An editorial introduction. I suppose the idea is to give a sense of the type of book person I am. During the day, I spend most of my time as a developmental editor shaping writers’ books. My goal is to see clearly through their trees and how best to wriggle out knotty bits and structure those pesky plots.

I’m also a publisher who acquires exciting fiction. I focus on literary and upmarket fiction that often experiments with plot, form or voice. I tend to like small stories, meaning they are close to the characters and where they live. I’m not the best reader or editor for expansive sagas that cross timelines and generations.

As a reader, I enjoy a wide range of books and across genres but some of my favourites are literary fiction, Classic literature, Gothic, mysteries and suspense, horror, contemporary, speculative fiction and some historical fiction. I’m not a good audience for hard sci-fi and most fantasy, unless it’s reality based with twinkles of fantasy. But it all comes down to well-written fiction that grabs from the first page (the first sentence is even better!). Oh, yeah, and I do sometimes read non-fiction but I’m pretty picky about that.

As a publisher and editor, I really love demystifying the publishing process. It’s so opaque and full of gatekeepers, so I often write about the querying process and editorial feedback. As a developmental editor, I also review authors’ submission packages. The query letter and synopsis can be the toughest parts of writing a novel but often the most important. I love crafting an engaging query and my clients often receive agent responses within 24-48 hours.

What to expect here:

• Book reviews
• Literary criticism
• Tips & tricks about querying
• Publishing guidance
• Anything else that’s bookish or writerly

Ciao for now x