Editing Services Available!

Hi all!

I have started editing services, and I’d love to help with WIPs! Here’s some information about the services that I’m providing!

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Beta Reading

A beta read is a critique from a professional point of view. I am not an editor, but I will point out aspects regarding content in your manuscript. This is somewhat like my full length reviews on my blog, but more in depth and how I, as a YA book blogger, perceive the story.

A beta read can take from 4-6 weeks depending on my own schedule, but mention in your email if you need it sooner, and we can discuss it.

I currently accept Young Adult, NA, and MG literature on this site. I read a wide range of genres, but I will usually not review erotica or memoirs/nonfiction. I accept digital copies, in the format of Word or Google Documents. The time I complete my read/review and critique will depend on the length of the manuscript as well as my own schedule. I will be sure to discuss my time of completion, pricing, and other necessary items.

What I will provide to you in my critique:

• writing style
• plot & flow
• pacing
• character development
• dialogue & authenticity of voices
• overall honest opinion on the manuscript as a whole.

Prices (All prices will be rounded to the nearest whole cent, in USD):

• Pitch/synopsis: $25
• 20,000 words or under: $50
• 20,001-60,000 words: $200
• 60,001-100,000 words: $250
• Over 100,000 words: Subject to discussion.

PayPal to arcticbookss@gmail.com (Important: via the friends and family option to avoid fees.)

I am willing to negotiate if you are an indie author or a teen author. Prices are also subject to change depending on when the request needs to be fulfilled.

To request a beta read:

Email me at arcticbookss@gmail.com, with the subject line: Beta Reading Services: [Title of Manuscript] with the following information:

• synopsis/summary
• word count
• genre
• your social media information
• by which date you would like the critique

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Sensitivity Reading

“A sensitivity reader reads through a manuscript for issues of representation and for instances of bias on the page.  The goal of a sensitivity reader isn’t to edit a manuscript clarity and logic, although that may be an additional service offered. A sensitivity reader reviews a manuscript for internalized bias and negatively charged language.  A sensitivity reader is there to help make sure you do not make a mistake, but they are also NOT a guarantee against making a mistake.” Write in the Margins

I currently only accept Young Adult literature on this site, but I will consider reading excerpts of NA and MG manuscripts as well. I read a wide range of genres, but I will usually not review erotica or memoirs/nonfiction. I accept digital copies, in the format of PDR or Word. The time I complete my read/review and critique will depend on the length of the manuscript as well as my own schedule. I will be sure to discuss my time of completion, pricing, and other necessary items.

What I will provide to you in my critique:

• portrayal of the marginalized character, whether it be the main character or side character
• negatively-fueled language
• harmful stereotypes
• negative depictions of a marginalized group

I currently can sensitivity read for:

• Chinese American characters
• Chinese (inspired) settings
• high school & college experience in US as a Chinese American student
• bisexual/biromantic/pansexual/panromantic characters
• characters with mental illness, specifically depression and anxiety
• characters with complex relationships with parents and siblings

My experiences are not universal, so I cannot speak for everyone—I can only speak from my own experiences. A sensitivity read is also not an endorsement of your manuscript.

I will sensitivity read for any character that falls within one or more of these categories, no matter how big the character is in your story.

Prices (All prices will be rounded to the nearest whole cent, in USD)

• Pitch/synopsis: $25
• 20,000 words or under: $50
• 20,001-60,000 words: $200
• 60,001-100,000 words: $250
• Over 100,000 words: Subject to discussion.

PayPal to arcticbookss@gmail.com (Important: via the friends and family option to avoid fees.)

I am willing to negotiate if you are an indie author or a teen author! Prices are also subject to change depending on when the request needs to be fulfilled.

To request a sensitivity read:

Email me at arcticbookss@gmail.com, with the subject line: Sensitivity Reading Services: [Title of Manuscript] with the following information:

• synopsis/summary
• word count
• genre
• your social media information
• marginalized group in question
• by which date you would like the critique

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Blurb Editing

A blurb edit is usually for indie authors who want to feature a blurb on the cover of their book to make the novel seem more enticing to readers. I will provide you with suggestions to make your blurb(s) more intriguing!

Prices (All prices will be rounded to the nearest whole cent, in USD):

I will charge $20 for each blurb. PayPal to arcticbookss@gmail.com (Important: via the friends and family option to avoid fees.)

To request a blurb edit:

Email me at arcticbookss@gmail.com, with the subject line: Blurb Edit: [Title of Manuscript] with the following information:

• synopsis/summary
• word count
• genre
• your social media information
• by which date you would like the critique/suggestions

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Arctic Books Turns 3! & Blogoversary Giveaway

Three years ago, I opened up WordPress and started up a blog. At first, I wasn’t really sure what I wanted my blog to be about – I started with a clothes / personal blog but that didn’t last very long at all so I eventually changed my whole blog mindset to revolve around books. Up until last year, I wanted to open up my blog a little bit.

