Whatever your questions or concerns about writing, whatever writing problem you want to solve, you’ve come to the right place. Whether it’s help with writing fiction, breaking through writer’s block, crafting articles that sell, or the all-important art of editing and revising, Donna Ippolito offers the guidance and tips you can only get from a pro.

Ippolito knows how editors think. She has edited the books of well-known writers like novelist Anaïs Nin and literary critic Allen Tate as well as those of first-timers who went on to become best-selling novelists. She was the series editor of the complete Classic BattleTech series, a publishing phenomenon consisting of 75 interwoven novels set in the 31st century. These novels were published by Roc Books, an imprint of Penguin’s New American Library.

She was also series editor of the complete set of the 40 original Shadowrun novels, another group of interwoven novels set in the cyberpunk-urban fantasy world of 2050 and beyond. The original Shadowrun novels were published by Roc Books/NAL as well.

Ippolito has also acquired and edited just about every kind of fiction and nonfiction material, from self-help classics like the Creative Journal and The Wounded Woman to the true-life adventure of searching for the Loch Ness monster.

As a senior editor at Consumers Digest Magazine, Ms. Ippolito researched and wrote an investigative article on how the nation’s top 100 charities spend their donation monies appeared. She also acquired and edited articles on funeral fraud; the truth about long-term care insurance; warehouse-club buying; how to avoid pest-control rip-offs, and others.

Today, Ippolito teaches fiction- and nonfiction-writing in three accredited courses offered by the Institute for Writers. She is executive editor of Thinking of Anaïs Nin, the official Anaïs Nin web site. In recent years, she has also begun presenting a series of writing workshops for adults on “the magic of words,” “show don’t tell,” “ideas and inspiration for writers,” and other topics.

Her book, Writing Fiction: Ask the Editor, answers the most common questions of writers on finding ideas, overcoming writer’s block, plotting, character development, revising, getting published, and more.

Based on the millions of words she has edited, Ippolito knows that editing (revising) is the true art of writing. She believes that anyone with enough passion, persistence, and determination can learn to write well. Yes, you need talent. Yes, you need imagination. Yes, you need to love language for its own sake. But you also need to know your craft, because writing is both a skill and an art.