Amanda Rutter - Editor
Stourbridge, United Kingdom
Former acquisitions editor for Angry Robot and SFF editor of award-winning authors, such as Kameron Hurley, Sarah Pinborough and Laura Lam.
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Overview
I'm an experienced developmental editor and proofreader, specialising in adult SFF and YA of all genres.
I started my career with Angry Robot, as acquisitions editor for the Strange Chemistry YA imprint. From there I began my freelance editorial career, working with authors such as Kameron Hurley, Sarah Pinborough and Janet Edwards. I am a proofreader for Angry Robot and Black Library, and I work with private clients as a editorial consultant.
I love working with authors to bring out their best possible work, and seeing a manuscript climb to the next level with my assistance. This can involve either a structural edit - identifying the potential issues in a novel, such as plot, pacing and characterisation, and brainstorming solutions with an author - or a final polish of a publication-ready manuscript in the form of proofreading.
“Amanda Rutter is everything you need in an editor. Not only does she provide a frighteningly thorough and effective copy-edit on your manuscript, her story notes are spot on, and she’s warm and friendly to work with. She has years of experience in the business, and is smart, professional, and has great judgement. I would, and have, recommended Amanda’s services to both new writers and veterans who are considering republishing some early work that needs a modern edit. She’s my go-to recommendation because I know she won’t disappoint.”
– Sarah Pinborough
Languages
English (UK)
English (US)
Fiction
Fantasy
Horror
Science Fiction
Urban Fantasy
Young Adult & Teen
Certifications
- BSC Accounting for Management
Work experience
Freelance Editor
Self-employed
July, 2013
–
Present
(over 5 years)
Working with multiple clients in multiple genres - developmental editing, copy editing and proofreading.
Acquisitions Editor
Strange Chemistry
December, 2011
–
July, 2013
(over 1 year)
Acquisitions editor for Angry Robot's YA imprint - discovered voices such as Cassandra Rose Clarke, Gwenda Bond, Laura Lam and Danielle L Jensen.
Portfolio (28 selected works)
The Mirror Empire (The Worldbreaker Saga Book 1)
Kameron Hurley
On the eve of a recurring catastrophic event known to extinguish nations and reshape continents, a troubled orphan evades death and slavery to uncover her own bloody past. As the dark star of the cataclysm rises, an illegitimate ruler is tasked with holding together a country fractured by civil war, a precocious young fighter is asked to betray his family and a half-Dhai general must choose be... read more
Empire Ascendant (The Worldbreaker Saga Book 2)
Kameron Hurley
Loyalties are tested when worlds collide... Every two thousand years, the dark star Oma appears in the sky, bringing with it a tide of death and destruction. And those who survive must contend with friends and enemies newly imbued with violent powers. The kingdom of Saiduan already lies in ruin, decimated by invaders from another world who share the faces of those they seek to destroy. Now the... read more
Telepath (Hive Mind Book 1)
Janet Edwards
Amber is one of over a million eighteen-year-olds in one of the great hive cities of twenty-sixth century Earth. She’s about to enter the Lottery of 2532, which will assess her abilities and decide her hive level, her profession, her whole future life. Amber’s dream is to be level 10 or above, her nightmare is to be a level 99 worker in the depths of the hive.When Lottery discovers Amber is a ... read more
A Wizard's Forge (The Woern Saga Book 1)
A.M. Justice
Honorable Mention, 2017 Reader's Favorite AwardsFinalist, 2017 Next Generation Indie Book AwardsScholar. Slave. Warrior. Wizard.On a planet far from Earth, descendants of marooned space travelers fight a decades-long war. Shy scholar Victoria knows nothing of this conflict until pirates kidnap and sell her to the sadistic tyrant behind it. He keeps her naked and locked in a tower, subjecting h... read more
Horizon
Tabitha Lord
Caeli Crys isn’t living—she’s surviving. On the run after the genocide of her empathic people, she witnesses a spaceship crash near her hidden camp. When she feels the injured pilot suffering from miles away, she can’t help but risk discovery to save his life. Commander Derek Markham awakens stranded on an uncharted planet. His co-pilot is dead, his ship is in ruins, and he’s only alive becaus... read more
Infinity (Horizon)
Tabitha Lord
In the second installment of the award-winning Horizon series, Dr. Caeli Crys returns to her war-torn world to fight for those she left behind. Almagest, Caeli’s home, stands on the brink of revolution. Long hidden from the rest of the galaxy, the once-peaceful planet suffers under a regime that grows more violent and oppressive by the day. Marcus, Almagest’s dictator, is building an arsenal o... read more
The Last of the Firedrakes (The Avalonia Chronicles Book 1)
Farah Oomerbhoy
