purchase a written critique.
Thanks for making this option available to members. Manuscript Academy is the best option for pre-published writers that I’ve seen.

Sincerely,
Linda Brannigan

Carina Licon is most of all kind. She addressed problems with my query while also highlighting things she thought were the most impactful. She gave tangible suggestions for how to set up the query better. Ms. Licon was organized in her thoughts on my first 10 pages. She used every last second. It was helpful hearing what she found strong and what jumped out to her. She thoughtfully addressed strengths and weaknesses in those pages. I’m really glad I did this and am very grateful I picked her since she worked hard to get me to see things from the editor’s perspective.

Excellent Feedback!

Wow, the amount of insights and information that Carina was able to share during our critique session was impressive! She quickly explained the rationale for each change and it made our query and first ten pages sing. You can tell how well she understands the industry, the market, and what’s needed to enhance the manuscript to make it sell.

Carina was incredibly helpful in her feedback on my query letter and first ten pages. She was kind and professional and provided specific suggestions that greatly improved my query submission!

Carina jumped right in and covered a lot of ground in our meeting. It was clear that she had prepared notes on my pitch letter and pages in advance. She showed me specific lines that she liked as well as ones with room for improvement and commented on the overall voice, pacing, and scene structure. Overall she was knowledgeable and encouraging.

Constructive, actionable feedback

With just a few short pages, Carina understood what I was going for, praised what she thought was working, and gave actionable and constructive feedback on how and where to improve. The authors who have the opportunity to work with you her lucky indeed! She really helped me see where I could keep the reader’s attention, and what aspects of the manuscript I should highlight to show its commercial appeal to potential agents and editors. She is also very kind and constructive with her feedback.

I wanted to write this review to let other writers know how helpful working with her has been to me, and that it will be time well spent.

Provides Confidence to Start Querying

Carina was extremely positive and encouraging. She asked if I had any questions right off the bat, which I
appreciated. She gave me great feedback on what is needed in opening pages, including the main character’s want or need, a hint at the obstacles, the decision or action the main character will take, and a strong voice. She also talked about adding character emotions (beats) and how they should manifest in their relationships. Carina even gave me authors to comp in a query. I was very pleased with my one-on-one with Carina and I highly recommend her for anyone looking for insight into their first page or query.

Comments from a grateful author

Carina’s 50 page critique exceeded my every expectation. Her insights on worldbuilding, plot, and character arc were extremely helpful and very insightful. The line edits improved pace and voice but were done in line with her overall suggestions and the vision of the novel itself. I would highly recommend her services to anyone considering a review of their book.

Thank you Carina Licon & Manuscript Academy

Carina Licon’s feedback and edits are of the highest quality. Very helpful, thorough, and insightful. I will definitely send more of my stories to Carina in the future. Thank you so much to Carina and Manuscript Academy.