Angela Brown - Editor
Editor of more than 700 books. I specialize in sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, horror, mystery, thriller, YA, and dystopian fiction.
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Overview
During my career in publishing, I've edited more than 700 books, most notably the bestselling BLUE DAYS, BLACK NIGHTS by Ron Nyswaner, Oscar-nominated screenwriter of PHILADELPHIA. For seven years, I worked at Alyson Books in Los Angeles, where I spent three years as the company's editor in chief. I've edited many high-profile and award-winning titles, including NEW YORK TIMES bestseller Teresa Mummert's PERFECT LIE, Dete Meserve's GOOD SAM (number-one Amazon bestseller and now a Netflix film), Chaz Bono’s memoir THE END OF INNOCENCE, Tom Kakonis's TREASURE COAST, five novels in Elizabeth Sims’s acclaimed Lillian Byrd Crime Story series, and two graphic novels by National Book Critics Circle nominee Alison Bechdel. I've worked with established and up-and-coming authors as a developmental editor, writing mentor, line editor, and copy editor. My essays and commentary have appeared on NPR and Pacifica Radio and in USA TODAY, among other places.
I specialize in genre fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, mysteries, thrillers, horror, speculative/paranormal, dystopian fiction, action-adventure, romance, chick lit, YA, westerns, and children's books), as well as literary fiction if it's influenced by one or more of these genres. Occasionally I will take on a nonfiction book if it feels like a good fit, so try me. Once we begin collaborating, I'll work side by side with you as your editor, mentor, nagging pal, helicopter mother/tiger mom, kindly sleeve tugger, and loudest cheerleader. We will come up with a plan to help you either find a traditional publisher for your book or create a road map for self-publishing, identifying goals along the way. We'll work together as a team to develop your ideas and your book and make sure it tests your chops as a writer—I'm here to challenge you and help you produce writing you never thought possible! When things click into place like this, it is magic. And the angels sing. At least this one does.
I’ve been told I have a knack for making books the best they can be while retaining the author’s voice and style. In other words, I don’t change an author’s writing to suit my personal style; I let her or his voice shine through on each page. It is my passion to take great books and help make them fantastic. As one of my authors says, I push writing "over the brink of what's acceptable into the realm of what's extraordinary.”
Come join me on this adventure.
And don't forget to bring a book!
I specialize in genre fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, mysteries, thrillers, horror, speculative/paranormal, dystopian fiction, action-adventure, romance, chick lit, YA, westerns, and children's books), as well as literary fiction if it's influenced by one or more of these genres. Occasionally I will take on a nonfiction book if it feels like a good fit, so try me. Once we begin collaborating, I'll work side by side with you as your editor, mentor, nagging pal, helicopter mother/tiger mom, kindly sleeve tugger, and loudest cheerleader. We will come up with a plan to help you either find a traditional publisher for your book or create a road map for self-publishing, identifying goals along the way. We'll work together as a team to develop your ideas and your book and make sure it tests your chops as a writer—I'm here to challenge you and help you produce writing you never thought possible! When things click into place like this, it is magic. And the angels sing. At least this one does.
I’ve been told I have a knack for making books the best they can be while retaining the author’s voice and style. In other words, I don’t change an author’s writing to suit my personal style; I let her or his voice shine through on each page. It is my passion to take great books and help make them fantastic. As one of my authors says, I push writing "over the brink of what's acceptable into the realm of what's extraordinary.”
Come join me on this adventure.
And don't forget to bring a book!
Languages
English (AUS)
English (CAN)
English (NZ)
English (UK)
English (US)
Fiction
Fantasy
Horror
LGBTQ Fiction
Literary Fiction
Middle Grade
Mystery & Crime
Science Fiction
Thriller & Suspense
Young Adult
Awards
- Five-time Lambda Literary Award nominee
Work experience
Book Editor/Writing Mentor
Self
November, 2009
–
Present
(over 13 years)
Developmental editor, writing mentor, line editor, ghostwriter, and anthology editor for a variety of authors and publishers, including Kensington Books, Cleis Press, First Books, University of Wisconsin Press, Inkwater Press, Daedalus Publishing, Watermark Entertainment, Midnight Shadow Productions, and Little Acorn Press.
