Ink Lab Editing and Publishing
Professional-grade editing, design, and publishing services for serious authors
Write So well they can’t ignore you.
Readers won’t wait for your story to get good. We make it irresistible from page one.
The Professional difference.
Half-baked editing and homemade book covers will kill your book. We make sure yours doesn’t read—or look—like an amateur’s.
Every author deserves a team. we’re yours.
Everything your book needs—editing, design, publishing, and marketing—handled under one roof.
Editing
We shape your manuscript from the inside out—strengthening structure, sharpening scenes, deepening characters, and delivering a satisfying payoff. Then we polish every paragraph and sentence for clarity, flow, and flawless mechanics, all while preserving your voice.
Design
Your cover is your book’s first sales pitch, and retailers’ algorithms reward covers that convert browsers into buyers. We design striking, genre-appropriate covers and clean, professional interiors for both print and ebook editions so your book looks as incredible as it reads.
Publishing
Publishing is technical and strategic. We can publish your book in every digital store, craft magnetic blurbs, engineer it for discoverability with the right metadata, design A+ content that strengthens your brand, then market your book to your target audience.
We’re a small team of award-winning writers, editors, designers, publishers, and marketers in the Pacific Northwest, and every one of us has more than twenty years of experience. With our overlapping yet distinct skill sets, we can cover anything and everything our clients might need, from the basics—writing and editing—to coaching and mentoring, design, publishing, marketing, and strategy.
Ink Lab’s founder, Michael J. Totten, has published ten books, including Write, Edit, Publish: What Every Writer Needs to Know but Only an Editor Will Tell You, a consistent #1 bestseller among books about writing and editing.
Our clients have won numerous book awards
Beverly Hills Book Award for Legal Thriller of the Year
Goethe Award for Historical Fiction
Hugo Award
Nebula Award
Bram Stoker Award
Edgar Award
World Fantasy Award
Royal Dragonfly Book Award
Oregon Book Award
Washington Institute Book Prize
Sidewise Award for Alternate History
Writers of the Future
Colorado Book Award
National Indie Excellence Award
Testimonials and Featured Clients
“Writers searching for thorough, insightful, and immensely helpful editing will find it with Michael J. Totten. He helped me clarify murky language, fix problems with the plot, and add greater impact to the climax.” Caroline Taylor, author of Beautiful in Death
“If you’re looking for an editor to help you take your book to the next level, look no further than Michael J. Totten. I’ve always found his astute insights invaluable.” Scott William Carter, author of The Gray and Guilty Sea
“I’ve admired Michael J. Totten’s work as a writer for years, but it turns out he is also a superb editor. He copyedited my most recent novel, and he was a delight to work with from start to finish. He’s quick, responsive, constructive, and sharp-eyed. You can’t go wrong working with him.” Judith Deborah, author of A Falling Knife: An Evan Adair Mystery
“I strongly recommend the services of Michael J. Totten. As an accomplished writer, journalist, and editor, Michael is second to none. He has helped me with two books and enormously improved both. He is very responsive to questions and concerns and easy to work with, and I look forward to working with him on my third book.” Fred Litwin, author of I Was a Teenage JFK Conspiracy Freak
“Michael was both professional and prompt. He edited, did the interior design, and published two of my novels. He brings experience as a prize-winning author to the table, and this enriches his editorial and procedural insights and recommendations. His critiques were constructive, encouraging, and took my unique voice and strengths into consideration. I highly recommend him and intend to use him again.” Erik Bundy, author of Magic and Murder Among the Dwarves
Sometimes we write About Writing
How to Know If You Should Delete a Scene
Beginning authors often bloat up their stories with scenes that they don’t need and that readers don’t enjoy, a problem that’s usually fatal if it occurs anywhere near the opening chapters. It’s not uncommon, when working as a developmental editor, for me to suggest...
How to Structure a Scene
Scenes are the building blocks of novels, memoirs, and other types of narrative nonfiction. They’re like stories unto themselves. They have a beginning, a middle, and an end. They’re where things happen in real time in a specific place, where characters interact with...
Writing a Book Is Like Eating an Elephant
Most people who want to be writers never write a book. A huge number of professional writers, including those who make their living from writing, never write one. It’s so much work, and so much easier to stick to articles, short stories, and blog posts. Writing and...
Contact us
Reach out to our founder, Michael, and tell him what you’re working on, send him your questions, ask for a free sample edit, book a consultation call, or just say hi.
michael at inklabpublishing dot com
