Steve Ross, Director, Book Division, Abrams Artists Agency:
“Amy has that rare quality of reading a manuscript from all the requisite perspectives simultaneously: those of the author, the agent, the publisher, and the ultimate consumer. She is also equally adept and authoritative with nonfiction and fiction of seemingly every genre and for just about every age (I haven’t tried her out on picture books yet).”
Holly Root, Waxman Literary Agency:
“Amy Nathan has a great eye for prose and an exceptional talent for identifying what’s working, and more importantly what isn’t, in an author’s work. Her feedback would be valuable for anyone who’s wondering whether their work is ready to submit.
Christina Gombar, Pushcart Prize nominated author:
“The most important thing I can say about Amy is that while her criticism is thorough and spot-on, it’s painless. She never makes it personal – and this saves a tremendous amount of energy in defensive reactions (on my part) and the like. A few other readers I’d hired seemed to get off on cutting me down, or were threatened by what I was saying – not focusing on how I was saying it. With Amy it’s all about the writing. I’ve read her own writing and greatly enjoy it — I’d never hire someone to critique my writing if I didn’t value their own work.
Amy is also very up-to-the-minute on blogging and online marketing and networking – she’s been a great source of advice there.”
Julie Wu, author of THE THIRD SON, Algonquin:
“Amy is the rare reader who sees both the trees and the forest. She has the ability to set aside her ego to become emotionally engaged in a story and then, in a very no-nonsense way, pinpoint just what does and does not make it work. She was able in a single critique to tell me both that she was moved to tears and that I needed to fix certain inconsistencies in my timeline. Her comments would be invaluable to a writer of any level of experience and I couldn’t recommend her more highly!”
Pamela Toler, author of MANKIND, The Story of All of Us, History Channel:
“Amy asks critical questions that open up possibilities within a story while displaying an understanding of the work as a whole.”
Priscille Sibley, author of THE PROMISE OF STARDUST, William Morrow:
“Sometimes a writer is too close to his/her own manuscript. At least, I was. It takes a keen eye and a true understanding of story to be able to see what the writer is overlooking. Amy Sue Nathan possesses both. And she has the talent to point out what I needed to do to make my story work.”
Cortney Brown Fries, Freelance Writer:
“Amy is a gracious, intelligent editor and coach. She gave me the courage to submit a piece for publication, probably much earlier than I would have gathered it on my own. Amy also pushed me to tell the deeper story, the one I was brushing over, which led to my first published essay. Without her enthusiasm and encouragement, I would not already be able to say I am a published writer!”
Amy Sue Nathan, Editor 