Editor in Chief/Senior Editor/Editor
Alyson Books
October, 2002
–
November, 2009
(about 7 years)
Hired and managed editorial staff for a midsize trade book publisher and oversaw the timely completion and overall quality of all books from manuscript to final product. Acquired 50–60 novels and nonfiction books per year. Edited 20–25 titles per year while working closely with authors on character development, story development/structure, tone, style, grammar, and commercial viability. Worked closely with the copy editing, art, production, and marketing departments to ensure the delivery and promotion of all titles. Negotiated contracts with agents and authors. Monitored sales data and industry trends. Pitched titles at sales conferences and spoke on publishing panels on behalf of the company. Wrote and reviewed jacket copy and Amazon promo material.
Portfolio (39 selected works)
The Dream Factory: Ghosts
John Simes
When a clandestine agency abducts his parents, a young boy escapes to the family’s remote beach hideaway. But as love blossoms on the beach, chaos overruns his village, and he eventually returns to find that all hope is not lost. An uplifting and illuminating experience that is as visual as it is visceral, John Simes delivers a total reading experience, engaging, vivid and – above all – inspir... read more
"Jones' well-designed future world—and especially his driving, infectious storytelling—may win over all but the most adamant skeptics. Fans of S. M. Stirling's Dies the Fire (2004) and its sequels are likely to see this as a fantastic new series to follow. An intriguing and well-done Christian-fiction twist on the post-apocalyptic novel." ~ Kirkus Indie Review The epic saga that began with Thr... read more
Deviation: Altera Realm Trilogy (Volume 2)
Jennifer Collins
Syney's life may seem like a fairy tale but it is far from perfect... Six months after her coronation, the newly discovered seated queen of Altera Realm is finding it harder and harder to conform to the rules. This passionate and brilliantly written installment finds Vilori Princess Syney Andrews in the thick of sadistic Vampire Gabriel's intricate plot. Under the strain of an escalating Great... read more
Emma, Jason, and Danny Hollen are just three ordinary kids living near the Everglades National Park in Florida, that is, until they find an unexpected visitor in their backyard. To their surprise, the trio come across an egg - the egg of an extraordinary alligator. Keeping the situation hidden from their parents, the kids work to nurture the alligator. And with trouble and danger lurking in ev... read more
Before Bethlehem
James J. Flerlage
The Pinnacle of History through the Eyes of a Boy This spellbinding work of historical fiction offers the eyewitness account of 15-year-old James, son of Joseph bar Jacob, and the dangerous and heartrending choices his family must make in the days leading up to Joseph's relationship with Mary, and the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. With crisp prose, tangible description and thought-provoking insi... read more
Life and Death on Siesta Key
Sheila Palmer
Sheila Marie Palmer delivers a classic battle of good versus evil in "Life and Death on Siesta Key", her follow-up to "Life and Death on the Tamiami Trail", and the second installment in the "Life and Death" murder mystery series. Sheriff Charlotte Bernadette "Bernie" Raines Davis and her husband, Sheriff Buck Davis, are back, protecting their beloved community of Sarasota, Florida - this time... read more
Mattie Spyglass and the 8 Magic Stones
Shoba Sreenivasan
From the depths of the spirit And the chasms of the darkness Eight precious stones Eight matters of the soul For Mattie who was eleven and just a frizzy red-haired fifth grader, magic wasn’t even a remote possibility. Not in the basement of Sears in Hackensack, New Jersey. But October 10, 1968, would end very differently than it had begun. A mysterious Spyglass would choose Mattie as its mistr... read more
Sigve the Awful is a renowned swordsman, soon to fight for mighty kings. But his immediate task is to survive.The Lethal Oath, the second book in The Viking Series, continues the late-Viking Age saga of Sigve the Awful – begun in The Slayer Rune.Despite his young age - and mostly because of the slayer rune, the spell that quickens Sigve's sword and grants superhuman strength to him as its wiel... read more
Jennifer Ainsley: The Final Demon War
Sidney Stone
