'I am now approximately halfway through writing my novel, and I am certain I would not have come this far without Gary's patient, friendly guidance. He has given honest, thorough criticism of my work in a considerate and supportive way.' - Donna Goodall
'As a first-time writer, my novel was, of course, full of rookie errors. When Gary edited part of it, he advised on the use of themes, suspense and conflict, and, most importantly for me, as I had four narrators, point of view. Gary's editing much improved my writing. He is patient, considerate and painstaking. Highly recommended.' - Jacqueline Gittens
'Gary has been an invaluable resource to me, combining a forensic attention to detail - on everything from themes, plot and timelines to character, POV and authenticity - with a patient and nurturing approach. He has not only been extremely knowledgeable on the craft of writing, but has also always asked the right questions, getting me to examine my project more closely, and thanks to Gary's guidance, I now know what it is I really want to write. ' - Becky McNaughton
'Sharing my novel with Gary was the most helpful and encouraging thing I could have done. I started out with a kernel of an idea and a couple of half-baked chapters, and Gary's intelligent, probing questions and thoughtful feedback helped me workshop it into something I was excited to write, and felt confident about. Gary helped me to approach my novel on both macro and micro levels: pushing me to evolve characters and situations, and also diligently proofreading for mistakes and inconsistencies.' - Helena Kealey
'Gary helped me to see the ways I was being held back in my work and introduced me to lots of concepts in fiction-writing I'd never considered, which were extremely helpful. I went for the Solid Read of 35,000 words and the lessons I learned were transferable to the whole book - in fact, I honestly couldn't have continued without it.' - Harriet Pearce
‘Gary knows his stuff! He took a lot of care looking through my work and offered thoughtful and very useful suggestions.’ - Yasmin Keyani
'Gary’s help has been invaluable to my writing process. He has a hawk eye for the technical stuff - slips in POV, the rhythm of sentences, etc., and his suggestions and insights have challenged and inspired me. With his guidance I’ve become a better writer; more confident and able to do what I want to do with words and much clearer about what it is I want to write.' - Gina Dunn
'Gary read my manuscript so far and made so many useful comments it opened my eyes to what I should have been doing all along - seeking to emotionally engage the reader, give them a reason for reading. For some reason this hadn't occurred to me and it was worth the admission price just for that!' - Jacob Bennett
'This is a fantastic service. I don't know if I'm ever going to get this novel finished but I know I stand way more of a chance now than I did before getting his useful, encouraging and insightful comments. I heartily recommend.' - Grahame Friede
'Encouraging, very patient and friendly. Gary has a good way of explaining things which makes sense.' - Maria
SELECTED PRAISE FOR GARY DEXTER IN THE NATIONAL PRESS
For Natural Desire in Healthy Women
'Engaging and occasionally hilarious, equal parts social satire and jokes about fluids'
GUARDIAN
'Deft and very funny ... features, among other real-life figures, a manically laughing Gandhi, a preposterous H. G. Wells and, most unexpectedly, some very amusing appearances by T. S. Eliot. Bravo!'
DAILY MAIL
For Why Not Catch-21?
'There are a few books that try to be funny about literature and don't ever really get it right; Dexter always does'
Nick Lezard, GUARDIAN
For The Oxford Despoiler
'Wonderful ... stuffed with period detail, literary gags and cameo parts (including a monosyllabic Oscar Wilde). The whole thing is a delight'
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
'Grossly entertaining. Smutty, silly, very funny, and definitely not breakfast-table reading'
OBSERVER
'Deliciously silly, but crafted with such wry historical precision that Conan Doyle himself would struggle to deduce he was a parody'
TIME OUT
'Sheer comic genius'
MICHAEL BYWATER
'By proving that every mystery has, at its root, some outlandish perversion, St. Liver wittily shows off a culture in which sex was unmentionable and yet omnipresent. A warm and cleverly observed pastiche of the Victorian detective genre, fuelled by affection rather than by disdain'
SPECTATOR
'A masterful, perfectly pitched, nuanced and fiendishly funny Victorian detective memoir'
EROTIC REVIEW
'So well written that the parody never gets in the way of the expertly woven yarns. The language is precise, witty, and an excellent homage to the period'
THE CHAP
'Dexter proves a master, treading the fine line between good humour and bad taste with the greatest of sleaze'
DAILY TELEGRAPH
For All the Materials for a Midnight Feast
'A beautifully crafted work of fiction, graduating from a low-key opening into a real page-turner . . . One of the year's most impressive -- and affecting -- debuts'
