Book Revision Lab (Six Months)
At book inc, our Book Revision Lab is a six-month program designed for creative writers ready to revise their memoir or novel manuscripts. With a focus on community, the Book Revision Lab provides feedback, support, and guidance so that writers can explore and realize the artistic and commercial potential of their book.
During the Book Revision Lab, writers learn a variety of revision techniques through the book editing process to improve their manuscript. Working together, writers exchange feedback on their book manuscripts, build book revision plans based on the feedback, and execute their plans to complete a meaningful revision, with an eye toward publication.
Participants must be committed to the long-term process of writing a book and be able to lend support and encouragement to peers. We are looking for passionate writers who are eager to learn and are open to a collaborative experience.
Our current program is full. If you’re interested in our next six-month Book Revision Lab which begins in July 2023, please send us an email at bookinc@projectwritenow.org. We will contact you when our application period opens again.
Join us on Wednesday, April 19 at 7 p.m. ET for our free virtual workshop So You Wrote a Book … Now What?
to learn more about our Book Revision Lab and Book Submission Lab programs.
How Our Book Revision Lab Works
Throughout the six months, we meet twice a month for two hours on Zoom every other Thursday (7 to 9 p.m.) for a total of 12 meetings. We also interact daily on Slack as we share our revision journey through the following phases:
- Reading Round & Revision Planning (12 weeks) – First, we learn the most effective ways to give and receive feedback, and then we break into groups of three to share our book manuscripts with a round of readers. Each participant provides feedback on two manuscripts and receives feedback from two readers. After receiving feedback, we organize the feedback into a revision plan.
- Revising Your Manuscript (12 weeks) – Over the next three months, we execute our revision plan, sharing our experience, challenges, and insights along the way. Our bi-monthly sessions include deep dives into both structural and sentence-level revision techniques, providing an array of tools to bring out the best in your manuscript.
*Proceeds help support PWN’s community outreach programs. Partial and full scholarship seats are available. Email bookinc@projectwritenow.org for more information.
Are You a Good Fit for Our Book Revision Lab?
To participate in the Book Revision Lab you should:
- Have a completed memoir or novel draft of 50,000 words or more that you feel comfortable handing off to fellow writers for supportive feedback;
- Have experience in writing workshops at Project Write Now, book inc, or elsewhere;
- Be open and interested in learning about the process of revising a book-length work along with boosting a consistent writing practice;
- Be eager and available to support your fellow writers to tackle a long-term book project through the exchange of encouragement and positive feedback;
- Be able and willing to read (2) manuscripts, each within a two week period. The maximum number of pages you will be required to read is 80,000 for each manuscript.
- Be able to commit 7-10 hours a week to the revision process over the course of the second half of the program.
Program Details
Cost: $750
Our six-month program costs $750. Tuition can be paid in full or in two increments according to our payment schedule. Your registration will not be considered complete until your payment, payment plan, or scholarship seat has been confirmed. To apply for a full or partial scholarship seat, please email bookinc@projectwritenow.org.
Schedule*
We meet from 7 to 9 p.m. ET on every other Thursday, starting on July 20, 2023.
July 20
August 3, 17, 31
September 21
October 5, 19
November 2, 16
December 7, 21
Application Process
For more information and to be contacted when our next application period opens, please email us at bookinc@projectwritenow.org.
Q&A with Greg Phelan, book inc director
book inc director and Book Revision Lab developer, Greg Phelan answers the who, what, and why questions about the Book Revision Lab. Read our Q&A with Book Revision Lab Developer Greg Phelan.