Polished Prose for Authors of Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, and Memoir

Welcome! 

Magic happens

. . . when stories transport readers beyond the familiar, so they can explore other worlds, contemplate new ideas, and vicariously experience different lives.

Polishing Prose

Your stories will take flight as I help you, the writer, camouflage the underpinnings of your prose, so that readers become engrossed by your narrative rather than distracted by any mistakes.
I specialize in editing fiction, creative nonfiction, and memoir, and I edit prose mindfully and respectfully—mindful that writing and editing are an art and respectful of your voice and vision.

Championing Writers

Wherever you are on your writerly journey—independently or traditionally publishing, just embarking or well under way—I strive to smooth and accelerate your passage by offering kind, constructive comments and editorial expertise.

We—the writer and editor—work together as a team to polish your prose so you can publish your best.

Learn more about my copyediting and developmental editing services. Questions? Contact Colleen!

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Copyediting

Copyediting repairs errors in spelling, capitalization, punctuation, usage, syntax, and grammar. Going beyond proofreading, which involves identifying only typos, copyediting ensures correctness, consistency, clarity, and coherency by implementing a consistent formatting style, such as Chicago or AP, to enhance readability. Depending on the condition of your manuscript, I may do some of or all the…

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Developmental Editing–Fiction

Developmental editing for fiction focuses on the big picture and strives to pinpoint narrative pitfalls while preserving the author’s voice and vision. For this type of edit, I examine elements such as characterization plot setting dialogue theme pacing conflict tension voice point of view A developmental edit takes place after you have completed your manuscript…

Read more Developmental Editing–Fiction

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Collaborative Process

Contact me with this form. Tell me all about your project, including what type of editing you think will help most. I respond with questions, such as, who is your audience? How many drafts have you written of this manuscript? If you seek a copyedit for a large project, I will request your document, so…

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Colleen Olle came into the role of editor for a publication with weekly deadlines and a new content publishing system. The editing required her to produce accurate, creative and persuasive content, sometimes taking raw materials and notes and turning them into meaningful copy. Colleen quickly understood the goals of the publication and shone as editor. She ensured coordination with social media and sourced appropriate (and audience-relevant) photos and graphics. I would recommend her highly as an editor and would love to work with her again.

Lee Bonds—Former Director, Hewlett-Packard Corporate Communications

I was pleasantly surprised by the level of feedback provided. I have used editing services before but never have had a developmental edit before on one of my pieces. I was not expecting to see such an attention to detail. Colleen broke down all aspects of my manuscript from the plot, subplots, characters, to motivations and conflicts. I have a lot of solid feedback and suggestions to move on to the next draft.

Chris Weilert, YA writer