I became an editor when I realized the language skills I value require constant maintenance. Delving into syntactic minutiae, comparing the advice of various style guides, and looking up words allowed me to continually hone my fundamentals. I earned my way through my MFA program working for Alaska Quarterly Review, where I copyedited renowned literary authors including Grace Paley, Marie Sheppard Williams, Nancy Lord, and Dorianne Laux.
I pivoted toward developmental editing and acquisitions when I took a post as the nonfiction editor for Drunken Boat: A Journal of Art and Literature and joined the staff at The Editorial Department, an editing firm with two generations’ worth of experience and pedigree going back to Stein and Day Publishing. I also continued to earn my stripes in genre fiction, attending the Viable Paradise and Odyssey workshops, which helped me gain a deeper understanding of reader expectations in speculative fiction.
At this point, I focus on copyediting for publishers and work with a small number of independent clients, preferably through agent referral. Full-service clients receive close attention and consultation regarding all aspects of their writing, from manuscript revision to pitchcraft. I take on writers of mainstream/literary fiction, feminist fiction, speculative fiction, and creative nonfiction as developmental editing clients. Clients of mine have published pieces we developed in Guernica, American Literary Review, and Evening Street Review, to name a few. My independent clients have sold projects we developed to publishers including Random House and McFarland. Works I edited for publishers and literary journals have been nominated for the Hugo Award and Pushcart Prize. In an acquisitions capacity, I’ve been honored to work with winners of the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize.
A symbiotic relationship persists between my writing and editing. When I’m not aiding clients, I continue to write and publish my own work, which has earned critical praise and a Pushcart Prize nomination. Remaining engaged with the artistic process ensures familiarity with the challenges of writing and anchors me in a space of compassion for my clients. In turn, editing brings to my writing life an internalized sense of rules and conventions, the better to bend them with.