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword"- Matthew 10:34Jennifer Ainsley: The First Demon War is a gripping, fast-paced fantasy/horror New Adult novel grounded in the contemporary world. The book deftly tackles issues of greed, humanity’s neglect for its weakest members, the race for power among individuals and nations,and the abi... read more
Testing of the Potter: Apocalypse: The Lifting of the Veil
A. C. DeLozier
After vaccinations banished it to the history books, no one ever expected a second major epidemic of the bubonic plague. But it’s here, and deadlier than ever—sweeping around the world and resistant to every form of defense medical science can throw at it. And in a society changing as quickly as the disease is spreading, survival is the ultimate test. When rules and morals are forgotten, the c... read more
In this, the fourth Connor Hawthorne mystery, Connor (former prosecuting attorney turned novelist) and her partner, Laura Nez, travel to Boston to attend the funeral of Catherine Wainwright, the mother of Connor's college friend and former lover, Grace. Connor's attention, however, is quickly diverted by the presence of her own mother, Amanda, with whom she rarely speaks. Matters take a horrif... read more
Packing Mrs. Phipps: A Jo Jacuzzo Mystery
Anne Seale
Jo Jacuzzo is a bit down on her luck when she accepts a job offer that will take her from Buffalo, N.Y., to Tampa, Fla., to pack the belongings of the aged Mrs. Phipps and drive her back to Buffalo. But fetching heiress Charity Redmunn diverts her far from her original plans. After revealing that she is driving across country with a load of stolen art to pay the ransom of her brother, Paul, Ch... read more
The Silk Road: A Novel
Jane Summer
Traveling The Silk Road: an interview with author Jane Summer"Adults have forgotten the feel of a teenager's love. For you a teenager will walk through glass doors, stay awake three days in a row, be an angel standing under your window in the rain. So what that we don't know how to order from the butcher or apply foundation or insert a diaphragm? Show us."So advises Paige Bergman, a high schoo... read more
Saving Valencia: A Novel
Steven Cooper
Valencia Brandywine, heiress to a hotel empire, has been kidnapped, and the ransom is $7 million and her brother Rico's denouncement of his homosexuality. Valencia has been kidnapped by a group of zealots determined to convert the world's homosexuals to a life of heterosexuality. Rico, with friend D'vora Wasserman at his side, trots the globe in search of Valencia . . . a search that turns out... read more
A Town Called America
Andrew Alexander
No one in his small, impoverished town believes Rick when he announces that he heard a warning on his car radio. The townsfolk cling to the hope that Mors Mortis, the gang of violent vigilante vampire hunters who will kill or enslave anyone who crosses their path, has finally disbanded. Unfortunately for his neighbors, Rick is proved right. Mors Mortis descends, and soon most of the townspeopl... read more
Good Sam
Dete Meserve
#1 Amazon Bestseller and multi-award winner! Romantic mystery with an uplifting ending. Good Sam is in production as a feature film. "If you are a Nicholas Sparks or Richard Paul Evans fan, I'm betting you will like author Meserve's new book GOOD SAM. Uplifting, heart wrenching and a two hankie read, this story is a winner."—Cheryl Stout, Amazon Top Reviewer. When Los Angeles TV news reporter ... read more
The Third Side (A Malibu Mystery)
M.A. Simonetti
As the gatekeeper of the Malibu social scene, Alana Fox is used to helping her clients with finding a bridge group, or even a new man. When Hollywood widow Francis Ferguson contacts Alana, however, she’s in search of something a bit more complicated–something that will throw Alana in the middle of some decades-old family secrets that continue to cause damage after all these years. With Alana’s... read more
Whaler's Gold
Charles E. Soule
In they heyday of pirating that was in the late 1600's, a group of pirates buried an enormous treasure of gold bullion in the Gallapagos Islands off the west coast of South America. It lay unmolested for more that an century, until two whalers from Nantucket, Massachusetts, stumbled across it in the 1830's. Clandestinely, the two whale men hauled their stash back to Nantucket. Yet due to a com... read more
With You in Spirit: A Novel
Steven Cooper
