Want to know what writers have said about working with me?

Fiction and Nonfiction Book Editing

If you are in need of a book editor, I highly recommend Sara Letourneau at Heart of the Story. She has helped me with two of my books, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. She gave great advice and was so helpful throughout the entire process. What I liked most about Sara was how she always has a friendly, pleasant attitude. I hope to work with her again in the future!

Corey Anne Abreau
Author of Bee Kind to Yourself, My First Baseball Game, and other children's picture books

Sara coached me through my current manuscript a few years ago. When I finished it recently and asked her to do a line edit, Sara combed through it, recognized a few chapters she had worked on with me previously, and treated the work as something of her own. Her timely manner, warmth, and commitment to my writing tells of a passion for the written word that is beyond what a typical editor does. I will gladly come back to Sara with any future projects.

Noor alNoaimi
Creative nonfiction author

In the last 20 years, I've worked as a technical writer and content strategist, and any time I've been able to work with professional editors, I let them know they are "worth their weight in gold." I want you to know, even from this brief interaction, that I would say this: As an editor, Sara Letourneau is worth her weight in gold.

Tessa Floreano
Historical fiction writer

Over the years, I've hired several editors to comb through my previous manuscripts. Most of them were good, a few were great, but Sara was the best. She went above and beyond what I expected, and I plan to utilize her services again in the future.

Adam Henig
Author of Watergate's Forgotten Hero: Frank Wills, Night Watchman and others

I expected thoroughness during my manuscript editing, but what surprised me about Sara was the compassion and human connection she brought to the process. She listened carefully to my goals for my first book, then professionalized and polished it. I appreciate her industry and technical knowledge, but more valuable to me was how I feel after working with her--confident in the final product!

Kris Jennings
Corporate change consultant and author of Inspired By Fear

Hiring Sara as my line editor was the best decision I could have made for my book. Sara didn't just work on my project. She invested in it, providing detailed and insightful feedback that strengthened my manuscript while respecting my voice and mission. Sara's professionalism and passion for her work is unparalleled, as is her expertise and encouragement. I can't wait to work with her again on future projects.

Kristen Kieffer
Creative wellness coach and author of Build Your Best Writing Life, Self-Publishing Simplified, and Beneath a Mourning Sky

Sara Letourneau is a pleasure to work with. She has been gentle and kind in her criticism of my writing. I have utilized her assistance in writing two books now. She has done a line edit on both occasions and assisted me in developing more readable manuscripts. She is thorough and intelligent, and her knowledge of book editing is immense.

Evan Longin, Ed.D. ABPP
Psychologist and author of The Roots of Evil: A Postmodern Exploration of the Unintended Consequences of Evil and Shrink: The Other Side of the Couch

It was truly wonderful working with Sara from Heart of the Story. I hired her to look over my novel outline. Her outline critique was very insightful and inspiring to continue my writing journey. The report was very thorough, detailed, and clear to understand. It made a big difference to get a second set of eyes on my outline, and Sara saw things that I didn't see myself. She offered valid suggestions to make my chapters stronger. I will definitely be working with her again once I have a first draft of my book.

Alicia Lundgren
YA fantasy writer

The degree of depth and critique detail on my novel outline that Sara provided was stellar. In her notes, she struck the perfect balance between genuine enthusiasm and measured and insightful pointers on how to improve.

Bettina Moss
Novelist and filmmaker

I really enjoyed working with Sara. She's a very careful and thorough editor, and I am grateful for her attention not only to basic wording, spelling, and grammar, but to other important details such as accuracy of references and reference formatting. She made the manuscript better without treading too heavily on voice or meaning, helping me to create the best book possible. I'll be happy to retain her services again in the future.

Colleen M. Story
Author of Your Writing Matters and others

I greatly enjoyed working with Sara Letourneau. She was punctual and communicated with me throughout the duration of my project. She made critical style and word usage improvements to my memoir that made my writing sound more professional and polished. In response to specific questions I asked about the book’s flow, Sara exceeded my expectations with her attention to detail. Going forward, I will apply the lessons I learned from Sara to all of my future projects.

Sonya White Jaguar
Spiritual healer and mystical romance author

Sara is not only an accomplished poet but also an amazing editor, and I am very happy to hire her for all my editing needs. A few years ago, I had been working with an editor I didn't know who I had found on Reedsy. The difference between their work and Sara's was like night and day. Once I found Sara, I never went back. Sara is punctual and professional, and she works hard to transform your work into the very best it can be. She knows her stuff and combines a poet's eye with an editor's scalpel. If there's magic in your writing, she will sparkle it to life. She is the best of all worlds.

Angela Yeh
Author of A Phoenix Rises and other YA fantasy novels

Coaching for Writers

Sara has partnered up with me to take on the adventure of writing a book. She has been accepting, open-minded, thoughtful, and empowering in her coaching sessions with me. I always leave my time with her feeling more confident and capable in my own writing abilities despite being a beginner. Sara has a comforting way about her that makes her easy to talk to. She’s making the writing process fun and manageable by breaking down the process into basic steps. I’m incredibly grateful for the time we spend together. Thank you, Sara!

