This Agreement governs the provision of professional manuscript review services by Rebecca E. Schmuck, operating as The Write Author ("Service Provider," "The Auditor," "We"), to the client ("Client," "Author," "You"). By making payment for any Service, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.

1. Definitions of Manuscript Review Services

The Forensic Narrative Audit: A high-intensity, integrated pass tackling structural integrity (logic/physics), the reader’s pulse (engagement/voice), and mechanical finish (grammar/typos) simultaneously.

The Focused Narrative Diagnostic: A high-intensity technical audit of one (1) continuous segment of up to 2,500 words. This applies the same integrated pass (Logic, Pulse, and Mechanics) used in the full Forensic Narrative Audit to a specific window of the manuscript.

The Last Look Beta Read: A final, professional read of an exceptionally polished manuscript to confirm seamless flow and catch significant snags before market entry.

The Manuscript: The literary work submitted by the Client for review.

2. Scope of Services

2.1. The Forensic Narrative Audit This service provides one comprehensive, integrated pass. Feedback includes:

Structural Integrity: Identifying timeline drifts, "impossible" physics, and logic leaks.

The Reader’s Pulse: Pinpointing "Friction Points" and "Performative Prose."

The Mechanical Finish: Direct markup of grammar, punctuation, and typos.

Deliverables: Detailed Inline comments, a Structural Audit Report, and a one-time follow-up for specific questions (Email, 20-minute Zoom, or Inline replies).

2.2. The Focused Narrative Diagnostic

Scope: A technical audit of up to 2,500 words (must be one continuous segment).

Deliverables: Detailed Inline comments, a Structural Audit Report, and a one-time follow-up for specific questions.

2.3. The Last Look Beta Read

Scope: A professional read of a market-ready manuscript.

Deliverables: A written assessment of the Professional Reader experience, flagging significant snags in plot, character, or pacing, and overlooked typos.

Limitation: This is not a developmental edit or a full proofread. It is a final safety check for polished works.

3. Pricing & Payment

Forensic Narrative Audit: $0.015 USD per word ($100 minimum).

Focused Narrative Diagnostic: $50 USD flat fee.

Last Look Beta Read: Scaled flat fees based on word count as listed on the Service Provider’s website.

Deposits & Payments:

Forensic Narrative Audit: A 50% non-refundable deposit is required to secure your slot. The remaining 50% balance is due upon completion, prior to final delivery of the Audit Report and Inline comments.

Focused Narrative Diagnostic & Last Look Beta Read: These services require payment in full and upfront. All payments for these "Technical Sprint" services are non-refundable.

4. The Human Guarantee (Anti-AI Policy)

The Service Provider guarantees that all identifications, narrative evaluations, and editorial suggestions are performed solely by Rebecca E. Schmuck. No AI tools, LLMs, or automated style-checkers are used to audit or "read" the Manuscript. Every identified fracture is the result of human professional intuition and 50 years of narrative study.

5. Client Responsibilities

5.1. Manuscript Submission & Format

Forensic Narrative Audits & Focused Diagnostics: These require Microsoft Word (.docx) or Google Docs to allow for integrated logic checks and mechanical markup.

Last Look Beta Reads: Since this is a high-level reader assessment, PDFs are welcomed and encouraged. This allows the Auditor to experience the manuscript in its final formatted state. (EPUB, .docx, or Google Docs are also acceptable).

5.2 Continuous Segments: For Diagnostics, the Client must provide a continuous window of text. "Greatest hits" or non-sequential pages will be audited for a separate fee.

5.3. Honesty of Draft: The Last Look Beta Read is exclusively for "exceptionally polished" manuscripts. If the Auditor determines a draft is unrefined, requires a full edit, or is otherwise not market-ready, work will stop immediately.

The Auditor will provide a high-level Service Termination Report identifying the primary reasons the manuscript failed the "Last Look" threshold. This report constitutes the final deliverable for the engagement. No refunds, credits, or additional audit work will be provided for unpolished submissions.

6. Revisions & Follow-Ups

Clarification of Feedback: The "One-Time Follow-Up" included in the Audit and Diagnostic must be initiated within 14 calendar days of delivery. This is for specific questions regarding the delivered report, not for reviewing new revisions or rewritten sections.

7. Confidentiality & Intellectual Property

Confidentiality: All Manuscripts remain the 100% confidential property of the Author. We will never share or discuss your work with third parties.

Rights: The Author retains all copyrights. The Auditor’s feedback is advisory.

8. Governing Law

This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee.