Editors

CARRIE ANDREWS is an honors graduate with a BA in English. She has worked in the publishing industry for several years as a project editor, copyeditor, and proofreader, with specialties in fiction, entertainment, and college-level textbooks. She works with companies such as Reader's Digest, Random House, Inc., Kensington Publishing, and Wadsworth/Thomson Learning. A bibliophile her entire life, Carrie has a natural talent for language. Her avid reading has helped her develop a sharp eye for detail and has honed her sense of flow. While copyediting, she strikes that delicate balance between maintaining an author's voice and making the language clear and vibrant. She is also a meticulous proofreader and fact checker. Clients have called her work "superb" and "astute." Authors enjoy Carrie's personable style and find her easy to work with.

• Copyediting, proofreading
• Formatting: Chicago Manual of Style, 15^th ed, American Medical Association, 9^th ed, American Psychological Association, 5^th ed
• Fiction: African American, inspirational, thrillers, suspense, historical, fantasy, romance, and the classics
• Non-Fiction: World history, world politics, American government, singing, psychology, philosophy, speech, physical chemistry, oral history, self-help, alternative medicine articles, scientific journals!
• Entertainment: Video game strategy

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MICHAEL CARR has edited or copyedited 300+ fiction and nonfiction titles for major publishers and authors. Notable nonfiction authors include Bernard Goldberg (NY Times best-seller Arrogance), CNN anchor Lou Dobbs (Exporting America), Rev. Al Sharpton (Al on America), and CNN Crossfire host Tucker Carlson (Politicians, Partisans, and Parasites). Michael edits most fiction genres but specializes in literary and historical, crime/mystery, drama, fantasy, and science fiction.

Notable fiction authors include Brad Meltzer (#3 NY Times best-seller The Zero Game), NY Times Notable Book of the Year author Archer Mayor (The Surrogate Thief, Gatekeeper, The Second Mouse), crime grandmaster Donald Westlake (the Dortmunder series), and the fantasy master Michael Moorcock (The White Wolf’s Son).

Michael has also edited eight published volumes on world affairs and some twenty self-help books (medical, psychological, personal growth, and business) and has translated a dozen novels and other literary works from Spanish to English. 

• Substantive editing, copyediting, rewriting, ghostwriting
• Fiction and nonfiction: literary, how-to, psychology, self-help, crime fiction, adult, young adult, drama, fantasy, sci-fi, true crime, international relations, current affairs, nature and science, military history, forensic science, travel

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STAVRA KETCHMARK has edited more than 200 fiction titles while working for major publishing houses, as well as numerous medical, technical, and scientific trade, academic, and professional titles. She specializes in a variety of fiction genres, including romance, historical, mystery, suspense, crime, horror, fantasy, science fiction, and young adult. Her nonfiction specialties include all medical disciplines, nursing, allied health, alternative health, political science/politics, history, journalism, religion, parenting, and cooking.

Stavra has also helped a broad range of corporate clients fine-tune their annual reports, advertisements, websites, and other marketing materials to achieve the image they are seeking.

Her edited manuscripts have been published by Wadsworth, Mosby, Signet, Roc, NAL Trade, Thompson Delmar Learning, and Onyx.

• Developmental editing
• Line editing
• Rewriting
• Copyediting, proofreading
• Critiques
• Submission materials (query letters, synopses, cover letters)
• Fiction: romance, historical, mystery, suspense, crime, horror, fantasy, science fiction, literary
• Nonfiction: Medical, nursing, alternative health, politics, history, journalism, religion/spiritual, parenting, business, cooking

"Simply put, Stavra is a PRO! She has been editing my work for over a year and I find her professional, accurate and easy to work with. Quite frankly, I don't know what I would do without her." —John Bishop, Executive Director, Accent On Success, www.TeachingMoments.com

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LORNA LYNCH has over twenty-five years of developmental editing experience and has worked on more than a hundred books to date. She also co-owned a monthly newspaper and wrote hundreds of articles. She has a tremendous instinct for what "works" and what doesn't in both fiction and non-fiction, and has guided numerous authors to publishing success. Her primary goal is to see that writing with some potential becomes writing with great potential, and she works closely with authors to achieve that goal.

Her area of expertise is character-driven fiction; however, she has edited books of all stripes, including political commentary, how-to books, humor, mysteries, romance novels, children's books, young adult fiction, detective novels, and psychological thrillers.

• Developmental editing
• Fiction: young adult, contemporary/mainstream, detective/crime, humor, literary fiction, mystery, romance, women’s fiction, short stories, thriller/espionage
• Nonfiction: creative nonfiction, memoir/biography, self-help/how-to, psychology, politics

"I was very happy with the job Lorna did for me. The edit was very sharp and the critique very detailed. She broke down the manuscript from top to bottom and all of her points were excellent. She not only focused on technical structure, but also the substance of the story. She pointed out many things that I would not have discovered on my own and she looked at the manuscript not only as an editor, but as a reader--which is very important. I would definitely use Lorna again as my editor." – Derek Lively, Diary of the Devil's Son

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Pulse-pounding high adventure, painstaking attention to detail, carefully drawn characters who step off the page and into your life ...
STEPHEN and ANNE MacEACHERN are the authors of over 81 internationally published novels (with sales in the tens of millions of copies) and numerous short stories. As a science fiction author, Stephen is best known for his postapocalyptic series, The Survivalist. Their books have been published in English (USA, Canada, Great Britain), French, Japanese, Spanish, German, Serbo-Croatian, Russian, and Portuguese, as general fiction, adventure, and science fiction and fantasy. They were commissioned by Dino DeLaurentiis to write two screenplays (unproduced). Their Horror Writers Award nominated short story, “Silent Pace,” was twice optioned as a film property and—the third time the possible charm—they have just inked another option deal for this property. Stephen has also written over a thousand articles, columns, features, and interviews for magazines and newspapers. He is considered a leading expert on concealed-carry techniques, personal small arms, and personal-edged weapons. He has lectured extensively before general audiences, police, civic and writing groups on these and various other topics. His articles have appeared in magazines such as Gun World, Satellite Orbit, Writer’s Digest and over 20 more.  

As book editors, they look at the book as a whole and as a series of inter-related parts. It’s not uncommon for a writer to be strong in one area (e.g., character development) and weaker in another (e.g., setting).

• Is the hook at the beginning?
• Is the action shown/lived rather than told?
• Is the dialogue realistic?
• Is each character's motivation logical?
• Are you engaging the senses?
• Is the point of view consistent and clear to the reader?
• Is the plot moving well or do you have places that drag?
• Does each chapter end with a page turner?

The MacEacherns' goal is the same as the writer's: to get the manuscript inside the publisher's door and to get the royalty check in the writer's hands.

When they are not editing books, writing books or writing magazine articles, they are reading books, from biography to science fiction and everything in between. They have interacted with some of America’s most well-known authors and been published with many of New York’s top houses. They’ve been around the block, you might say—but always with a book!  

Specialties: science fiction and fantasy, action/military/adventure, speculative fiction, thrillers/espionage, horror/vampires, detective/crime.

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Ernesto Mestre is an editor who can bring the working novelist's eye to your manuscript, helping you to get it in the best hape for submission to agents and editors.  He is a Professor of Fiction at the Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn College MFA programs, two of the top-tier programs in the country, and has been working independently as an editor for over 15 years. Ernesto has published two novels, The Lazarus Rumba and The Second Death of Única Aveyano, and one forthcoming next year, Sacrificio, and has been awarded the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship for his fiction, as well as the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Fiction. He has also translated four novels from Spanish. As an editor and novelist, he is finely attuned to and very meticulous about bringing out strengths in a manuscript while remaining true to the writer's vision and voice.

He is available for a range of editing choices:

Proofreading
Copyediting
Developmental Editing
Craft Critique
Ghostwriting
Publication Package (one of the above, with synopsis and query letter)

Available to work on any fiction or nonfiction memoir manuscripts.

"As writers, we invariably get to the point on a project when we lose objectivity. Despite the feedback of writer friends, we find ourselves stumbling through the smaze of indecision. We need impartial eyes to help us move forward. ... Ernesto's copious notes and comments showed that he understood some aspects of my memoir better than I had. He pointed out connections that needed to be brought to the fore, and to characters that needed to be more fleshed out to make the reader invest more emotionally in them and in my book. He has a good ear for what muddles a line, without compromising the writer’s voice and vision. His line edits are like good plastic surgery: effective but subtle. ... In this difficult economic climate, writers must spend our money wisely. If we’re going to pay an editor, we must choose one who will help us do for our manuscripts what we couldn’t achieve on our own. Mestre delivers that and then some; he engages your text with both passion and compassion." Dean Kostos

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KEVIN D. MILLER specializes in editing fiction of all kinds—including screenplays—but he has a particular fondness for science fiction and fantasy. As an editor and instructor of creative writing, Kevin has helped dozens of new and experienced writers hone their craft and prepare their manuscripts for publication. Many of Kevin's clients, such as Spencer Tillman of CBS Sports, have gone on to lucrative publishing deals with Thomas Nelson, Lyon Hudson, Crown and William B. Eerdman's. Clients appreciate Kevin's extensive knowledge of story structure, his attention to detail and his knowledge of the marketplace.

A professional writer, screenwriter and editor for the past 12 years, Kevin has worked as both a staff writer and as a freelancer. During that time, he has amassed numerous writing and editing credits. These include over 40 published books, including: Scoring in the Red Zone (Ghostwriter, Thomas Nelson Publishers; World's Easiest Pocket Guide to Buying Your First Home" (with Larry Burkett, Northfield publishing)

Kevin is also the co-founder of Fresh Wind Press and Clarion: Journal of Spirituality and Justice. He has taught creative writing at various colleges and conferences across North America.

Services:

• Script coverage
• Manuscript critiques
• Developmental editing
• Structural editing
• Line editing / copyediting
• Writing assistance
• Ghost writing
• Market consulting (preparation of query letters, complete book proposals, writing samples)

Genres

• Science fiction
• Fantasy
• Crime/Thriller
• Detective/mystery
• Romance
• Horror
• Literary fiction
• Historical fiction
• Children's/Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction
• Christian fiction (extensive experience in the Christian marketplace)
• Self help/How to non-fiction

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DORRIE O'BRIEN focuses on mysteries, science fiction, fantasy, thrillers, adventure, and horror titles. She has considerable experience with trade non-fiction. As Editorial Director of her own publishing house, Dorrie published almost 100 titles, garnering several awards in "Best Of" categories. Almost half of the titles were bought for paperback reprints, and two were optioned for TV/movies. She has invaluable knowledge about the industry, the type of people who run it, how to work within it, and tips for getting your foot in the door. She’s reviewed, evaluated, and edited thousands of manuscripts through the years, and uses that knowledge to help her clients produce results-driven manuscripts, query letters, and synopses. She works particularly hard at staying in the author’s “voice,” making sure the facts and dialogue match the time period in which the book is set, and “losing” excess verbiage. She's a good mentor, hard worker, and in many cases, has ultimately become a good friend.

• Book doctor--fiction. Action-military, contemporary, mainstream, detective, crime, history, literary fiction, mystery, romance, women's fiction, science fiction, horror, fantasy, thrillers, espionage, Westerns
• Copy editing, developmental editing
• Manuscript evaluations, critiques, proofreader
• Manuscript layout (PDF)

"I am absolutely sure I wouldn't have gotten the publishing contract if it hadn't been for Dorrie's evaluation and editing. What an enormous find she was for me!" Shayne Easson, Wrath of Zar.

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ARLENE ROBINSON has developed and edited 200+ 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. She also takes pride in helping non-native-English writers produce topnotch fiction and nonfiction works.

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.

• Substantive and developmental editing, copyediting
• Fiction and nonfiction critiques
• Book layout and graphics
• ESL Style Conversions ("Americanization")

"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

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