Ariell Cacciola

Ariell Cacciola – Editor

Award winning editor with 15+ years' experience across genres. Literary/commercial, fantasy, mystery/thrillers, historical, romance, horror

Overview

I'm Ariell, the publisher and editorial director of Wild Hunt Books, an exciting publishing house in South London. With more than ten years in different roles in the publishing and literary world, I understand it can be very personal and difficult to let another person read your work. Your manuscript will be treated with respect, care and confidentiality.


As an editor, I am happy to work with manuscripts that span across genres in either adult or young adult (YA) fiction, but I have added specialities in literary fiction, general contemporary fiction, historical fiction, horror, magical realism, fantasy, thriller and mystery/crime/suspense.


I regularly collaborate with authors on editorial assessments, developmental editing, proofreading and query letter reviews.


Additionally for writers working within a budget, I provide detailed reader's reports.


My editorial approach evaluates your entire draft or partial draft, considering your manuscript’s structure, plot, narrative, pacing, character development, dialogue and writing quality. This is an extensive look at your complete book. Is the manuscript working from beginning to end? My services are for writers who are prepared to revise and polish their manuscripts with actionable feedback.

Services
Fiction
Contemporary Fiction Contemporary Romance Epic Fantasy Historical Fiction Historical Mysteries Horror Magical Realism Psychological Thriller
Languages
English (UK) English (US)
Awards
  • 2022 BPA Pitch Prize Winner
  • 2021 Ladies of Horror Fiction grant recipient
  • Grant from the Austrian Society for Literature
  • Merit Fellowship for Writing - Columbia University School of the Arts
  • Dean's Travel Grant - Columbia University School of the Arts
Certifications
  • MFA Fiction, Columbia University
  • Faber Academy London, Advanced Novel Writing

Work experience

Wild Hunt Books

Dec, 2020 — Present

An independent publisher in South London focusing on new and emerging authors. Our mission is to foster strong and distinct literary voices and those that experiment with narrative, plot and structure. We are also a home for authors dabbling in the darker genres and liminal spaces.

Columbia University

Oct, 2010 — Nov, 2010 (about 1 month)

Taught introductory creative writing workshop and seminar at Columbia Univeristy.

Self-employed

Sep, 2009 — Present

I am an experienced writer, editor and reader with over a decade’s worth of experience in the publishing industry.

I've worked on books for fiction and nonfiction authors, including John Wray’s The Lost Time Accidents and Samuel Moyn's The Last Utopia.

I'm a member of the Independent Publishers Guild and the Society of Young Publishers.

Portfolio

Made with Reedsy
The Crimson Scar

Penfold, Hannah

Editorial Assessment
Editorial Assessment
Editorial Assessment
If you could see your future with someone . . . would you?Meet Evelyn and Godfrey. Evelyn is breaking up with her boyfriend, Adrian, as she's seen their dismal future together at Dr Chin's off... read more
Editorial Assessment
Made with Reedsy
TRAINWRECK DAUGHTERS

Crosson, Joshua

Independently published

Editorial Assessment
Made with Reedsy
The Matter of Medicine

Lancaster, William J.

Foundation Informatics

Developmental Editing
(Don't) Call Mum (The Northern Weird Project)

Wesolowski, Matt

Wild Hunt Books

Made with Reedsy
Dutch And Annie

Stump, George

Developmental Editing
Made with Reedsy
Circus Absurdus

Tyler, Robert

Editorial Assessment
Made with Reedsy
Talking To A Praying Mantis

Crowley, Francis T

Editorial Assessment
Made with Reedsy
Shadows of My Irish Dog (My Irish Dog Series)

Solvie, Douglas

Douglas Solvie

Editorial Assessment
The Last Utopia

Samuel Moyn

Human rights offer a vision of international justice that today’s idealistic millions hold dear. Yet the very concept on which the movement is based became familiar only a few decades ago when it profoundly reshaped our hopes for an improved humanity. In this ... read more
The Lost Time Accidents is a bold and epic saga set against the greatest upheavals of the twentieth century. Haunted by a failed love affair and the darkest of family secrets, Waldemar 'Waldy' Tolliver wakes one morning to discover that he has been exiled from... read more

Ariell has 34 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

David G.

David G.

May, 2024

Pinned
Ariell was extremely helpful, even when I needed a little extra help. She did not make a fuss about it and helped me create the perfect Query for my new manuscript. I would work with her again in a heartbeat. Thank you, Ariell for such professional and thoughtful work.
Ariell C.
Thank you so much, David! I wish you all the best with your querying journey. Your book sounds like loads of fun.
Rain N.

Rain N.

Jun, 2023

Pinned
Ariell was great to work with. Not only did she answer all of my questions, she was able to put into words many of the problems with my draft that I was unable to put my finger on. She provided me with resources to help me better structure the novel, and gave suggestions on to how to start going about the process of revising it. She did all of this with a positive and realistic vision of the fu...
Read more
Ariell C.
Thank you, Rain! It was a real pleasure working with you and on our your book. The novel was very exciting and I know you'll soon perfect it.
Ailea S.

Ailea S.

May, 2023

Pinned
Ariell is a brilliant editor who immediately understood the story I was telling and had excellent insights to strengthen and improve it. Couldn't ask for a better advisor. She saw exactly what I had been struggling with and provided great guidance and ideas for how to address, without being prescriptive. Her feedback left me feeling energized and motivated to take the draft to the next level. C...
Read more
Ariell C.
Thank you, Ailea. It was truly a pleasure working with you on your book! I have no doubts that I'll be seeing it in bookshops soon.
Lisa L.

Lisa L.

Sep, 2024

Ariel helped me bring my query letter up to industry standard and even reviewed my revised query. She helped me with specific concerns as well and was very responsive! I would highly recommend her!
Andrea G.

Andrea G.

Sep, 2024

Great feedback. She was honest and kind. I appreciated her expertise.
Ariell C.
Great job with the revisions, Andrea! It was a pleasure working with you.

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