Thriller / Espionage / Suspense
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Editors
Before STACEY DONOVAN became a professional editor more than 20 years ago, she worked in a literary agency where she learned how to say no more often than yes, and include reasons why. A stint in advertising followed, teaching her to tell it short and sweet, meet deadlines, and most important: never give up. Donovan is a six-time published book author of both fiction and non-fiction. She has edited or ghostwritten more than a dozen published books for her clients. Two became New York Times Bestsellers, and another nominated for Best First Novel by International Thriller Writers. She is experienced in many genres: Contemporary/Mainstream; Caper/Detective; Erotica; Gay/Lesbian; Literary Fiction; Mystery; Psychological Thriller; Suspense; Women's Fiction; Young Adult; Memoir/Autobiography; Creative Nonfiction. Specialties
Donovan is a writing coach, mentor, collaborator and ghostwriter. She has published dozens of non-fiction articles on design and art, and specialized in celebrity interviews with experts in their field. She is also a Publishing and Social Media strategist.
SHERRY GERSHON has performed developmental and intensive line-editing for over 250 books, primarily novels by new authors, and she contributed the chapter entitled "The Book Doctor is In: The Seven Most Common First Novel Problems and How to Avoid Them" in THE PORTABLE WRITERS' CONFERENCE (Quill Driver 2007). A former bookstore owner, Sherry knows what sells: Her own books have been published by Forge/Tor, Viking and Warner; her first book was nominated for the PEN West USA Literary Award for Nonfiction, and her first novel was aired as a TV movie. Some of her editing clients have subsequently sold their books to major publishers, including Knopf, Harper-Collins, Berkley-Putnam, St. Martin's Press, Greenleaf Book Group Press, and Jossey-Bass. She particularly enjoys working on mysteries, thrillers, adventure novels, and speculative fiction/science fiction, but has also had experience with young adult novels (two YA novels she edited were published by Knopf), memoirs, and both contemporary and historical fiction (including an historical published by St. Martin’s Press). “THE BLOODIEST QUEEN will be my thirty-third published book; I've grown lazy and jaded and had thought there was little anyone could teach me, but I wound up being blown away by Sherry’s editorial acumen. She understood all the nuances of the scene in question better than I did — and pointed out exactly what wasn't working, and why. She then gave me a suggestion which was nothing short of brilliant in terms of making the whole thing work beautifully. Trust me, Sherry is an honest, top-notch professional editor. Whether you're an aspiring writer or an established professional, if you're writing a novel and could use some help, please consider Sherry.” — Jeanne Kalogridis “Sherry worked with me on my manuscript for my novel Glint, published by St. Martin's Press. I do not hesitate to say that without her help and suggestions, I might still be trying to figure out what I should be doing. In other words, her editing accelerated my learning curve by at least a year, if not more. I don't know how to put a value on it, except to call it immeasurable. I am grateful for having had the opportunity to work with her and I hope to work with her again in the future.” — Joseph Valentinetti The Seven Most Common Novel Problems and How to Avoid Them
DON McCLAIRE uses forty years of editing and writing experience to help both fiction and non-fiction writers polish their work for publication. He’s spent his career as a magazine editor (11 years), award-winning public relations executive (six years), head of his own marketing communications firm (21 years), professional editor, and writing instructor. He’s written and placed hundreds of press releases and trade magazine articles, and has produced three non-fiction “how-to” books, two young-adult novels, and four Donna McClaire-bylined romance novels, all published. McClaire’s work won him The Public Relations Association’s highest award, the Silver Anvil, plus two Golden Trumpets from the Chicago Public Relations Associarion. McClaire knows firsthand, after editing for others for years and judging numerous writing contest entries, the many mistakes unpublished writers make. He spreads this knowledge by conducting workshops at weekend writing conferences and teaching two online writing classes: Editor-Proof That First Chapter for WriterUniv.com, and 21 Steps to Fog-Free Writing, at WritersOnlineClasses.com. He'll edit your manuscript, correcting things you may have been doing wrong your whole writing career. Areas of focus include appearance, hooks, plot, motivation, dialogue, setting, point of view, research, conflict, and voice. He'll also edit weak verb forms, strip away author intrusions, identify character filters, ban redundancies, eliminate foggy phrases, correct passive voice sentences, slash