“I am overwhelmed. You have done a brilliant job with Part 1. You have made it glow. What you have done with Part 2 is amazing. It could not be better. And ending it where you have ended it is perfect. You shouldn’t be editing. You should be writing novels!”
—Bhaichand Patel on our work on his debut novel Mothers, Lovers, and Other Strangers, PanMacmillan, 2012; author of Chasing the Good Life, Penguin Books India, 2006; Happy Hours, Penguin Books India, 2009
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“Victoria, I am so grateful for your suggestions. I feel as if I have to turn my head around and look at the world in a new way.”
—Millicent G. Dillon, five-time O. Henry Award winner and PEN/Faulkner nominee, on our work on her memoir of the Oak Ridge secret atomic facility, The Absolute Elsewhere; author of Harry Gold, Overlook; A Version of Love, WW Norton & Company; The One in the Back is Medea and Baby Perpetua and Other Stories, Viking; The Dance of the Mothers and After Egypt: Isadora Duncan and Mary Cassatt, Dutton; A Little Original Sin: The Life and Work of Jane Bowles, Virago Press; You Are Not I: A Portrait of Paul Bowles, University of California Press; and editor of My Sister’s Hand in Mine: The Collected Works of Jane Bowles, Ecco; Out in the World: Selected Letters of Jane Bowles, Black Sparrow Press; The Portable Paul and Jane Bowles, Viking
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“Victoria was one of the first readers of my novel, Baby Jesus Pawn Shop. Her perceptive reading and helpful comments at Squaw Valley Conference aided me in finishing it. More recently, Victoria edited my essay on Tiananmen Square, taking a somewhat lengthy and ’soft’ work and quickly making it into a stronger and polished piece that was published in time for the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre in June of 2009. Easy to work with, but a perfectionist if you want the ‘treatment’—trust her!”
—Lucia Orth, author of debut novel Baby Jesus Pawn Shop, Permanent Press, 2008; Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review, NPR comparison to Doctor Shivago, nominated for the PEN/Faulkner, PEN/Hemingway, and Pulitzer Prize
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“It’s a hell of a lot easier to be in the writing trenches when you’ve got my back. The most awesome writing advice I can give to anybody: Victoria Mixon.”
—M. Terry Green/Terisa Green on our work on her speculative fiction series God of the Week; author of Shaman, Healer, Heretic; Shaman, Friend, Enemy; and Shaman, Sister, Sorceress; Ink: The Not-Just-Skin-Deep Guide to Getting a Tattoo, NAL; and The Tattoo Encyclopedia: A Guide to Choosing Your Tattoo, Touchstone; semi-finalist in Amazon’s Breakthrough Novel Award and acclaimed by Publisher’s Weekly and Midwest Book Review
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“Your suggestions are terrific. I wish I had shown you the novel sooner!”
—Sasha Troyan on our work on her novels Marriage a Trois and Semester; author of debut novel Angels in the Morning, Permanent Press, 2003; and The Forgotten Island, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004; two-time Booksense Selection winner, acclaimed by Publisher’s Weekly and Kirkus Reviews
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“Sweet! Thank you SO much. Your changes and observations are perfect, as usual.”
—Scott Warrender, on our work on his short stories and novel Putaway; Annie Award-nominated co-author of the “Lion King II Lullaby”
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“I bow to you. I really do. You are awesome sauce and a bag of chips.”
—Stu Wakefield, on our work on his second novel Memory of Water; #1 Kindle Best Selling author of Body of Water, 2011
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“Everything makes sense and is absolutely brilliant! Working with you has been an amazing experience. I love how you trimmed the language. I feel everything you said was already there, and you brought it up to the surface, gently and carefully. I thought it was scary to hire someone for a developmental edit. Now it seems scarier to be on my own.”
—Ania Vesenny, Pushcart Prize nominee, on our work on her debut novel Swearing in Russian at the Northern Lights, now represented by Beverly Slopen Literary Agency
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“Victoria did everything that I both hoped and feared she’d do: challenged me, pushed me, and motivated me. She showed me where I was pulling my punches and where I went astray. She helped me see how excision is a means to enriching a text, and helped me bring to life the ideas and tension I was striving for. Be warned: hiring Victoria will not get you out of doing work. It will, in fact, double your load, make your brain hurt, and cause you a bit of grief. That is what you want—to become a better writer.”
—Chris Ryan, on our work on his novels The Ishmael Blade, Heliophobia, and Pogue; author of the poetry collection The Bible of Animal Feet, Farfalla Press, 2007, now represented by Lippincott Massie McQuilkin Literary Agency
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”Your books are such a glorious, generous gift! If only I’d had your wisdom at my side while writing my first four novels.”