I ended up welcoming some amazing co-bloggers to Arctic Books – Jesse @jessenicholas3 (who has since left, but I appreciate all he’s done), JM @bookfreakrevelations, and Liv @curlyhairbibliophile. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to share my little piece of the Internet to the world but I’m so so so happy that I opened up my blog for co-bloggers!

I also decided to open Arctic Books to not only focus on books but also lifestyle and other ideas – clothes, television, personal things. I feel so much more freedom with this as my co-bloggers and I can basically talk about anything we want.

Review: All We Can Do Is Wait by Richard Lawson

All We Can Do Is Wait by Richard Lawson Genre: YA Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
Publication: February 6th 2018 from Razorbill
Series: None. Standalone.
Length: 288pages
Format: ARC from Penguin Random House International
Rating: ★★★★★

Amazon || Book Depository

In the hours after a bridge collapse rocks their city, a group of Boston teenagers meet in the waiting room of Massachusetts General Hospital:

Siblings Jason and Alexa have already experienced enough grief for a lifetime, so in this moment of confusion and despair, Alexa hopes that she can look to her brother for support. But a secret Jason has been keeping from his sister threatens to tear the siblings apart…right when they need each other most.

Scott is waiting to hear about his girlfriend, Aimee, who was on a bus with her theatre group when the bridge went down. Their relationship has been rocky, but Scott knows that if he can just see Aimee one more time if she can just make it through this ordeal and he can tell her he loves her, everything will be all right.

And then there’s Skyler, whose sister Kate—the sister who is more like a mother, the sister who is basically Skyler’s everything—was crossing the bridge when it collapsed. As the minutes tick by without a word from the hospital staff, Skyler is left to wonder how she can possibly move through life without the one person who makes her feel strong when she’s at her weakest.

Active Memory Blog Tour (Q&A + Giveaway!)

Active Memory by Dan Wells
Series: Mirador #3

Genre: YA Science Fiction

Publication: February 13, 2018 by Balzer + Bray
Goodreads

From Dan Wells, author of the New York Times bestselling Partials Sequence and the John Cleaver series, comes the third and final book in the dark, pulse-pounding, sci-fi neo-noir series that began with the acclaimed novel Bluescreen.

For all the mysteries teen hacker Marisa Carneseca has solved, there has been one that has always eluded her: the truth behind the car accident in which she lost her arm and a mob boss’ wife, Zenaida de Maldonado, lost her life. Even in a world where technology exists to connect everyone’s mind to one another, it would seem that some secrets can still remain hidden.

Those secrets rise violently to the surface, however, when Zenaida de Maldonado’s freshly severed hand shows up at the scene of a gangland shooting. If Zenaida is—or was—still alive, it means there’s even more about Marisa’s past that she doesn’t know. And when she and her friends start digging, they uncover a conspiracy that runs from the slums of Los Angeles to the very top of the world’s most powerful genetic engineering firm. If Mari wants the truth, she’s going to have to go through genetically enhanced agents, irritatingly attractive mob scions, and some bad relationships to get it.

Dan Wells’s widely acclaimed series continues with his most shocking, pulse-pounding, and visionary story yet.

Review: Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann

Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann
Genre: YA Contemporary, Romance, Realistic Fiction, LGBTQIA+
Publication: January 23, 2018 from Swoon Reads
Series: None. Standalone.
Length: 304 pages
Format: ARC from Swoon Reads
Rating: ★★★★★

Amazon || Book Depository

Alice had her whole summer planned. Non-stop all-you-can-eat buffets while marathoning her favorite TV shows (best friends totally included) with the smallest dash of adulting–working at the library to pay her share of the rent. The only thing missing from her perfect plan? Her girlfriend (who ended things when Alice confessed she’s asexual). Alice is done with dating–no thank you, do not pass go, stick a fork in her, done.

But then Alice meets Takumi and she can’t stop thinking about him or the rom com-grade romance feels she did not ask for (uncertainty, butterflies, and swoons, oh my!).

When her blissful summer takes an unexpected turn, and Takumi becomes her knight with a shiny library employee badge (close enough), Alice has to decide if she’s willing to risk their friendship for a love that might not be reciprocated—or understood.

Review: Mary’s Monster: Love, Madness, and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein by Lita Judge

Mary’s Monster: Love, Madness, and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein by Lita Judge
Genre: YA Biography, Nonfiction, Graphic Novel, Sequential Art
Publication: January 30, 2018 from Roaring Brook Press
Series: None. Standalone.
Length: 320 pages
Format: ARC from the publisher
Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.5)

Amazon || Book Depository

A young adult biography of Frankenstein’s profound young author, Mary Shelley, coinciding with the 200th anniversary of its publication, told through free verse and 300+ full-bleed illustrations.