misused and overused words, and correct other writing bugaboos. These are all problems an acquisitions editor or literary agent won't take the time or effort to tell you about, but they could keep you from being published! "I’m going back and redoing everything I’ve everwritten…ever! When you edited the first chapter of my latest manuscript, you opened my eyes to a whole new world—and that’s way too cheesy to be an exaggeration! I can’t thank you enough for the See Don's articles: McClaire Tackles Tough Editing Problems Don't Be an Information Dumper JAMES POWELL is "a good literary surgeon," as one of his accomplished clients noted. As an editor of fiction and non-fiction, he views manuscripts with a broad, comprehensive vision and an eye for detail-for "the right word in the right place." Powell's editors will tell you that his books need no editing, as Powell is, himself, an editor. He will read your fiction with an eye to making it believable and your non-fiction with a knack for making it both convincing and engaging. His books and short stories have been translated into many languages and are known throughout the world. His list of publications includes The Tao of Symbols (Morrow 1982), Energy and Eros (Morrow 1985), The Prentice Hall Global Employment Guide (Prentice Hall 1983), Mandalas: The Dynamics of Vedic Symbolism (Sterling 1980), Derrida for Beginners (Writers and Readers 1996), Postmodernism for Beginners (Writers and Readers 1998), Eastern Philosophy for Beginners (2000), and Deconstruction for Beginners (2005), and Slow Love: A Polynesian Pillow Book (2008). His short story "The Silence of the Hummingbird" was published in Spanish in Revista Katharsis in Malaga, Spain and his journalism has appeared in the Santa Barbara Independent and Montecito Journal.
"The turnaround time was excellent. The work was fabulous!!" Nova University student. "His editing really streamlined my ideas. Mr. Powell's service offered much needed support." ARLENE ROBINSON has developed and edited 450+ full-length manuscripts in a variety of genres since 1996. Her clients include women's fiction author Angie Daniels, sociology professor Joyce Tang and college-success guide author Josh Richardson. The true crime memoir The Twelfth Man Standing received Turner Broadcasting Network's Trumpet Award in 2002, and 'PRESSIONS: Memoirs of a Southern Cat by Edith M. Holmes won the YOUnity Reviewers Guild Top Honor Award. Arlene welcomes new or published authors as clients, and enjoys helping journalistic, business and academic writers transform their writings into marketable, polished products for mainstream readers. While not a professional humor writer, she could be. Arlene lives in the Deep South with her probation officer/journalist husband and two almost-adult sons, and looks forward to the day when her human offspring venture into the world as independently as she envisions her writings springing onto bookshelves.
"Arlene is everything you want in an editor: thorough, timely and accommodating. If it weren't for her, I certainly would not have landed a publisher for my manuscript. Not only was her editing topnotch, her advice on everything about publishing was very helpful. Arlene really cares about the work she does and it shows!" — Josh Richardson, Ahead of the Pack: Balancing Your Way to Personal Success in College, Thomson Delmar Learning
Editor of New York Times Best-Sellers A former in-house editor at Pocket Books—a division of Simon & Schuster, the premiere New York City publisher of commercial and trade fiction—an outside editor for Harper Collins/Avon, and a reader for The Literary Guild and The Rhapsody Book Club, Caroline’s particular expertise is historical and contemporary romance, romantic comedy, and romantic suspense. Carla Neggers, Karen Robards and Andrea Kane—three New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today bestselling authors—had books edited by Caroline. She also specializes in suspense thrillers, crime fiction, amateur sleuths, sagas, inspirational romance, westerns, urban fantasy and African-American popular fiction. She holds workshops on the writer’s conference circuit and speaks at numerous venues to help advance the cause of popular fiction for women. Known for her accessibility, Caroline is available to answer any questions a client may have; from a simple inquiry regarding point of view switching, to a larger issue regarding career path. She is a hands-on editor, likes to put her blue pen to work, and enjoys brainstorming with writers. She is a mentor, a guide and a source of vast knowledge on the subject of popular fiction. Caroline offers content and developmental editing with commentary; minor line-editing if necessary, submission help, and career consulting. A good editor is counselor, advocate, guide, parent, friend, and teacher. Caroline was my editor at Atria Books, a division of Pocket Books. With her determined guidance, I published three novels that were well-received, and of which I am still very proud. Writing