Author of Foxlowe and The Light at the End of the Day

Finish your novel, with a published novelist beside you.

I'm Eleanor. I've taken two novels from first idea to bookshop shelf, and now I help other writers do the same. One to one mentoring online, anywhere in the UK, and small, friendly classes here in Stroud.

Published by Fourth Estate and Penguin. Reviewed in The Guardian and The Irish Times. Praised by fellow novelists.

Eleanor Wasserberg, novelist and writing mentor
Foxlowe book coverThe Light at the End of the Day book cover

Reviewed and featured in

  • The Guardian
  • The Irish Times
  • Vox
  • The Jewish Chronicle
  • World Literature Today
  • The Scotsman

Praised by novelists Kate Hamer, Rachel Hore, Megan Bradbury, Nick Bradley and Rachel Edwards

Will lure you in, then cut to the killThe Guardian on Foxlowe

Eleanor Wasserberg

“I know what agents and publishers are looking for. I can’t promise you a book deal, nobody honestly can, but I’m very well connected in the publishing world, and I’ll make sure your novel is ready before it goes out.”

Eleanor Wasserberg, published by Fourth Estate and Penguin

Two quick questions

Where are you with your novel?

Every writer gets stuck in a different place. Tell me where you are and I'll show you the support that will move you on fastest, whether that's a class, a single session or regular mentoring.

Eleanor signing a copy of her novel in a bookshop

Question 1 of 2

Which of these sounds most like you?

Two ways to work with me

Write with me online, or in a room in Stroud.

Eleanor signing one of her novels

One to one mentoring

Personal support for your novel, wherever you live

From a single 90 minute session to get you unstuck, to regular mentoring and help getting ready for agents. All online, so you can work with me from anywhere in the UK and beyond.

See mentoring options
Eleanor's writing group smiling around a table in Stroud

Classes in Stroud

Small, friendly groups that get you writing

Saturday workshops and six week courses at The Subscription Rooms and The Trinity Rooms. No experience needed.

See the class calendar
Foxlowe by Eleanor WasserbergEleanor WasserbergThe Light at the End of the Day by Eleanor Wasserberg

Praise for Eleanor Wasserberg

  • Will lure you in, then cut to the kill

    The Guardian

  • Mesmerising. It completely sweeps you up from beginning to end.

    Kate Hamer author of The Doll Funeral

  • Gorgeous and seductive… I was completely gripped

    Flynn Berry author of Under the Harrow

  • A richly atmospheric gothic debut

    The Irish Times

  • Wasserberg is a natural storyteller with hypnotic descriptive powers

    Megan Bradbury author of Everyone is Watching

  • Psychologically acute and emotionally absorbing

    Rachel Hore author of Last Letter Home

  • A masterpiece of storytelling

    Nick Bradley author of The Cat and the City

  • Haunting, magnificent and deeply personal

    Rachel Edwards author of Darling

Fourth Estate Penguin

Eleanor Wasserberg

About the author

Eleanor Wasserberg is the author of two novels. Her debut, Foxlowe, the story of a girl raised in a cult on the moors, was published by Fourth Estate, the literary fiction imprint of HarperCollins, in 2016, and by Penguin in the United States, and was reviewed in The Guardian, The Irish Times and Vox.

Her second novel, The Light at the End of the Day, also published by Fourth Estate, follows a Polish Jewish family scattered by the Second World War.

She read English and Classics at Oxford and holds an MA in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia. She has appeared in conversation with the writers Kim Sherwood and Dan Richards. Her work has been featured in the UK, Ireland, the United States and Australia.

She teaches creative writing in Stroud and mentors novelists across the UK and beyond.

The road to publication

She has walked the road you want to walk.

Getting a novel published is a world with its own rules: what editors look for, how a manuscript changes once a publisher takes it on, what has to happen before a book reaches the shelves. Eleanor has been through it twice, with one of the most respected fiction publishers in the country.

  1. Oxford

    English and Classics

    A degree in how the great stories are built.

  2. University of East Anglia

    MA in Creative Writing

    The UK's best known writing course, where many of the country's novelists started.

  3. 2016

    Foxlowe, published by Fourth Estate

    The literary fiction imprint of HarperCollins took on her debut, in hardback, paperback, ebook and audiobook.

  4. United States

    Published by Penguin

    Foxlowe crossed the Atlantic, and was reviewed in the UK, Ireland, the US and Australia.

  5. Second novel

    The Light at the End of the Day

    Published by Fourth Estate again: a publisher coming back for a writer's next book.

What that means for your novel

  • She knows what an editor looks for on the first page, and why most submissions are put down.
  • She has been edited by a major publisher, so she knows the changes a book goes through before it is ready.
  • She knows how the industry works, from the submission letter to the launch, and can show you the way in.

See how she gets novels ready for agents

Google reviews

5.0

★★★★★

A perfect score from every writer who has reviewed her classes and mentoring

Read them on Google

  • I can't recommend highly enough the experience of working with Eleanor. She has a wonderful ability to help you develop your ideas while ensuring that your writing remains distinctly your own.

    James WatsonGoogle review

  • I learnt a great deal, and was able to apply this to the novel I was working on, which helped to improve it greatly. Eleanor's classes are also very enjoyable.

    J PGoogle review

  • Her guidance helped me unlock my ideas and start getting my novel onto paper. She's a great teacher, skilled at working with a group at different stages of their writing journey.

    John EastGoogle review

  • Highly informative, helpful and fun. I loved learning in a relaxed setting surrounded by other creatives. The sessions really helped me plan my novel.

    Erin PoppyWrite Your Novel course, Google review

  • An excellent blend of learning the craft, writing exercises and peer feedback. We progressed in our writing, learned from others and we had fun. The weekly biccies and tea were also most welcome!

    Emily YoungGoogle review

  • Eleanor brings so much fun energy to the classes, they flew by. Her writing experiences, knowledge and advice and tips are generously shared.

    Ceri GascoyneGoogle review

  • Her style is always supportive, positive, and upbeat. I found the classes were extremely useful, inspiring, and a lot of fun! Highly recommended!

    John NichollsGoogle review

What writers say

After two years of plotting my novel, I finally discovered Eleanor's novel diagnostic service, and I just wish I had discovered this earlier!

Kay BrassNovel Diagnostic

I learned more than I had done previously during a whole term at a prestigious university's Creative Writing MA (seriously!)

Emily YoungSummer of Writing workshop