—Karen Novak, author of Ordinary Monsters, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2002; Innocence, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2003; The Wilderness, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004; Five Mile House, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004
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“Blown away by your insight and mastery. Digesting all the great stuff. Just remarkable! Thank you, Victoria. I am most impressed by your generosity of spirit. Feeling blessed that we’ve connected.”
—Jesus Maria Alvarez, on our work on his novel Esperanza Farm
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“This is wonderful, Victoria—just fantastic feedback! I am amazed by your ability to pinpoint the structure of such a complex story. You have been a dream to work with. I will forever be grateful to you.”
—Judy Lee Dunn, award-winning blogger, on our work on her memoir Out Late
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“If you didn’t live so far away I would be sprinting to your door to give you a hug. I am blown away by your talent, your knowledge of the craft, and your passion. I am emboldened, recharged, and ready to take on the world, with my protagonist at my side.”
—Charles Martella, on our work on his Middle Grade novel The Ghosts of Gotham
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“So much more than I expected! I’m not a gushy person, but I have to say you are wonderfully observant, and your advice is invaluable—presented in a most constructive and encouraging manner.”
—Monica Kilian, on our work on her novel Love in Uneasy Lessons
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“Is it inappropriate for a writer to tell her editor in the second week she loves her? I’m amazed! You have it down to an exact science. I mean I knew reading your books that you could do that, but you have taken it to another level. Wow! I’m clapping.”
—Lisa Mercado-Fernandez, on our work on her novels The Shoebox and The Eighth Summer
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“‘Victoria, you should win an ‘Editor-of-the-Year’ award. Thanks to you, my work rewriting is as satisfying as writing the first time. In some case even more so. I have a better feel for the story—and its flow—now than I ever had before. Sometimes I see your point right away, other times it takes longer. Sometimes I think, ‘Duh! How did I miss that?’ Sometimes I realize that even while writing I was unsure about one scene, or passage. I have made lots of changes, often with dialog and action replacing narrative. I’m starting to see that good dialog writing is an ongoing process, and that no matter what one can always learn more. Thanks again for what you’ve done for my book and me as a writer! You’ll never know what a difference you made.”
—Jeffrey J. Russell, on our work on his novels Standing on the Horizon and Juliana and Will
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“Dang, you’re good. I feel like I just spent the best bucks in my life. A. Victoria Mixon, you are the real deal.”
—Kathryn Hector, on our work on her Middle Grade novel Sirin and the Wardogs of Shanidar
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“After getting your feedback twice now I’ve got to tell you this: I’m delighted I’m able to have you read my work, your professional insights are fantastic. Part of me wants to wax on about how much I value and appreciate your time. I’m also anxious to have you read my writing again. I’ve had some friends read my story, and they love it, but the feedback I get hints at what you’re saying, they can feel something is wrong but they struggle to identify it. It’s like they’re feeling their way through a dark room trying to point out issues, meanwhile you’re able to turn the light on and point out with incredible accuracy what the issues really are.
“Now I’m addicted to writing. It’s all I want to do.”
—Mark Salter, on his work on his novel American Fear
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“I am so happy I found you. You have done more than just edit: you have taught me what I need to keep in mind as I move forward in order to strengthen my writing.”
—Devika Patel, on our work on her untitled novel
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“Wow. I’m learning a lot from your edit. It’s like Christmas in May. OMG. I’m thrilled, in case you can’t tell.”
—Denise Throntveit, on our work on her children’s book Princess Patches
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“Many thanks for your incredibly quick turnaround and your masterful plot analysis!”
—Karin Abarbanel, on our work on her Middle Grade novel Britomar and the Forest of No Return
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“I would have to echo many of these complimentary statements, as both your counseling and the many positive suggestions you had to offer are going to be extremely valuable in helping me make some crucial decisions regarding my project.”
—Jay Miller, on our work on his novel SuperStar Nation
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“Thank you for an excellent crit. I like how you identified what worked as well as what didn’t. So many people forget that part. I need someone I can trust to go through my pieces. Thank you for your support and for talking to me like I do understand what I am doing.”
—Jo Ann Hernandez, on her work on her novels Dying on Lovett Street, The Future Forgotten, Loving You Deadly
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“Before you edited a short story for me, I didn’t know what to expect; I had never worked with a fiction editor before. But your constructive criticism was so useful. I’d be crazy to send out any work without first running it by you. You obviously know the craft inside and out. Money well spent!”
—Gracie Fletcher, on our work on her short story “Moonlight and Melinda”
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