Developmental Editing for Reflective Nonfiction
Budget: $3,000 – $5,000 USD
I am a retired PhD chemist with experience in both large and small company leadership, now working as a reflective nonfiction author at the intersection of science, meaning, and ethics. I am seeking, ideally, a retired editor or scholar with deep skills in one or more of the following areas: science, religious studies, philosophy, climate change, or political science. I do not expect any one person to span all of these disciplines; depth in one or two, combined with intellectual curiosity and comfort crossing boundaries, matters most.
My ideal partner will provide candid feedback on logic, clarity, voice, and areas I may not yet see. I am looking for an informal yet serious working relationship, with thoughtful guidance on both the manuscript and possible future steps.
The Mind of the Universe is a narrative nonfiction project exploring the scientific creation story, the emergence of life and consciousness, and the ethical consequences of being a self-aware species on a finite planet. The work blends established science with reflective philosophy and is written for an educated general audience rather than a strictly academic one.
The manuscript consists of ten interrelated essays (approximately 50,000 words total). Several are fully drafted and revised; others are in late-draft form. I am seeking developmental editorial support to help refine structure, clarity, voice, and thematic cohesion as the project moves toward publication. The structure is intentional but open to refinement.
I am writing this work now for a simple reason. After a lifetime in science, I find myself increasingly concerned not with what humanity can do, but with how we choose to understand what we are doing. Technical knowledge has advanced faster than our shared frameworks of meaning, responsibility, and restraint. This project is my attempt to slow the conversation down and reflect upon where consciousness has brought us, and what it now asks of us. I am not trying to persuade or prescribe. I am trying to understand, and to invite others into that same reflective space.
My ideal partner will provide candid feedback on logic, clarity, voice, and areas I may not yet see. I am looking for an informal yet serious working relationship, with thoughtful guidance on both the manuscript and possible future steps.
The Mind of the Universe is a narrative nonfiction project exploring the scientific creation story, the emergence of life and consciousness, and the ethical consequences of being a self-aware species on a finite planet. The work blends established science with reflective philosophy and is written for an educated general audience rather than a strictly academic one.
The manuscript consists of ten interrelated essays (approximately 50,000 words total). Several are fully drafted and revised; others are in late-draft form. I am seeking developmental editorial support to help refine structure, clarity, voice, and thematic cohesion as the project moves toward publication. The structure is intentional but open to refinement.
I am writing this work now for a simple reason. After a lifetime in science, I find myself increasingly concerned not with what humanity can do, but with how we choose to understand what we are doing. Technical knowledge has advanced faster than our shared frameworks of meaning, responsibility, and restraint. This project is my attempt to slow the conversation down and reflect upon where consciousness has brought us, and what it now asks of us. I am not trying to persuade or prescribe. I am trying to understand, and to invite others into that same reflective space.