A Magical World. A Stolen Birthright. A Forbidden Love.16-year-old Aurora Darlington is an orphan. Mistreated by her adopted family and bullied at school, she dreams of running away and being free. But when she is kidnapped and dragged through a portal into a magical world, suddenly her old life doesn't seem so bad.Avalonia is a dangerous land ruled by powerful mages and a cruel, selfish queen... read more
Warrior Witch
Danielle L Jensen
Sometimes, one must become the unimaginable… Cécile and Tristan have accomplished the impossible, but their greatest challenge remains: defeating the evil that they have unleashed upon the world. As they scramble for a way to protect the people of the Isle and liberate the trolls from their tyrant king, Cécile and Tristan must battle those who’d see them dead. To win, they will risk everything... read more
An Accident of Stars
Foz Meadows
Book I of the Manifold Worlds from Hugo-nominated author Foz Meadows. When Saffron Coulter stumbles through a hole in reality, she finds herself trapped in Kena, a magical realm on the brink of civil war. There, her fate becomes intertwined with that of three very different women: Zech, the fast-thinking acolyte of a cunning, powerful exile; Viya, the spoiled, runaway consort of the empire-bui... read more
The Custodian Guard have stood watch over the Emperor's Palace on Terra since the foundation of the Imperium. Charged with protecting the Master of Mankind from all threats, within and without, their fearsome resolve is renowned throughout the galaxy, and their golden armour is the last thing that a would-be assassin or saboteur will ever see. Alongside the Null-maidens of the Sisters of Silen... read more
Castellan (Castellan Crowe)
David Annandale
Scavenger Alliance (Exodus Book 1)
Janet Edwards
In the year 2408, a century after the invention of interstellar portals, seven hundred people scavenge a living in abandoned New York. The respectable citizens have either withdrawn to new settlements in the countryside, or joined the great exodus of humanity to new, unpolluted colony worlds, but eighteen-year-old Blaze is one of the undesirables that neither the citizen settlements nor the ne... read more
A Tyranny of Queens
Foz Meadows
Saffron Coulter is back on Earth, but even so, nothing is easy. Struggling with the victimising expectations of her friends and family and threatened with a stay in psychiatric care, Saffron has to make a choice: to forget about Kena and fit back into the life she's outgrown, or pit herself against everything she's ever known and everyone she loves.Meanwhile in Kena, Gwen is increasingly troub... read more
The Rise of the Dawnstar (The Avalonia Chronicles Book 2)
Farah Oomerbhoy
Aurora Firedrake returns in the spellbinding sequel to The Last of the Firedrakes.The seven kingdoms of Avalonia are crumbling and evil is spreading across the land like a plague. Queen Morgana is close to finding a way to open The Book of Abraxas and it's only a matter of time until she uses the power trapped inside its pages to enslave the entire world.With Avalonia growing more dangerous by... read more
Reaper (End Game Book 1)
Janet Edwards
In the year 2519, people on Earth don't grow old and die any longer, their bodies are frozen and they start a new life in the virtual reality of the global game.Jex is almost eighteen, working twelve hour shifts, and dreaming of when she'll be legally adult and begin her long-planned idyllic life in one of hundreds of wildly differing virtual worlds. When a bomber attacks a server complex, one... read more
The Poison Eater
Shanna Germain
Poison never lies. Tali was once one of the seven martyrs of the forgotten compass. She barely escaped that life with her body and soul intact. Now she has a new life as a poison eater in the city of Enthait. Here she is hailed as one of the city's protectors. No one knows her history. No one has asked about her past. She's been here so long that Enthait is her home now, these are her people. ... read more
The Rebellion's Last Traitor
Nik Koran
After decades of war, the brutal Tathadann Party restored order to shattered Eitan City by outlawing the past and rewriting history. Memory is a commodity – bought and sold, and experienced like a drug. Henraek works as a Tathadann memory thief, draining citizens’ memories. Everything changes when Henraek harvests a memory of his own wife’s death, in the hidden rebellion that once tore apart t... read more
The Broken Ones
Danielle L Jensen
Below Forsaken Mountain, Marc is deeply involved in a plot to overthrow the tyrant king of Trollus – a secret he keeps from everyone, even his beloved Pénélope. Since a tragic accident revealed her affliction, Pénélope is anathema to her father. He gives her an ultimatum: betray the boy she loves, or die. Powers on all sides use Marc and Pénélope as pawns, forcing them to risk everything for a... read more
Stolen Songbird (The Malediction Trilogy Book 1)
Danielle Jensen
For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain. Time enough for their dark and nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophesy has been spoken of a union with the power to set the trolls free, and when Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth of t... read more
Hidden Huntress (The Malediction Trilogy Book 2)
