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Chris Holifield

Spent whole working life in publishing; worked for eight publishers, two book club groups, a literary agency and a literary charity. Still think book publishing is about most enjoyable thing you can do – aside from running a writers’ website, of course!

Copy editing services

Fri, 09/03/2018 - 5:01pm
A guide to our copy editing services for writers

WritersServices can provide a range of services working on your manuscript, to help you get it ready for submission or self-publishing. We are UK-based and our skilled professional editors have been working on writers' manuscripts for 17 years.

We have just introduced free samples and free assessments on most of these services, please see the individual service page.  Read more

Our Services for Writers

20 services to help you get your work ready for publication

We've been offering editing services for writers from our office in London since 2001 and have the widest and best-value range on the web. Get your work ready for publication or submission with the help of our team of skilled professional editors.

Work on your manuscript  Read more

© Chris Holifield 2017-19

Writer's Edit service

A top-level new service for writers who want line-editing as well as copy editing

Does your manuscript need high-level input from an editor to help you get it into shape for submission or self-publishing?

  Read more

© Chris Holifield 2016-19

Diagram Prize 2004

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:40pm
The 2004 Diagram Prize for the Oddest Title of the Year

The prize this year goes to the quite barmy Bombproof Your Horse, which even in these troubling times would seem to be advocating taking things a bit far...  Read more

Diagram Prize 2005

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:40pm
The 2005 Diagram Prize for the Oddest Title of the Year

The shortlist for the 2005 prize was announced recently.  My favourite competition of the year is run by columnist Horace Bent in the Bookseller (the UK book trade weekly) with input from dedicated odd title hunters from all over the world.  Read more

Masterclass fiction - LBF 2006

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:39pm
A special report from the 2006 Masterclasses at the London Book Fair

In four packed sessions at the London Book Fair, the Daily Mail Masterclasses provided excellent coaching for aspiring writers. Our second report deals with writing fiction.  Read more

Masterclass children - LBF 2006

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:39pm
A special report from the 2006 Masterclasses at the London Book Fair

In four packed sessions at the London Book Fair, the Daily Mail Masterclasses provided excellent coaching for aspiring writers. Our third report deals with writing for children.  Read more

Diagram Prize 2006

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:38pm
The 2006 Diagram Prize for the Oddest Title of the Year

The shortlist for the 2006 prize has received unprecedented international coverage, from the Orlando Sentinel to the Hindu. In the UK listeners were bemused by the Today programme running a competition for listeners to imagine the titles were for a novel and to write the opening paragraphs.  Read more

Diagram Prize 2006 winner

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:38pm
The 2006 Diagram Prize for the Oddest Title of the Year

The winner of this prize has now been announced in the Bookseller and is:

The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America: A Guide to Field Identification by Julian Montague, published by Harry N Abrams.

There were 5,500 votes in all on theBookseller.com, more than ever before. The runner-up was Tattooed Mountain Women and Spoon Boxes of Daghestan.  Read more

Diagram Prize 2007

Thu, 28/07/2016 - 10:37pm
The 2007 Diagram Prize for the Oddest Title of the Year

It's too early yet for the shortlist for the Diagram Prize, but there are some fantastic early entries and this already looks like a vintage year.  Read more

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3 May 2021 - What's new

May 2021
  • ‘When I was a child I was given a special book just to write stories because my handwriting and spelling were so bad. Suddenly I realised I wasn't hopeless at English. You forget children are always comparing each other, and if it's always about grammar and spelling, and if they don't get it, their self-esteem plummets.
  Read more

‘People have many cruel expectations from writers. People expect novelists to live on a hill with three kids and a spouse, people expect children's story writers to never have sex, and people expect all great poets to be dead. And these are all very difficult expectations to fulfill, I think.'

— C. JoyBell C.

'The Lost Generation'

3 May 2021

‘When I was a child I was given a special book just to write stories because my handwriting and spelling were so bad. Suddenly I realised I wasn't hopeless at English. You forget children are always comparing each other, and if it's always about grammar and spelling , and if they don't get it, their self-esteem plummets.  Read more