Hello friends! I hope your week has been delightful so far, since I know mine has. I’m just the right amount of busy and looking at the home stretch of work and school before finals start next week (ish). I’m also listening to a lot of 5 Seconds of Summer, which is not a surprise if you know me offscreen. As promised earlier, I have a good little bit of news for you.
My commissions are open now! I held off on this for a bit because of how busy I was when we met our 100 subscriber goal, but I’m looking forward to a nice month stretch of time off between semesters and all the brain space in the world to dive into some new works. Let me lay out what the process of obtaining a commission from me might look like.
You contact me through this submission form about a wonderful book (limited for now, in the future we may expand into films and limited television series) you’ve read (or not!) and think you would benefit from an in depth analysis and review from me of this piece of work. As always, my previous work can be found right here on my Substack archive, so browse to your heart’s content!
I conduct some preliminary research regarding this title, including the author and preceding works, critical reception, and intended genre and audience in order to get a better idea of the book. This stage is that in which I would reserve the right to veto your pick if I find that the book (or its author, for that matter) has exceedingly sexually violent, racist, xenophobic or otherwise harmful elements that I feel have no place on my shelf nor my newsletter. Or yours. I’ll offer one opportunity for you to choose an alternative book, and if it follows the same case as the prior book, you will face a one-month commission suspension. We will also agree on whether you’d like this to be a private commission, or one that I can share with this newsletter family about a week after you receive your copy!
From the day I accept the commission, I will get to work. Like the busiest bee ever. I’ll continue my research beyond the preliminary information I already have, read the text at least once with annotations (which you’ll have access to!), and fully outline my review and analysis before writing the meat of the content. This will be sure to include my thoughts and ideas on plot and narrative, pacing, character interaction and independent development, structure, cultural impact and implications as well as authorial intentions.
Depending on the length of the book and the final word count of my response, this is when we will figure a rate. A flat rate of $3 USD for books under 500 pages (paperback hardcopy) stands currently, adding a dollar for each 100 pages going forward, as well as one more for private commissions. 1 cent per word is the standing rate for my responses, given that my reviews rarely exceed 3,000 words, bringing the total charge to around an estimated $18-30 USD ballpark range. This comprehensive fee compensates me for my time researching and writing, purchasing the book if I cannot find it digitally, and an adequate reading period to process the material and offer a sophisticated response. I’m a full-time student and I do this for free and for fun until now, save for external freelance engagements! Think of it this way: you could buy a Cool-Girl-Shacket for winter or you could buy the opposite of my silence in a controlled format. I can do payment by Venmo, Cashapp or PayPal, and only Zelle if necessary. Venmo is preferred.
By 3 weeks following the date of your placing the commission, it will be safely tucked away in your preferred email inbox snug as a bug in a rug pending payment. If you’d like to open up a further conversation about the work, I am always open to doing that over email after sending my final draft to you! It’s a win win, and we all (hopefully) benefit from some (hopefully) great storytelling (on the author’s part as well as mine).
I think that covers all of it. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at literateleah@gmail.com! I love you, and I’ll see you on Sunday.