Danielle L. Jensen
Beneath the mountain, the king's reign of tyranny is absolute; the one troll with the capacity to challenge him is imprisoned for treason. Cecile has escaped the darkness of Trollus, but she learns all too quickly that she is not beyond the reach of the king's power. Or his manipulation. Recovered from her injuries, she now lives with her mother in Trianon and graces the opera stage every nigh... read more
![[Pantomime] (By: Laura Lam) [published: January, 2013]](https://images-eu.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41DwOuOau2L._SL160_.jpg)
The Assassin's Curse
Cassandra Rose Clarke
The Pirate's Wish
Cassandra Rose Clarke
After setting out to break the curse that binds them together, the pirate Ananna and the assassin Naji find themselves stranded on an enchanted island in the north with nothing but a sword, their wits, and the secret to breaking the curse: complete three impossible tasks. With the help of their friend Marjani and a rather unusual ally, Ananna and Naji make their way south again, seeking what s... read more
Katya's World (Strange Chemistry)
Jonathan L Howard
The distant and unloved colony world of Russalka has no land, only the raging sea. Beneath the waves, the people live in pressurised environments and take what they need from the boundless ocean. It is a hard life, but it is theirs and they fought a war against Earth to protect it. But wars leave wounds that never quite heal, and secrets that never quite lie silent. In the crushing depths of t... read more
The Breedling and the City in the Garden (The Element Odysseys)
Kimberlee Ann Bastian
Absolute obedience, servitude, neutrality.These were the laws that once governed Bartholomew, an immortal soulcatcher, until one ill-fated night when he was forced to make a choice: rebel against his masters or reveal an ancient, dangerous secret.He chose defiance.Imprisoned for centuries as punishment for his decision, Bartholomew wastes away—until he creates an opportunity to escape. By a st... read more
The Breedling and the Trickster (The Element Odysseys)
Kimberlee Ann Bastian
“He was the lad who did it twice, tricked the Devil by a roll of the dice. . . . He goes by the name of Stingy Jack, with a turnip lantern in hand to light his way through the black.”For immortal soulcatcher Buck, acclimating to newfound freedom in 1934 Chicago would have been impossible if not for the selfless actions of Charlie Reese. Now separated from his mortal friend, Buck accepts a new ... read more
Amanda has 7 reviews
Professionalism
Quality
Value
Communication
Amanda's thorough advice will, I believe, take my work to the next level that it needs to be. She was able to pick out aspects of my writing that were weak, as well as push things that were already good into being that much better. I appreciate everything she was able to point out, and her suggestions were spot-on. I highly recommend!
Read moreGA Finocchiaro, January 2019
Super work on Stardreamer's proofread. I didn't find a single typo after Amanda's edit, nor did any of the ARC readers. Also, useful edits and thoughts beyond a proofread. Respect.
Read moreRock Forsberg, November 2018
Amanda is a wonder! Her line by line thorough editing has turned my rather untidy book into something clear and legible. Her advice on the page, regarding individual sentences and paragraphs is always kind, clear, and incredibly inciteful. Her short analysis of the whole book gave me great encouragement, sage advice, and a real sense that she had invested in the work. As to her charges and pun...
Read moreMike Day, September 2018
Our experience with Amanda Rutter was horrible. She did not fulfill her contract with us regarding time restraints or her approach to editing. She was also rude, insulting and defamatory. On her profile and during a Skype session Amanda guaranteed she would read the entire book before beginning an edit which she did not do. After the agreed upon time, a full month, when we were to receive an e...
Read morecharles ascello, July 2018
This novel was marketed to me in the original query as science fiction. After working through the novel I realised there was a large amount of sexual content, some of it featuring minors including a scene where a four year old boy watches a couple have sex in a voyeuristic fashion. I could no longer work on this novel. I had received 20% of the fee for the work upfront and so provided back to the author 25% of their novel fully edited, including chapter summaries and over 160 comments in their 80 or so manuscript pages. I advised the author that I could continue to do the work agreed that had a deadline of end of September or I could stop and not charge the author any additional amount of money. When asked what he preferred, the author said to not continue. I do advise that in the future the author is more upfront about the sexual content and the nature of that sexual content to allow people to make more informed decisions about working with him.
Reply from Amanda Rutter
Amanda is highly professional and her feedback has been valuable.
Read moreMaria E Cantu Alegre, July 2018
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