Amy Hughes – Editor

Involved in every facet of editorial process and development, in digital and print media. Longtime website and book-publishing professional, with experience in conceiving and developing website and book projects (including series); hiring authors, artists, mapmakers, and support staff; and editing, copyediting, and fact-checking copy through all phases of production. Have worked on wide variety of illustrated books (fine art, nature, home decorating, food, gardening, lifestyle, travel guides), fiction and nonfiction, and websites. Write about travel, natural history, ecology and conservation, culture, family and relationships, current events, and other material. Clients include many New York and national publishers, businesses, and websites as well as individuals.

Head writer and editor of a team tasked with developing, updating, and revising four dozen titles in the Kids Discover magazine series for an innovative new fifth- and sixth-grade social studies curriculum launched by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Editor and writer for startup website company,. Conceived article ideas; researched, assigned, and edited and/or wrote articles and blog posts; managed production cycle and schedules.

In-house editor, writer, and naturalist for Webby-award-winning website dedicated to educating people about North America’s wildlife, plants, habitats, and other aspects of the natural world. Principal in the site’s conception and launch. Reviewed and edited all content; conceived and developed new features and material; wrote articles for newsletters (peak newsletter circulation: 400,000), web-based articles, and weekly night sky guides; conceived and created online guides to invasive plants, native plants for gardening, and endangered species; wrote copy for quizzes and contests. Worked closely with designers and technicians in setting up and testing site features. Prepared copy for posting online in html and worked in various online content management tools.

Served in various staff capacities over 20 years, from editorial assistant to editor-in-chief, as well as a freelance project editor. Chanticleer Press is America’s oldest packager of science and nature books, creator of the National Audubon Society (NAS) Field Guides and Pocket Guides (Knopf) and the Taylor’s Guides to Gardening (Houghton Mifflin). Under my tenure as editor-in-chief, we expanded these series and launched the Sibley Guides to Birds, the NAS First Field Guides (Scholastic), the NAS Regional Field Guides (Knopf), and the National Wildlife Federation Field Guides (Sterling). I coordinated editorial production of high-quality illustrated books from conception stage through bound book. Conceived book and project ideas; hired and worked with authors, consultants, staff, and freelancers; worked closely with photo editors, mapmakers, illustrators, and design department; edited text; maintained schedules; and oversaw work of all support staff.