Brent Howard

Brent Howard – Editor

Agent and editor with 19 years at Penguin Random House, editing narrative history, thrillers, mysteries, spy stories and horror.

Overview

I'm a freelance editor with nearly two decades of experience at a major NYC publishing house.


For fiction, I love thrillers, suspense, espionage, horror--especially if the stories have a historical setting. I can help you tighten your story, sharpen your characters, fine tune your language and help grab an acquisition editor's attention from page one.


When it comes to nonfiction, I specialize in history, military, politics and biographies. I'm drawn to sharp, perceptive storytelling, descriptive prose and authors with the ambition to write definitive accounts. It's easy for nonfiction writers to get lost in the research. I can help you find the essence of the story, cut out the clutter, and sharpen your descriptions, putting a picture in the reader's head and making your writing come to life.


Over the course of my career, I have reviewed thousands of query letters. I understand the pitfalls to avoid, how to hold an editor's attention and make your letter stand out, leading the editor to jump to the proposal for an immediate read.


Serious inquiries only, please.


"Brent is a real author's editor, gifted in his knowledge of narrative and nuance."--Martin Dugard, #1 New York Times bestselling author of KILLING LINCOLN and TAKING PARIS

Services
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs History Political Science & Current Affairs True Crime
Fiction
Historical Fiction Thriller & Suspense
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

Self-employed

Jan, 2024 — Present

Recruiting authors in the areas of history, military, politics, biographies, journalism, memoirs, science, as well as thrillers, suspense, espionage, historical fiction, and horror.

Self-employed

Jul, 2023 — Present

Penguin Random House

Apr, 2004 — Jul, 2023 (over 19 years)

I acquired and edited bestselling and prize-winning nonfiction books. Earlier in my career, I published many bestselling historical and suspense novels.

Portfolio

Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review
Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment
Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review
Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment
Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review
Developmental Editing

Brent has 9 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Jeremy M.

Jeremy M.

Nov, 2024

Brent is fantastic! He's a compete professional in every way, fast and efficient. I can't recommend him highly enough.
Eric R.

Eric R.

Sep, 2024

Brent was excellent to work with and provided terrific edits and advice! He is very professional and knowledgeable. I highly recommend him!
Emily D.

Emily D.

Sep, 2024

Brent was very professional and responsive. He gave me a lot of thoughtful comments to consider, which was very helpful for beefing up my manuscript. I think it brought it to another level. Would recommend him / use him again if needed.
Margie K.

Margie K.

Jul, 2024

Selecting an editor for your manuscript is so important, especially when there is no face-to-face meeting. However, Brent is the perfect choice for me. His insight is concise, professional, and experienced. I could not find one suggestion that I disagreed with. The only thing I would change is to address suggestions before the line edit. It would have been more efficient since I am an inexperie...
Read more
Sarah B.

Sarah B.

Jun, 2024

I engaged Brent to review and provide feedback on my draft query package. In addition to suggesting inline edits to fine-tune my query letter, he provided a number of helpful comments and insights on the industry that really enabled me to take my opening chapters to the next level.

Sign up to read more reviews

Create a free Reedsy account to connect with Brent and thousands of other publishing professionals on Reedsy.

Professionals similar to Brent

Get a range of offers by requesting quotes from multiple professionals.

Stephanie Chou

Stephanie C.

Experienced editor specializing in copyediting and proofreading genre fiction. I've never met a sentence I couldn't diagram!

Honolulu, HI, USA

100% reply rate

View profile
Kayla Church

Kayla C.

I am a book editor with a passion for bringing adult, YA, and middle grade fiction, memoir, and self-help books to life.

Boise, ID, USA

100% reply rate

View profile
Lucy York

Lucy Y.

Fiction editor with 18 years’ experience. I’m passionate about crafting standout stories and I love working on YA, fantasy and romance.

Brighton, UK

100% reply rate

View profile