Editing and Collaboration

I've been editing manuscripts for decades, having worked with a wide range of bestselling and award-winning writers over the years. I myself received the World Fantasy Award for Best Editor. Since leaving the corporate side of book publishing, I have edited dozens of books that have found homes at major publishing houses, including the national bestsellers A Travel Guide to Heaven by Anthony DeStefano, A Time to Betray by Reza Kahlili, and Phobos by Steve Alten.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My editorial philosophy is very simple: your manuscript is your manuscript. My job as an editor is to identify what you're trying to say, to point out where I believe you aren't saying it as effectively as you might, and to offer suggestions to help you make the work as strong as it can possibly be. You'll never hear me say something like, "Here's what I would do." After all, it really doesn't matter what I would do, does it? Your name is going on the book, not mine. 

 

In addition, I offer my editorial clients the full range of my extensive publishing and writing experience. Because I'm very much in the thick of the publishing business as the Publisher of The Story Plant and have a very active career as a writer being published by other houses, I stay closely connected to all sides of the industry. I welcome my clients to pick my brain. 

 

I take on only a handful of editorial projects, and I will not take on a project if I don't believe it has the potential to reach a significant readership.

 

I have also collaborated on a number of nonfiction books over the years, including the New York Times bestsellers The Element and Finding Your Element and the national bestsellers The Culture Code and Creative Schools. You can read more about those here, if you're interested. For obvious reasons, I'm even pickier about the collaboration projects I choose, but I am open to anything about which I feel passionate – and passion is something you should expect from anyone you collaborate with.

 

A NOTE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THESE PROJECTS AND THE STORY PLANT:

 

To avoid any conflict of interest, I will not consider any of my outside editorial or collaboration projects for publication on the Story Plant list. Therefore, if you come to me as an editorial or collaboration client, The Story Plant is not an option. For the same ethical reasons, I won't take a book rejected by The Story Plant as a freelance editor or collaborator. If you would prefer instead to submit your manuscript to The Story Plant (we only publish fiction), you can query me

 

You can contact me about editing or collaboration