Let's clear out the clutter, clarify your concept, and distill your story to its essence. I'll help you find focus, direction, and enjoyment in the writing process—again, or for the first time. I understand the rewards and frustrations of being a writer. Over the past fifteen years, I have published many feature stories and personal pieces in national newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times and The Washington Post Magazine. In that time, I developed strong reporting and storytelling skills. I also learned the discipline of writing multiple drafts and seeking outside feedback. When I started taking on contract editing assignments in 2005, I was determined to be the kind of editor I always like to work with. While I will tell you what needs improvement in your manuscript, I will also take the time to highlight the high-water marks, the parts that are successful and can serve as blueprints for the rest. We will build on your strengths.    More About Lynn What I like most about editing: I enjoy spotting unrealized potential in a manuscript (and a writer). I also love the problem-solving side of developmental editing, my specialty. I strive to improve fundamental structural elements like story arc and characterization while maintaining the singular voice and vision of each writer. My best advice to writers: Draft, draft, draft. Few writers are able to achieve anything worthwhile on the first try. My favorite genres to edit: I love the creative and collaborative aspects of editing so I can find fulfillment working in any genre. I do particularly thrive on the intensity and immediacy of memoirs. The reporter part of me also enjoys helping writers dig for answers in their psyches and pasts. Number of years I've been editing: I have been a contract editor for the past six years. I've been editing my colleagues' work on an informal basis for much longer. I believe my significant writing experience is invaluable too. Edit hard copy or on-screen: I do both. I always start by marking up a hard copy before switching to on-screen editing. My "must have" writing reference books: In addition to the stolid standbys—Strunk & White, Webster's, The Chicago Manual of Style—my reference shelf features books about specific genres. My current "must have" is The Art of Time in Memoir by Sven Birkerts. Favorite background music when I edit: I read manuscripts in (relative) silence so I can hear the words. At creative brainstorming and strategizing stages, I listen to a lot of jazz-rap, a mellow hybrid of hip-hop and jazz. The steady beat helps me focus. Scene outside the window where I edit: My New York City apartment looks out on rooftops and water towers so that's what I see when I'm working at home. Mostly, I station myself with my laptop in nearby coffee shops facing quiet side streets. Favorite quotes: "We tell ourselves stories in order to live." —Joan Didion "Good prose is like a window pane." —George Orwell Memorable fictional character: Archie Jones in White Teeth by Zadie Smith Most recent blog/website I bookmarked: Art Blog By Bob Currently reading: I'm alternating between The Night of The Gun, a riveting reportorial memoir by David Carr, and The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, a truly wondrous novel by Junot Diaz. I also just started the audio version of Wild Child, T.C. Boyle's collection of short stories.