You've finished your novel. You've done everything in your power to get it ready for print, but you wonder what's the next step?

Maybe an evaluation by an editor to give you a big-picture view of what works and what doesn't? Or maybe have a copyeditor make sure it reads well? Perhaps just a proofread to make sure it's as clean as it can be? Or maybe it's time to dive right into the book proposal?

Whatever stage you may be at, John David Kudrick, MA in Journalism (Professional Writing: Fiction), is ready to serve you as a fiction editor who wants to make your story the best that it can be.

John David has had stories on the brain since he was a boy and his father and grandparents filled his head with tales of biblical heroes and heroines, rugged mountain men, courageous frontierswomen, daring gunfighters, and brave soldiers and sailors. Since those boyhood days, John David has turned his love of fiction into an opportunity to serve others who are equally as passionate about telling a good story.

With more than a decade of editorial experience, a bachelor's degree in theology, and a master's degree focused on fiction, John David is ready to partner with you in crafting the very best story you can write – whether it be helping you with a manuscript diagnostic, developmental editing, substantive editing, copyediting, proofreading, or book proposal development.

While he enjoys working on most every genre of fiction you may write, John David considers his main specialties to be action / military, historical fiction, science fiction (sci-fi), contemporary / mainstream, and Christian fiction (all genres – for both adults and young adults).

Thus far in his career, John David has had the opportunity to serve as senior editor at Whitaker House, a faith-based publisher located outside Pittsburgh. While there, he was privileged to lead the roll-out of the company's first fiction line, which included James Byron Huggins' Nightbringer, a book that John David personally edited and that Library Journal named one of the top five Christian novels for 2004.

As a freelance editor, John David has been privileged to work with some of the best publishers of fiction in the nation, including David C. Cook, NavPress, Realms Fiction, and Marcher Lord Press.

When he's not helping authors fine-tune their stories, John David spends as much time as possible with his wife, Sheila, and their three kids in western Pennsylvania where they make their home. He also enjoys attending and volunteering as a writer / editor for their home church.

"I confess… did a lot of investigation over the Internet… from half way around the world… received a many sample edits / quotes from different editors (~12!). My choice was perfect. On a scale of 1-to10 I rate John a solid (plus) 10! First and foremost for the English… past tense-present tense… grammer —use of the em dash… POV… the whole nine yards. Perfect.And next – for him getting into the story… making very good COMMENTS and suggestions all throughout. This includes checking things on the Internet… noting that the coca cola slogan – “The Real Thing” did not come out in the time period that I mentioned it… and many other excellent comments." Michael Weiss