The Orphanage Press is a very small, very new company.  We won't be bringing out many books in the near future.  But, there are lots of bigger houses out there, and your story could be one they would like.  For  reasonable fees, you can have anything from a reading and two page analysis to in-depth editing assistance to put your book in top form.
    Our editor-in-chief ( BioLink to Editor ) is an award-winning pro in just about every form of writing.  Ad copy for print and broadcast, annual reports, entire corporate campaigns, newspaper and magazine editorial features, fiction and non-fiction books ... he's done it all.
    Our contributing editor, Paul Pintarich ( biolink to Paul) ) is a nationally known literary reviewer whose last book received a half page review in the New York Times.  Others we might call on include a charter member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, a man with dozens of detective novels to his credit and a number of non-fiction book authors.
    If you're serious about your work, one of these men is the right mentor for you.  But, we repeat, this assistance is for you only if you are dead serious about your writing!
    Writing is hard work.  It is both an art and a craft.
    The art is in you.  We will help you with the craft.

Fee schedule:

Manuscript read and two page critique:  $250.00
Sample: This is a good idea, and should when redone properly get serious attention by agents or publishers who market in this fiction area.  Your theme is clear throughout most of the story, except for chapter ten, which seems to drift off target.  Your best opening is three pages from the top with the line, "She suddenly realized that she had never been in this part of town before, and wondered if this had been such a good idea."  The copy before this can be added in as background as the story proceeds.  Your character, Ben, seems a bit too sensitive to survive as  a police officer in a precinct like this.  Toughen him up.  Jane is perfectly out of place, which should maintain the suspense you need.  Why did you have that scene with the newsstand dealer?  I can't see how that advances your story.  Some of the scenes in the police station lack verisimilitude, so perhaps you should consider spending some time in a local station just soaking up the atmosphere.  One thing I know for sure is that you've never been in a jail cell.  You missed the noise.  As to manuscript length, this story ......

Manuscript read and detailed (usually six to eight page) critique: $500.00
Sample: Okay, now that we've taken an overall look at your story, we'll focus on some writing specifics that will add to your effort.  Your style reads romantic.  There's nothing wrong with that, but the process of turning a common housewife into a hard-bitten detective must result in changes in her persona, even her dress.  As this experience changes her, in other words, even her sentence structure and terminology should indicate character alteration for the reader.  "I wonder if I might talk to you about someone I'm looking for." might change into: "I'm looking for Dutch Savage.  Do you know where he is?"  Her dress might go from feminine prints to somber suits.  Taking the idea to an absurd point, just for illustration, she might evolve from a woman who would never spit to one who would.  Now, Ben, who will need the previously mentioned restructuring, might go from tough to strong but not hard bitten -- the kind of guy you have him being right now.  Character development, in short,  in the reverse direction to hers -- in essence an interesting literary picture of a too genteel woman and a too tough man who develop in opposite directions as a result of the same shared experience.
    Descriptiive copy
    Just as characters are altered by their experiences, descripton should alter to fit the required reader experience.  The scene in chapter twelve is a good example.  Jane and Ben are racing through a maze of ghetto alleys in pursuit of  Dutch Savage, but your descriptive structure and terminology better fit a love scene in an eighteenth century romantic novel.  It is too languid, too fluid for an action scene.  Imagine the description here as a series of bullets popping up and whizzing off to richochet away.  Punchy style is needed here.  Your objective is to make the reader feel as breathless in the reading as your characters are in the telling.  Here's an example of what I'm talking about ....
    Plot break
    You have two breaks in the plot in this story.  An up and down action is important, but total stops must be avoided.  Editors will put the book down and read no farther when they come to one.  Your sale is then gone.  Now, the first plot break you have occurs in chapter six, where Jane and Ben follow a bum lead to the carnival.  Jane sees a barker who reminds her of an uncle of hers.  Even though the incident is out of the direct line towards Dutch Savage, it would still be a good idea if it served the other plot line in the book: the burgeoning affection between Jane and Ben.  But, it doesn't!  It's a total departure from both plot lines, and stops the story dead.
    You can see it in the part that begins:  "Oh, he reminds me of Cedric."
    Either make that scene relevant to the story, or cut the whole scene.

Manuscript read, detailed critique plus rewrite critique: $700.00
All of the above, plus a re-read and analysis of your redone manuscript so that you know if you have successfully reshaped your story into one that has a good chance to sell.

Full manuscript editing service: (fee negotiable)
Some people want more than detailed critiques.  They want their book finish-written by a professional.  (Sometimes called a "ghost writer.")  Important people, like political figures, the heads of giant corporations, famous athletes and entertainment figures, will use this method.  Another common client of this type is the corporation.  If a company history is needed, some corporations job out the final writing of their researched biographies. Mr. Leonard's book on the Gunderson/Greenbriar corporation is one of those.  And, in some cases, the company will request a complete job, including research, by the author.  Mr. Leonard's current project for Greenbriar fits that category.  This service is available on an hourly or bid basis.

To sign up, send a spare copy of your manuscript, including a self-addressed and stamped manuscript return envelope, along with a check or money order for the requested level of editing analysis, to: Editor, The Orphanage Press, 24115 NW Meacham Rd, Cornelius, OR, 97113-6136  (Two page critiques will take up to four weeks.  Detailed analysis requests may take two months.)

Option: Some of our editors refuse to work with electronic copy.  Others have no problem with it.  Let us know which way you want to go.