Anna Jean – Editor

Stories are magical, they have the ability to transport. Whether it be to some bizarre gaseous planet in an alien solar system, the myxo-riddled mind of a rabbit, or a trailer park in Iowa – I want to go there. My role is simply to make that journey as seamless as possible.

As both an author and an editor, I am hyper-aware of the loneliness and self-doubt implicit in this job and can guide you through the every stage of your project, from mentoring to structural reworks. I am a very hands-on editor and will help you to map your setting, perfect your plot, finesse your characters and refine your voice. The purpose of my services is to help you see your book through a reader's eyes, as well as understand how best to communicate each thought. Working with me will give you the tools needed for a career in writing. This is a partnership and I want you to be as involved in the process as I am. Together we can ensure your writing shines.

In my formative years I worked as a Big Five editor and at some of the best literary agencies in Britain, but traditional publishing can be rather... dry, so I then spent a decade building The Pigeonhole, a social reading platform with the aim of bringing authors and readers together via the digital pages of their book. In 2015 I was named Bookseller's Rising Star and was also shortlisted for the Digital Achiever Award. Most recently I have been working with Pan Macmillan and Head of Zeus, while offering my services as a freelance mentor with TLC and Next Up.

TESTIMONIALS

"Anna's editing encompasses a keen eye for technical detail and a passion for narrative and message. Her enthusiastic input helps the writer tell their story in the most effective manner possible, and she always keeps two things in the forefront of the process – what the writer is trying to convey, and what the reader is going to experience. She is an exceptional editor and a pleasure to work with."

Ian Green, author of Extremophile (Head of Zeus)

"Anna has been invaluable in helping me get my second novel ready for submission. Highly experienced and deeply insightful, she has the unerring ability to ask the right questions, call out half-baked thoughts and uncover a book’s best self from its early-draft mess. She’s given me some absolutely spot-on suggestions for how to streamline my structure, clarify my characters and superpower my stakes, and has made herself endlessly available to chew over ideas and thoughts. She’s also warm, kind, (very) funny and a total joy to spend time with. I cannot recommend hard enough."

Molly Flatt, associate editor for Futurebook and author of The Charmed Life of Alex Moore (Macmillan)