"My father’s body was found floating facedown in the waters off Chappaquiddick. Naturally, everyone assumed a Kennedy did it." Well, perhaps not everyone, as Graydove Hoffenstein, the Native American Jewish heir to a parking meter empire discovers after his mother, Celeste Garrison Hoffenstein, is arrested and sentenced to life in prison for the murder of her husband, Colin Lightfoot Hoffenste... read more
Holy Hell: A Lillian Byrd Crime Story
Elizabeth Sims
Lillian Byrd is a small-time reporter with a flair for making big-time mistakes--so her investigation into the disappearances of women around the Detroit area might not be the best idea. But when one of the victims turns up dead and Lillian recognizes the curiously mutilated corpse, she is in too deep to get out. After simultaneously blowing the case for the police and revealing herself to the... read more
Under the Mink: A Novel
Lisa Davis
New York City, 1949. At the Candy Box Club, three steps below the street, the show is about to begin. But in this club, the world is upside down. Emcee Blackie Cole is Blanche Cohen, the chorus line is led by a stunning dark-eyed boy named Titanic, and the only thing protecting the performers from the social reformers is Stevie, the kingpin of the mob's downtown operation, whose hand moves fro... read more
Compendium: Artifacts of Lumin Book One
Alia Luria
WINNER OF THE 2015 NATIONAL INDIE EXCELLENCE AWARD IN FANTASY!On the heavily forested planet of Lumin, the Network has slept, dormant, for over six hundred cycles. Only a select few remember that it resides beneath the crust of the planet, waiting, and for those who remember, the battle for Lumin’s future has raged in the shadows. When Mia Jayne’s path crosses with an ancient volume in the Arc... read more
Centurion: Mark's Gospel as a Thriller
Ryan Casey Waller
In 2099 the United States is gone. In its place stands the most powerful government the world has ever seen: the Kingdom. Led by King Charles and his Centurion Guard, Americans live in fear of being abducted north in a train marked for death. Deacon Larsen boarded a train three years ago to travel west, the only region where medicine is still taught. But after the Kingdom abducted his parents,... read more
In the second book of The Odyssey of Jon Sinclair trilogy, Jon and his grandfather Alistair are desperate to return to the twenty-first century. Their space-time ship, however, lacks the antimatter that will enable them to travel forward in time. Realizing that Atlantis holds the information they need, they follow the instructions contained in a letter left by Captain BlackHeart and travel to ... read more
The Muses: Escaping Montague Manor
N. McEvoy
Sarah and Nickolas McGuire—ages ten and twelve, respectively—never even knew they had a Great-Aunt Vivian. But now, all of a sudden, they’re being rushed off to her manor in Australia, where they’re about to encounter a series of events beyond anything they could have ever imagined.A surprisingly young-looking, obviously cold-hearted woman, Vivian has been tasked to take care of Sarah and Nick... read more
Inbiotic
James Suriano
The 21st Century will be remembered by the rise of the Android. Alia Vicadora is not your normal Android. Created at the hands of a disgruntled genius working in a Washington DC lab, she was engineered with stolen government technology to be used in war games, and process emotional components of adversaries. But his excitement does not last long when he discovers the government is getting clos... read more
Ghost of a Shadow: Book One of the Sadie Myers Chronicles (Volume 1)
Andrea Engel, Leslie Engel
Is this The End of Sadie Myers? Ever since tragedy struck her family one year ago, Sadie’s life has become a dark brew of unearthly visions and vivid dreams in which a mysterious shadow man follows her every move. Are all these bizarre happenings real or figments of this fifteen-year-old’s troubled mind? When she’s pulled into a world so different from her own, everything she thinks she knows ... read more
Perfectly Good Crime (A Kate Bradley Mystery)
Dete Meserve
From the bestselling author of Good Sam comes a fast-paced and thought-provoking follow-up, Perfectly Good Crime. Featured as "Best Summer Read" in Parade, Sunset Magazine, BuzzFeed, Working Mother and more."Dete Meserve, bestselling author of Good Sam, provides another thrilling literary adventure sure to satisfy all summer reading appetites"--Working Mother MagazineWhen the estates of the 10... read more