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
'As a first-time writer, my novel was, of course, full of rookie errors. When Gary edited part of it, he advised on the use of themes, suspense and conflict, and, most importantly for me, as I had four narrators, point of view. Gary's editing much improved my writing. He is patient, considerate and painstaking. Highly recommended.' - Jacqueline Gittens
'Gary has been an invaluable resource to me, combining a forensic attention to detail - on everything from themes, plot and timelines to character, POV and authenticity - with a patient and nurturing approach. He has not only been extremely knowledgeable on the craft of writing, but has also always asked the right questions, getting me to examine my project more closely, and thanks to Gary's guidance, I now know what it is I really want to write. ' - Becky McNaughton
'Sharing my novel with Gary was the most helpful and encouraging thing I could have done. I started out with a kernel of an idea and a couple of half-baked chapters, and Gary's intelligent, probing questions and thoughtful feedback helped me workshop it into something I was excited to write, and felt confident about. Gary helped me to approach my novel on both macro and micro levels: pushing me to evolve characters and situations, and also diligently proofreading for mistakes and inconsistencies.' - Helena Kealey
'Gary helped me to see the ways I was being held back in my work and introduced me to lots of concepts in fiction-writing I'd never considered, which were extremely helpful. I went for the Solid Read of 35,000 words and the lessons I learned were transferable to the whole book - in fact, I honestly couldn't have continued without it.' - Harriet Pearce
‘Gary knows his stuff! He took a lot of care looking through my work and offered thoughtful and very useful suggestions.’ - Yasmin Keyani
'Gary’s help has been invaluable to my writing process. He has a hawk eye for the technical stuff - slips in POV, the rhythm of sentences, etc., and his suggestions and insights have challenged and inspired me. With his guidance I’ve become a better writer; more confident and able to do what I want to do with words and much clearer about what it is I want to write.' - Gina Dunn
'Gary read my manuscript so far and made so many useful comments it opened my eyes to what I should have been doing all along - seeking to emotionally engage the reader, give them a reason for reading. For some reason this hadn't occurred to me and it was worth the admission price just for that!' - Jacob Bennett
'This is a fantastic service. I don't know if I'm ever going to get this novel finished but I know I stand way more of a chance now than I did before getting his useful, encouraging and insightful comments. I heartily recommend.' - Grahame Friede
'Encouraging, very patient and friendly. Gary has a good way of explaining things which makes sense.' - Maria
SELECTED PRAISE FOR GARY DEXTER IN THE NATIONAL PRESS
For Natural Desire in Healthy Women
'Engaging and occasionally hilarious, equal parts social satire and jokes about fluids'
GUARDIAN
'Deft and very funny ... features, among other real-life figures, a manically laughing Gandhi, a preposterous H. G. Wells and, most unexpectedly, some very amusing appearances by T. S. Eliot. Bravo!'
DAILY MAIL
For Why Not Catch-21?
'There are a few books that try to be funny about literature and don't ever really get it right; Dexter always does'
Nick Lezard, GUARDIAN
For The Oxford Despoiler
'Wonderful ... stuffed with period detail, literary gags and cameo parts (including a monosyllabic Oscar Wilde). The whole thing is a delight'
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH
'Grossly entertaining. Smutty, silly, very funny, and definitely not breakfast-table reading'
OBSERVER
'Deliciously silly, but crafted with such wry historical precision that Conan Doyle himself would struggle to deduce he was a parody'
TIME OUT
'Sheer comic genius'
MICHAEL BYWATER
'By proving that every mystery has, at its root, some outlandish perversion, St. Liver wittily shows off a culture in which sex was unmentionable and yet omnipresent. A warm and cleverly observed pastiche of the Victorian detective genre, fuelled by affection rather than by disdain'
SPECTATOR
'A masterful, perfectly pitched, nuanced and fiendishly funny Victorian detective memoir'
EROTIC REVIEW
'So well written that the parody never gets in the way of the expertly woven yarns. The language is precise, witty, and an excellent homage to the period'
THE CHAP
'Dexter proves a master, treading the fine line between good humour and bad taste with the greatest of sleaze'
DAILY TELEGRAPH
For All the Materials for a Midnight Feast
'A beautifully crafted work of fiction, graduating from a low-key opening into a real page-turner . . . One of the year's most impressive -- and affecting -- debuts'
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH