About
I’m an editor. I used to work with the wonderful Cornerstones Literary Consultancy, but nowadays I have more work than I can handle for myself. I’ve lived almost equally in Canada, the US and Britain, and I’m fully conversant in all three versions of English.
I have an MA(Hons) in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University, so I know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of the harshest critiques, to wrestle with the fine points of craft. I know how it feels to face a blank page when nothing will come, and how it feels to write as fast as I can to get it all down before it slips away. I know what it’s like to hone and polish and taper… and then to do it all over again, and again, and again, when it’s still not quite right. I know how it feels to be a writer, but I also know how to step away.
I’ve been an editor since 2004. I started in business editing, working as a proofreader. I began copyediting in 2006 and then moved into fiction copyediting in 2008 and developmental editing in 2010. I edit novels primarily, but I also still work occasionally with nonfiction texts, short stories and, sometimes, poetry. The principles are essentially the same, for vision and voice, narrative and structure; and while there aren’t any absolute rules, there are best practises and useful guidelines. And that’s where I come in. I can’t tell you how to write your book, but I can help you say what you want to say. I can tell you what’s working and what isn’t – and why or why not.
Every piece of writing is different and demands something different of its writer and of its readers. Every piece has its own internal logic, and that’s what must work. Its themes, plot, structure and characterisation, its voice and tone and viewpoint, must all work in union, each pulling its weight, fitting together, drawing the reader inexorably through the experience of story.
Perhaps you’re going the traditional route and hoping to interest an agent. Or maybe you’re planning to self publish, and if so, good for you. Whichever way you go, don’t go it alone. The competition is ferocious, and the writers rising to the top are the ones paying attention – serious attention – to detail. The kind of detail that distinguishes the very best editors.
If you have a work in progress you’d like me to look at, drop me a line. I have a full calendar, so it’s often a good idea to arrange this sooner rather than later. A few weeks or a month before you plan to finish a draft, let’s have a chat about it and pencil in some dates. I look forward to hearing from you.