Mary Shelley first began penning Frankenstein as part of a dare to write a ghost story, but the seeds of that story were planted long before that night. Mary, just nineteen years old at the time, had been living on her own for three years and had already lost a baby days after birth. She was deeply in love with famed poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, a mad man who both enthralled and terrified her, and her relationship with him was rife with scandal and ridicule. But rather than let it crush her, Mary fueled her grief, pain, and passion into a book that the world has still not forgotten 200 years later.

Dark, intense, and beautiful, this free-verse novel with over 300 pages of gorgeous black-and-white watercolor illustrations is a unique and unforgettable depiction of one of the greatest authors of all time.

Introduction to #romanceclass + 10 Book Recommendations

Ever since I started blogging for Arctic Books, I feel like I’ve been yapping about #romancecless already. Now, for those who don’t what the hashtag is for, I came up with this post for you! I had loads of fun brainstorming for this post, and I honestly can’t wait to hear from those who I will be able to persuade to check out the involved books. Today, I’m so honored to share with everyone my first-hand experiences with the community, the authors, and the stories involved with this iconic class.

Spellbook of the Lost and Found Playlist + Giveaway!

Spellbook of the Lost and Found by Moïra Fowley-Doyle
Series: n/a

Genre: YA Mystery, LGBTQ, Fantasy

Publication: August 8th 2017 by Kathy Dawson Books
Length: 357 pages

Goodreads

The stunning, highly anticipated new book from the acclaimed author of The Accident Season is about things gone missing, things returned from the past, and a group of friends who might need to give up more than they bargained for–unless they already have.

One stormy Irish summer night, Olive and her best friend, Rose, begin to lose things. It starts with simple items like hairclips and jewelry, but soon it’s clear that Rose has lost something much bigger, something she won’t talk about, and Olive thinks her best friend is slipping away. Then diary pages written by a girl named Laurel begin to appear all over town. And Olive meets three mysterious strangers: Ivy, Hazel, and her twin brother, Rowan, secretly squatting in an abandoned housing estate. The trio are wild and alluring, but they seem lost too–and like Rose, they’re holding tight to painful secrets.

When they discover the spellbook, it just might be their chance to find what they each need to set everything back to rights. Unless it’s leading them toward things that were never meant to be found…

That Inevitable Victorian Thing Blog Tour (Playlist + Giveaway!)

That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston
Series: n/a

Genre: YA Science Fiction, Historical

Publication: October 3rd 2017 by Dutton Books for Young Readers
Length: 320 pages

Goodreads

Set in a near-future world where the British Empire never fell and the United States never rose, That Inevitable Victorian Thing is a novel of love, duty, and the small moments that can change people and the world.

Victoria-Margaret is the crown princess of the empire, a direct descendent of Victoria I, the queen who changed the course of history two centuries earlier. The imperial practice of genetically arranged matchmaking will soon guide Margaret into a politically advantageous marriage like her mother before her, but before she does her duty, she’ll have one summer incognito in a far corner of empire. In Toronto, she meets Helena Marcus, daughter of one of the empire’s greatest placement geneticists, and August Callaghan, the heir apparent to a powerful shipping firm currently besieged by American pirates. In a summer of high-society debutante balls, politically charged tea parties, and romantic country dances, Margaret, Helena, and August discover they share an unusual bond and maybe a one in a million chance to have what they want and to change the world in the process —just like the first Queen Victoria.

JM’s August – September 2017 Book Haul

Hi, you guys! JM here. It’s that time of the month again when I try to share with everyone all the books that I got for the past month! August was a fairly mild book buying month for me mainly because I opted to buy myself a new phone. It’s been 7 years since I bought one, and I thought it was just fitting since I also celebrated my 1-year working anniversary last July. Anyway, you guys, I’m extremely pleased to introduce to you my new buddy, Mateo!

Hi y’all! So today, after years of having fun with my previous phone, I got myself a new one! And I’m naming him Mateo. Say hello! 👋🏼 pic.twitter.com/tzZyo3J2vp

— JM @ BFR 📚 (@JMCabraal) September 1, 2017

Why name him Mateo, you ask? Well, it just so happens that I cannot move on from Adam Silvera’s latest book, They Both Die At The End (my review’s already up if you want to check it out), and I loved one of his characters who was named Mateo.

Mateo and I will be working together closely to bring you more content here on Arctic Books as well as on my own blog, Book Freak Revelations, and I can’t wait to share with you guys all the output we’ll be able to produce, so stay tuned!

But enough about that! Let’s move on to the actual book haul!