isn’t done in a vacuum. Good writing is dependent upon the close relationship of an author with a professional editor. Caroline helped me to hone my writing skills—where I might have thought the story was being told well, she pointed out where it wasn’t. When I went off the rails, she set me back on track. When it was good, she was a cheerleader. Caroline held me to a high standard; and, in exchange, she shepherded my books through the publication process and out into the world. Any writer who is serious about his or her work would be lucky to have Caroline as an editor. She is professional, knowledgeable, and dedicated to working with writers to achieve their goals. I count myself incredibly blessed to have been one of Caroline’s authors. -- Susan Wilson, author of Hawke’s Cove, Cameo Lake, and The Fortune-Teller’s Daughter. “Caroline. and I worked together as an author/editor team for a dozen years. She is, by far, the finest editorial partner I've ever had the good fortune to work with. Her instincts about how to make the book the best it can be are dead-on, and her willingness and abilities to achieve that end (without making the author feel that the book is no longer his/her own) are amazing. She has experience in a broad range of genres, and she puts that experience to work whole-heartedly. There is no one I would more strongly recommend to you if you want to make your book the best it can be, and if you want the best chances of becoming published or further published!” -- NY Times bestselling author, Andrea Kane |
Submission Cut and paste the questions and answers into an e-mail: Alternates You may send your initial submission to all addresses to make sure it's received. Required: A sample is required to receive an estimate Along with a sample, the following information is required. Ignore questions that do not apply to your project (e.g., footnotes). (01) Word count of complete project (under "Tools" in MS Word): (02) Put your 100-word (approx) synopsis/description here (or attach): (03) Describe your genre and topic (e.g., nonfiction/self-help, science fiction, horror, romance, mystery, Western, young adult, children, poetry, Christian, creative nonfiction, literary): (04) Deadline date, if any, for return of complete project. (Please be realistic. Remember that professional editors usually have a project in process.): (05) If you have no immediate deadline, when do you want to start the editing process?: (For instance: within 30 days, within 60 days, within 90 days, 4-12 months) (06) Level of editing desired/expected --
(07) Number of charts/tables/pictures (if any): (08) Writing style/format manual (e.g., Chicago Manual, APA, MLA), if applicable: (09) Number of footnotes/references: (10) Do you have a contract with an agent or publisher?: (11) Do you plan to self-publish?: (12) What is your budget for the entire project? (13) Your name: (14) E-mail addresses: (15) Day/evening phone numbers (required -- in case the response to your e-mail bounces or the editors need clarification regarding the scope of service needed, deadline, etc.): (16) City, State, Country (or time zone): (17) The name(s) of the editor(s)/writer(s) you'd like to contact. (18) Do you want the coordinator to reroute your submission if you requested editors/writers who (a) are not available by your deadline date, (b) do not handle the type of material you submitted, and/or (c) do not perform the service(s) you want? (19) How did you learn about our service?: (20) Attach the first 50 pages of your manuscript (include prologue/preface, proposal, query) Notes: No hidden charges To learn more about the rates charged by professional editors, please see: Editorial Freelancers Association It is a mistaken notion that freelance editors work "on spec" (speculation) with no payment to the editor. It is basically asking the editor to work for free. There's no guarantee that a book will see a profit (or even be published). The editors posted here do not work on spec. Note: Questions about price and turnaround times cannot be given over the phone or via chat.
Contact live support if you do not receive a response within three hours (M-F, 9a-7p central). Expect longer response times if you submitted after U.S. business hours or on weekends. Help2012 at Airmail.net You may also leave voice mail for the network coordinator: 469-789-3030. This number is for verification of e-mail submissions only. Please be as complete as possible in representing your project's scope and size so you will receive the most accurate estimate. Disclaimer: Your agreement, whether oral or written, is with your editor or publishing consultant, not with the editing network as a whole or its coordinator. |
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CAROLINE T. has been editing popular fiction for 20 years and has 200+ novels under her belt. Her ability to see the big picture, combined with an in-depth knowledge of today’s publishing market, makes her an invaluable partner in the editing and publishing process.