Book Editor: Memoirs and Autobiography, Young Adult Fiction
Laurel Robertson, M.A., has been copy-editing and proofreading for more than 35 years. Since earning a master’s degree in writing and editing from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, she has worked on hundreds of books. Her clients have included G. P. Putnam’s Sons/Penguin, Philomel, Scholastic, Random House, and Workman, as well as independent authors. Although she enjoys a range of genres and subject matter, she especially likes the refreshing authenticity of young adult fiction, memoir, and autobiographical writing.
Laurel has worked on dozens of young adult and tween titles ranging from the best-selling Between Shades of Gray, a story of survival in a Soviet work camp; to the humorous but poignant Ethel Is Hot: LOL!!, about cyberbullying; and from Alex Rider adventures to the Redwall Abbey fantasy series. Her work on memoirs and autobiographies has encompassed such themes as transracial adoption, growing up gay in the small-town South, and living and working abroad.
Laurel is dedicated to helping make manuscripts flow smoothly so that readers aren’t distracted by awkward cadence, repetition, wrong word usage, inconsistencies, or myriad other details. She looks and “listens” for anything that takes the reader out of the story—from a vague spinach-caught-in-the-teeth sense that something is wrong to the jarring sensation of being whacked upside the head. As a seasoned reader, writer, and wordsmith, she has developed a finely tuned sense of when something seems amiss with a factual or historical detail, and flags it for the author. Her goal is always for a writer’s work to be presented in its very best light. If she’s done her job well, nobody but the author will know she touched the manuscript.
After more than three decades of polishing people’s writing, Laurel still loves helping authors tell their stories in the way that is most true to their own voices and clear to their readers. Upon receipt of a manuscript, she reads it closely to ensure overall sense and consistency, flagging any gaps in logic and inconsistencies in plot, descriptions, and time. Perhaps you have been working on your book for several months, or even years. It’s easy to inadvertently change a character’s hair color when you wrote chapter 2 six years ago and chapter 9 last month.
Laurel also pays attention to punctuation, grammar, hyphenation, and spelling, and makes sure that the manuscript conforms to the standard style established by the publishing industry so that it appears professional and polished.
In addition to a time line and character notes, Laurel provides a style sheet at the end of each project that lists terms unique to that book, including place names and treatment of numbers, style and typographical details, and more. This information serves both the author and anyone else who may help with the manuscript, most often a final proofreader.
Laurel is an information junkie. In her opinion, there is no such thing as useless information, only information for which she hasn’t yet found a use. She remembers details that some would say take up too much space in her brain—the breed name of the beautiful white cows on her childhood friend’s farm, or the commercial jingle for a dog food from the sixties that no longer exists—that crop up in book manuscripts. Call her a nerd, but being able to make tiny corrections to the spelling or wording of such references, or know enough to question their accuracy, absolutely thrills her. She brings this curiosity, enthusiasm, and attention to detail to each manuscript.
Books Edited
Recent young adult fiction titles
Between Shades of Gray, by Ruta Sepetys
Conversion, by Katherine Howe
Ethel Is Hot: LOL!! by Kay Stephens
Forget Me, by K. A. Harrington
Million-Dollar Throw, by Mike Lupica
Pointe, by Brandy Colbert
Sea, by Heidi R. Kling
White Lines, by Jennifer Banash
Wings, by Elizabeth Richards
Recent adult fiction titles
Dream Singer, by Frank O. Smith
The Metaphor Deception, by Birch Adams
Recent nonfiction titles
How to Care for Aging Parents, by Virginia Morris
The Messianic Feast: Moving Beyond the Ritual, by T. Alex Tennent
Unscrolled: 54 Writers and Artists Wrestle with the Torah, by Roger Bennett
What to Expect the First Year, by Heidi Murkoff and Sharon Mazel
Feedback
“I was very pleased with the job you did on my book (which I expressed to my editor when I turned in copyedits) and a lot of your notes have stuck with me over a year later.”
—Brandy Colbert, author of Pointe
“You did an awesome job.”
—Elizabeth Richards, author of WINGS
“Laurel blends detail and compassion, expertise and consideration, all with an affirming spirit. She has edited, for us, nine professional education books, our mother’s memoir, and articles posted weekly to our website. The more we experience her work, the more adamant we are that nothing is printed without her eyes seeing it first. She is a gift to us as we attempt to be writers.”
— Gail Boushey, coauthor of The CAFE Book and The Daily Five
“Thanks for the copyedits and for teaching me how to be a better writer.”
—Birch Adams, author of The Metaphor Deception
“Laurel is the best copy editor I have ever worked with, and I have been a managing editor and production manager in traditional and indie publishing for over 25 years. Laurel is exactly what everyone should be looking for in a copyeditor: precise, knowledgeable, competent, accurate, and produces on time and within budget. I especially appreciate her close attention to the meaning of the text, which is invaluable to writers who need sharp eyes to make certain their words mean exactly what they intended. She not only saves writers from embarrassing goofs, but helps polish text while attending to the fine proofreading details. Laurel has worked with me at my company, Alchemy West, on several projects. She has done intense technical copyediting on a tight deadline. She has also worked with me on book projects for indie authors, one for clients and my own two indie books. She has also worked for a number of other indie authors on referral from me. If you’re looking for the best copy editor, choose Laurel. You will be pleased and impressed.”
—Robyn M Fritz, MA, MBA, Alchemy West, Seattle; author of Bridging Species: Thoughts and Tales About Our Lives with Dogs, and My Dog Is Dying: The Real Life Crappy Choice Diary
