Testimonials

Michelle, took a complete novice with a story and made me into a writer. After seeing something in the story, she suggested a manuscript critique, (which it needed badly) she gave me the encouragement and confidence that I had something to give as a writer.

Through her patience and mentoring, and through the years I have been working on my book it is finished, and is something that I can have pride in.
Without Michelle's guidance and editing, it would not be the book it is today.

The story has not changed much from when she first saw it, and the story is still mine, just improved vastly. Michelle's advice is second to none, and I will be using her services for any other projects in the future.

Michelle came recommended to me, but I still gathered samples from her and a few other editors first. I wanted to find someone who did the job without erasing my voice, my story. This was my first time choosing an editorial service and I didn't realize that there are several overlapping tiers of editing types, or that I probably needed more then one. A friend clued me in, and Michelle explained some of the differences. She was very upfront with what she is proficient in and comfortable doing.



Her developmental editing was only my first stop in getting my book professionally edited, but she did it very well. Michelle stayed in communication, telling me what I could expect, when and where she was at. She didn't leave me hanging and she got Nightvision done by her stated deadlines. I appreciated this immensely, a book is like a child and it was scary to send off into the world by itself. It helped to know where it was at.



She was kind as an editor. Even though my book was covered in the proverbial red ink, several of the comments were about what she liked, what lines stood out to her, what made her laugh or feel for my characters as I tortured them. This was an amazing step. I needed to know what was working as much as what wasn't. She also asked pointed questions that crystallized things that I knew, but didn't know I knew until it was asked. This, of course, made the book stronger as a whole. Michelle found the stupid, dumb things that I missed in the word-blindness that comes of reading my own work over and over. Nightvision is much stronger leaving her hands then it was going into them.

I recently had the pleasure of working with Michelle on my debut novel "Mathematics Of Eternity" and was very impressed by her thoroughness, professionalism and timeliness. You can hire Michelle as your editor with complete confidence. I was anxious about what to expect, and Michelle understood that. She provided a generous sample of her work, and we exchanged several emails discussing her editing process. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend her for your SF/fantasy project. She went above and beyond my expectations.

Michelle is professional, thorough, patient, willing to go back and forth on ideas with you, and really cares about her work . I learned an awful lot from her comments and suggestions, and I’m looking forward to working with her on Mathematics Of Eternity 2!

Michelle is a wizard. Or a genie. I’m not quite certain, but one this for sure: she is magical. In the history of this novel, there will be PM time and AM time: Pre-Michelle, and After-Michelle. Though I was nervous about putting my novel into the hands of an editor, she made the experience feel warm and exciting. Her criticism is constructive and encouraging, and within a week, I felt like my writing had transformed from a story into a fully fledged novel. I’ve frequently lost track of time as I work through the novel with her edits, as it doesn’t feel like a chore anymore (and trust me, I struggled so much with editing before). Now I actually feel like I am ready to let other people read it… publishers included. Working with Michelle is a dream. She’s professional and kind, and honest in every critique she gives. I look forward to working with her on all my next projects.

Michelle is the editing fairy godmother.

What can I say? After passing through her hands, my books (especially "Incanta") came back leaner and sexier, thanks to Michelle's zero tolerance policy for wordiness. Her comments throughout the manuscript helped me enormously and strengthened the plot. When it comes to communication, she has always been so prompt it almost seemed as if I was the only author on her list. Working with her is a pleasure - look no further.

Thank you, Michelle!

Michelle edited my debut novel, Grave Beginnings. Because of her efforts, it went on to win a Best Book of 2015 award, as well as gain me writing fame. There are pictures of NYT Best Selling Author, Jim Butcher, holding up his signed copy. This is a review of her second editing job on my sequel novel, Grave Measures. How do you think she did after setting me up for success on book one? Wonderfully. Masterful. Perfect.
The book debuted with a handful of glowing editorial reviews as well as customer reviews. She does it right every time.

I am five chapters in on my edit and my book is already immensely better. I will be using Michelle in the future (if I manage to get anything finished) and strongly recommend her. She is thorough, professional, and very fast. I'm picky (sometimes an editor) and she satisfies that pickiness.

(You are welcome to use this as a testimonial if you like. smile emoticon )

Michelle is a precious genuine gem. I'm so glad I was lucky enough to find her.

Michelle's suggestions and comments were exactly what my story needed. She took the time to really help me improve my story. She answered all my questions and always got right back to me, making me feel like I was her only client. She's professional kind, caring and has so much patience. I'm in awe of her talent and appreciated her hard work and dedication. It's amazing what she can do with words. She helped make my story flow. I actually thought it was impossible to find someone that cared about my story as much as I did, but I was wrong. Thank you, Michelle! I'm honored that you were my developmental editor and now I'm blessed to call you my friend.

What can I say about Michelle Dunbar? Looking at the other reviews it's clear she is an amazing editor and she is. I hated editing before meeting her and thought of it as a necessary evil but after seeing the changes made to manuscript by her, dare I say? I began to love editing? She is an absolute treat to work it, she not only improves your work, she helps you improve! You learn as you go through her edits why the changes are being made, how to keep the pacing fast and tight. my novel was already doing well before she took a look at it, but now, its doing even better. I've garnered comparisons to new york times best sellers and more. I've had my fair share of features and I expect them to not only continue but increase in number because of her edits.



What she provides isn't simple feedback, this is not your friends critique group or just opinions. They are the recommendations of a well trained editor. She will help you improve the voice of your novel, Clear up any plot holes. Her edits will sharpen your dialogue and cut away redundancy. Trust me and the five star reviews that keep coming in. She is the absolute best and I plan to use her for as long as possible in building my series! Michelle Dunbar is one flat out amazing editor!

I handed over my manuscript to Michelle at a point after it had been edited several times by myself and beta-read by others. I thought 'oh it just needs a cursory once over.' When it was returned by Michelle she had sharpened up my grammar so now it's utterly polished, all unnecessary words deleted. She'd also highlighted some areas she felt didn't work/needed more/didn't fit with what I'd written earlier. Her attention to detail is amazing. I also love when she puts a little comment in the side when she particularly likes a bit or it makes her think. Highly recommended and a pleasure to know.