Testimonials
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Michelle Caplan simply makes the work better. From the moment I was conceptualizing my book to when we were finalizing the last edit, she asked the right questions, saw the necessary arc, and pushed me to deepen the story. She doesn’t make comments for the sake of upending your material: her suggestions are thoughtful, meticulous, and demanding in the best sense. She became someone I trusted and needed. I can’t recommend her more highly for any writing project at all.
—ABIGAIL POGREBIN, author of “My Jewish Year” and “Stars of David”
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Michelle is a treasure. I was fortunate to have her guidance for my first novel, The Paper Wasp, and to benefit from her editorial wisdom. I've also seen how she works with other writers over a number of years and can attest that, like all great editors, Michelle has the rare gift of vision. She's able to discern structure within even the knottiest of manuscripts and can help a writer iron out the fabric of a story so that it shines. She also has a firm grasp of characters and knows how to make the circuitry between them sizzle. No matter the state of a manuscript, Michelle is a careful, conscientious reader who handles her work with sensitivity and a contagious exuberance. Her personality—confident, supportive, and candid—serves as an ongoing resource throughout the editorial process. Her years of experience in publishing also give her a thorough understanding of the book world, so that she's able to raise a manuscript to its best form aesthetically while also considering the market and the author's own career objectives. It's often difficult for writers to see a path forward when they're lost in the trees, and Michelle is an invaluable guide who gently and firmly leads the way out of the forest.
—LAUREN ACAMPORA, author of “The Paper Wasp” and “The Wonder Garden”
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Michelle Caplan is a great editor. She gave me wise guidance on my most recent work, It’s All Relative, and I couldn’t be more grateful for it. She understands everything about what makes a good book: narrative design, emotional arcs, and crisp writing. I recommend her to any and all writers.
—A.J. JACOBS, Senior Editor of Esquire and New York Times bestselling author of It’s All Relative, Drop Dead Healthy, and The Year of Living Biblically
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Michelle Caplan is the best thing that has ever happened to my writing. I have worked with her on two novels, and she is always able to uncover possibilities no other reader has been able to see in my work. She is passionate, articulate and tireless as an editor, often knowing more about my manuscript than I do. She has become a friend and advocate, helping to uncover the writer I always knew I could be. Whenever I sit down to write I can hear Michelle‘s voice pushing me to explore my characters and their motivations more deeply. She’s a great motivator and keeps me on track so that I never lose sight of what I’m trying to accomplish. Working with Michelle Caplan has been a great gift and I give her my highest recommendation.
—JONATHAN PAPERNICK, author of “The Book of Stone” and “There Is No Other”
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Michelle Caplan is everything a writer would want in an editor: passionate, insightful, and thorough. Without her, my novel Safekeeping would have been a lesser book. She read countless drafts with deep attention and always came back with important notes. Michelle knows the mechanics of a great story and will make sure your characters are believable and intriguing; your plot is coherent and compelling; and your language is in perfect service to your project. If you have a narrative that you want to make as beautiful and powerful as possible, I recommend taking it to Michelle for her invaluable feedback.
—JESSAMYN HOPE, author of “Safekeeping”
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Michelle Caplan’s editorial guidance made it possible for me to develop my book, The Sea Beach Line, from a short, esoteric MFA thesis project to a well-received novel published for a popular audience. In her capacity as editor-and-chief of Fig Tree Books, Michelle saw potential in my manuscript that others did not, and coached me through every step of the publication process. She is an attentive and insightful editor, with a rare understanding of novel structure and craft.
—BEN NADLER, author of “The Sea Beach Line”
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Just like demystifying Chapter One, you can demystify editors in your crusade to find a cure for your ailing manuscript.
Jonathan Galassi, editor in chief at Farrar, Straus and Giroux, once said, “An editor is like a shrink. A really good shrink doesn’t fix you; you fix yourself through the shrink.”
But there are so many editors as there are auto repair services in the Yellow Page. Editors with tunnel vision, editors with lots of baggage, noisily chanting show-and-tell mantra. Ever heard the story of ten blind men gathering around an elephant and trying to tell what it is? Each blind man grabs a part of the elephant, feels it, and tells the others what he thinks that is. None about an elephant.
Your ailment lingers.
So you need a Jonathan Galassi, a Maxwell Perkins. You need a visionary editor. This kind doesn’t edit your manuscript only to twist it to his vision; instead, he shepherds your work to the promised land you have envisioned. How does he do that?