Bethany Amatucci
Nonfiction writer and life coach

I really can’t thank Sara enough for all her support during our time together. She was friendly, very knowledgeable, and really took the time to get to know my manuscript and where I wanted to go with it. For every request or issue I had, Sara had the answer, and she would come to our sessions fully prepared with resources and tips. I had a "lightbulb moment" during every call, and she was brilliant at offering a fresh perspective on my work and highlighting things that were lacking or needed work while  pointing out aspects she thought I’d done well. There were times when I came to our sessions feeling overwhelmed about my writing, and she was excellent at validating my feelings while giving me great encouragement and advice that left me feeling much more positive. Her passion and expertise for what she does really come across, and I highly recommend Sara for any writing project.

Rachel Edwards
YA speculative fiction writer

I worked with Sara Letourneau as my book coach for about a year. The project is my second book, and it was the best decision ever to engage Sara's services. From outline to final chapter, Sara provided excellent feedback to guide my journey. She's insightful as well as highly professional. She helped pull from me what was needed to better engage the readers. I love that she used her intuition in our work. I highly recommend using Sara as a coach or editor.

Jo Ann Fawcett
Author of The Prince Was Wrong: Leaving the Narcissist Behind

Sara is wonderful! We started our adventure when she agreed to be my literary coach. She coached me through finishing my first manuscript, helping me fulfill a lifelong dream. She believed in me and shared her knowledge of the literary world. Then she performed an in-depth critique of my manuscript and provided detailed suggestions for strengthening my story. Sara really cares about her clients and their work. She encouraged and critiqued gracefully, pointing out my strengths along with my weaknesses. I feel like she knows my characters as well as I do. So I came back to her when it was time for the line edit, and I was not disappointed. She perfected my manuscript without taking away my voice. Not only is she an amazing coach, but she is also a phenomenal editor. I would recommend her for any project you are working on. Thank you, Sara!

Riley Gipson
Author of The Flowers of Lemuria

This was my first experience working with a book coach, and I was a little nervous. Sara set me at ease with her calm, caring, and positive personality. Her feedback was very thorough, and she explained her edits in detail. She was very reliable and always followed up after we met with notes on what we went over and next steps. Sara made me feel like she genuinely cared about my book and helping me.

Kim Hogan
Educator, mindfulness advocate, and author

I can’t say enough good things about my experience working with Sara as I prepared the stories in my collection for publication. Her insights, knowledge, and professionalism were all immensely helpful. She was always on time and prepared for our meetings, and without question helped to improve every story we reviewed together. I would recommend anyone who is looking for editorial and coaching services to contact Sara. Of the seventeen pieces we worked on together, six have already been published!

Brian Mosher
Poet and short story writer

When I was tasked with writing my book, I did not know where to even begin. But I did know Sara would be able to help me with the process.

Sara is a sensitive, in-tune, and very experienced coach, and she led me through the process and to the other side, producing a manuscript that I am very proud of. She gave me a manageable and extremely effective exercise that was just what I needed to get myself rolling. From there, with our biweekly meetings, I was able to achieve my goals in the self-imposed timeframe that I was working within.

Sara's joy and delight in my process and manuscript was real and very important. I knew I had a coach who believed in me, pushed me when I needed it, and laughed with me when I needed that as well. I have since gone on to publish my book, but I could never have gotten here without her wonderful guidance, kindness, and light that showed me the way.

Thank you, Sara. You are one of the first people mentioned in my acknowledgments!

Sinny B. Nelson
Author of Precious the Peacock (children's picture book, coming in 2024)

My work in progress had stalled at a discombobulated 37,000 words. I struck gold. After my very first session with Sara, I wrote the ending, and knew how I wanted to rewrite the beginning and middle. In three monthly sessions, Sara helped me define my story’s genre, clarify the story’s point of view, and develop the story's structure. She focused on helping me write the story I want to write and tell it in the best way possible. She gave me tips for sustained motivation, my writing style and practice, and my overall writing goals. I look forward to her assistance as my work unfolds.

Billie Wade
Blogger and fiction writer

Working with Sara was the smartest thing I could have done for my autobiographical fiction novel. Not only did we have several coaching sessions (which helped me immensely in taking a third-person POV and making sense of it), but she also did a comprehensive line edit that cleaned up the manuscript and brought a fluidness to reading it. I highly recommend Sara.

Lisa J. Woolfe
Author of Train

Writing Workshops and Other Projects

Sara knows how to create and hold a safe space as participants of the New Moon Journaling Circles explore their confidence and creative energy individually and then together. Within each different monthly circle, there are always these moments when one’s specific story or emotion ripples out only to touch another’s story or emotion. These ripples are moments of synchronicity. Moments that bond this temporary community, making its effects long-lasting. To witness synchronicity at play in any workshop/class, the instructor arrives as a hidden Magician. So, brava, Sara. Thank you for making things happen!

BellaBianca Lynn
Poet, nonfiction writer, and yoga instructor

I very much enjoyed Sara’s poetry workshop, “Everywhere You Look.” It was relaxed and cordial, as well as productive. She planned it well, kept us on time, and provided a lot of useful resources for follow-up. I look forward to more of her sessions!

David P. Miller
Author of three poetry books, including Bend in the Stair and Sprawled Asleep

Sara is a true inspiration as both a writing instructor and an entrepreneur. She is extremely organized, thorough, and punctual. Her classes and meetings are among the most well-structured I've ever taken. In her Choose Your Words for 2021 workshop, Sara helped me build a clear and specific vision of all my writing goals for 2021. In an individual coaching session, she gave me heaps of useful advice. Sara has just the right combination of practical know-how and contagious can-do attitude I look for in a coach or instructor. She's a true expert in giving people the tools they need to follow through on their literary dreams.

Deb Sperling
Writer and freelance editor