Description:

A quick diagnostic before you hit "submit" — or before you send your work to an editor.

This is the same 6-point checklist I run on every manuscript before I start editing: scene vs. summary, show-don't-tell, the flat middle, your opening line, and a final line-level pass. Work through it on your current draft and you'll catch the issues that usually only surface after a rejection — or an editor's notes.

What's inside:

• 6 diagnostic checkpoints covering structure, craft, and line-level revision

• Specific questions for each section

• A quick "delete test" to catch a sagging middle before anyone else does

Free to download. Print it, save it, keep it open next to your draft.

A worksheet for your opening — the part that decides whether a stranger keeps reading.

Most pieces are judged in the first 500 words, whether that's an agent, an editor, or a reader with a dozen open tabs. This diagnostic walks you through the three things a strong opening has to do at once — establish voice, raise stakes, and ground the reader in a world — plus two tests to catch throat-clearing before it costs you a reader.

What's inside:

• Voice, stakes, and world-building checkpoints for your first page

• The Delete Test — a quick way to spot a weak opening paragraph

• The Stranger Test and a cut list for tightening your first 500 words

Free to download. Use it before you submit, query, or send a piece off for feedback.