By relentlessly pursuing the unasked questions buried ten feet deep in your manuscript and then unearthing them with answers to build one brick at a time until your Mayan Temple is constructed in all of its grandiosity you have imagined.
Questions. Questions. Questions.
One by one, they are answered to reveal multiple angles from a third dimension of your work never realized before. One by one, they are answered to deepen characterization whose richness becomes the fertile soil of your work, whose dynamics becomes plot itself.
But knowing what to ask is the difference. And ask the specific questions.
To ask the right questions is magic. The best editor knows how to ask questions. The rest is up to you to enact the magic. Remember: A shrink doesn’t fix you. There are many elite editors. But only a few can make a significant impact on your work. Among these select few—if you are fortunate to find them—is Michelle Caplan.
—KHAHN HA, author of “Mrs. Rossi’s Dream”
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Michelle Caplan and I were colleagues for three years at a small publishing company. Officially, her title there was “editor-in-chief," but even that doesn't adequately convey the complexity and variety of her role, nor does it suggest how outstanding a job she did. A tireless worker with extraordinary skills in project management and hands-on editing as well as a seemingly endless reserve of patience, encouragement, and kindness, Michelle is the ideal collaborator for any professional literary/creative endeavor.
—ERIKA DREIFUS, Writer, Poet, Publicist, author of “Quiet Americans”
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Michelle is a fine editor who is able to see the heart of a manuscript and help the author understand how best to bring their work to its full, best, and final incarnation. She is compassionate in her approach to the work, and also unstinting in her efforts to help the author overcome the inevitable shortcomings of the work, as well as the obstacles that often stand in the way of bringing the work to fruition. She will help you identify what needs to be done and then point you in the right direction, staying involved through every step of the process. Michelle will collaborate with you in ways that ensure that your work will evolve in new and exciting ways, helping you do justice to your initial inspiration. I recommend Michelle highly, and without reservation.
—SHIRA NAYMAN, author of “River” — pub date January 2020
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Michelle Caplan is an uncommonly gifted editor. She approaches a manuscript not as a passive reader, but as a highly alert and active partner, always questioning and always pushing the boundaries. She helped me see aspects of my work that had I had previously been unaware of, and her comments pointed me in a new and exciting direction.
—KITTY ZELDIS, author of “Not Our Kind”
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I was very fortunate to have Michelle edit my debut novel. Before undertaking the assignment she read the novel and held a consultation with me. She helped me express myself in many important ways. She insisted I improve the novel structure, develop the characters, and work both thematically and chronologically. She “ghosted” (and excellently) to weave the story threads together. She was always responsive and thoughtful and could be stern when I was lazy. Michelle became a trusted mentor and encouraged me to have confidence in my novel.
—DAHLIA JAPHET, author of “The Numismatist’s Wife”
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It's a pleasure to recommend Michelle Caplan as a writer/editor/coach for your creative project. Ms. Caplan has the uncanny ability to quickly grasp the client's material and proceed with efficiency and creativity. She possesses outstanding listening and conversation skills, which are crucial in moving a project forward. I first hired Ms. Caplan in 2005 for a book I'm writing and have continued to use her services. She is consistently organized, dependable and her integrity is unfaltering. She cuts to the core of who I am and what I'm trying to express. I've worked with other coaches, but Ms. Caplan is one of the best.
— DONNA LINN, host of ShowMeTalkRadio
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As an editor, Michelle had provided me with an extremely thoughtful critique of my novel that allowed me to see how much further I could develop it. Her blend of insight, constructive criticism and encouragement proved to be the perfect catalyst for me to further evolve a work that I had previously abandoned. I would definitely recommend Michelle to any writer in need of a fresh pair of editorial eyes or anyone looking to jumpstart or reinvigorate their creative process.
—SUSAN JOSEPHS, author of “Friends By Accident”
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Michelle's laser-precise line editing can aid any type of project. However, her greatest value-add to my work was her expert grasp of the structure and dramatic imperatives of literary fiction. Michelle's creativity and her exquisite literary ear enliven the writing process while enabling the author’s own talents to flourish. Her respectful but candid support is of particular benefit to ambitious projects like political, philosophical or “avant-garde” fiction.
—TRACEY TONEY, author of “Or”
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Michelle is more than what is generally expected and received from a literary editor. She is quite flexible in offering a range of support depending on a writer's precise needs. After examaning a work, she might recommend or at least suggest, based on what she senses is in it. In the editing process she handles the manuscript with a sensitivity as if it is actually hers. Michelle can wring out the best.
—HARRY KENDALL, playwright and author of “Truth Crushed To Earth”