Melody didn't create complex phrases. She didn't connect words together. She simply spoke by putting words one after the other...until a mysterious code written in an ancient language changed everything. 1904. The Klondike Gold Rush is yesterday's news, but not for Jonathan Brick, journalist for Seattle's Daily News. Assigned to a month-long trip to cover the slowdown of gold mining in the Yuk... read more
Give It Back
Danielle Esplin
This novel follows three characters: Lorraine, Lexy, and Ella. Lorraine: Not long ago, Lorraine lost her husband to another woman. She thought that was the worst thing that could happen to her, but soon she realizes it’s just the beginning of an everlasting nightmare. Lexy: Lexy, an au pair from London, moves to Seattle to help Lorraine with her infant son. But she didn’t come for the child…sh... read more
Furious Angels
Dr Damien Mac Namara
Reunited by tragedy, Andrew and Will are unlikely pawns in a high-stakes game of A.I. and religious fanaticism. Answering a call from beyond the grave they are unwittingly thrown into a vast technological world both deadly and fascinating. This is the breathtaking first book in the series by Irish author Dr Damien Mac Namara.
Perfect Lie
Teresa Mummert
Sometimes love burns so hot in your veins that it consumes all rational thought. That’s why Brock and I never had a chance. I had to start my life over. College was my chance to become someone new. I changed everything about myself to fit in, but one person saw through my facade. The attraction between Abel and I was undeniable, but I still hadn’t healed from the painful secret I carried aroun... read more
Treasure Coast
Tom Kakonis
Treasure Coast is the wild new thriller from Tom Kakonis, the acclaimed author of Criss Cross and Michigan Roll. A compulsive gambler goes to his sister's funeral on Florida's Treasure Coast and gets saddled with her loser-son, who is deep in debt to a vicious loan shark who sends a pair of sociopathic thugs to collect on the loan. But things go horribly awry...and soon the gambler finds himse... read more
From a #1 bestselling author:A fresh and funny romantic mystery series about a witty, down-to-earth heroine with a job you've never seen before..."So good I absolutely could not put it down! ... The entire book crackles with memorable characters ...The plot is fast-paced and suspenseful ... This series never fails to entertain me!" -- Chloegirl ★★★★★"Great read! Similar to Stephanie Plum in te... read more
The only things Alex Rains cares about are rock ’n’ roll, classic cars, and killing vampires—that is, until he meets Carmen, a tough-as-nails cop who's hot on the trail of her missing little sister. When the two join forces, they leave a trail of corpses across the desert as they race against the clock, hunting an ancient evil that’s preyed on the migrants of the American Southwest since the t... read more
Silicon Override
Ketcherside, Shawn
The Resurrectionist
Meyering, A. R.
Blue Days, Black Nights: A Memoir
Nyswaner, Ron
Angela has 110 reviews
Professionalism
Professionalism
Quality
Quality
Value
Value
Communication & Punctuality
Communication & Punctuality
Angela was simply a delight to work with! She went through my novel and gave detailed feedback on the dialogue, writing style, and characters. The comments she left were also very helpful. Not just that, but her critique was extremely encouraging. Her responses to my questions were also quick and polite! I truly loved working with her and am so grateful for all her help.
Vishnu Pinnaka, February 2023
Angela is amazingly thorough and there is no doubt that she has made my manuscript considerably better.
Danielle Örtegren, January 2023
Because of Angela's background and experience, she was my first choice of developmental editor for my debut fantasy novel, so I was thrilled when she responded affirmatively to my pitch. Her insightful critiques consisted of open-ended questions and suggestions for clarification, and encouraged me to make improvements that were organic and true to my writing process, without sacrificing story ...
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Cynthia Villyard, January 2023
Angela is fantastic. She went above and beyond my expectations and came back with a much smoother manuscript for me to work with. I highly recommend her.
Analisa Echevarria, January 2023
I loved working with her! She answered all of my questions and was a big help!
Jade Greenwood, December 2022
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