Candace Johnson

Candace Johnson – Editor

My background in traditional publishing led me to specialize in nonfiction self-help/self-improvement /mind-body-spirit books and proposals.

Overview

While working as a senior editor for a traditional publisher, I discovered my forté is collaborating with authors to bring their dreams to reality. Whether your dream is to be traditionally published or to reap the rewards of publishing independent, I want to help you "say it the way you mean it" while respecting your unique voice.

I love collaborating with authors to create compelling, well-written books that readers can't put down. My specialties include developmental editing, copyediting, and proofreading for nonfiction
self-help, spirituality, relationship, and personal growth books; copyediting and proofreading for both most nonfiction including memoirs; and book proposal and query letter evaluations, copyediting, and proofreading.


Services
Non-Fiction
Health & Wellbeing Inspirational New Age Parenting & Families Psychology Self-Help & Self-Improvement
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

Health Communications, Inc., publisher of the original Chicken Soup for the Soul series

Sep, 2007 — Apr, 2012 (over 4 years)

Working for a smaller traditional publisher gave me the opportunity to learn many aspects of publishing that I wouldn't have been able to with a mega publisher, including reading hundreds of query letters and book proposals, collaborating with authors to improve their manuscripts, writing and editing book descriptions, catalog copy, and marketing material, and proofreading manuscript, book covers, and ancillary material.

Self-employed

Apr, 2007 — Present

As a freelance editor and proofreader, I have worked with traditional publishers, self-published authors, and independent book packagers on nonfiction subjects ranging from memoirs to alternative medical treatments to self-help. I have assisted authors with reality-based novels as well as more traditional fiction genres. I also specialize in helping nonfiction authors polish their book proposals in preparation for querying agents and publishers.

As an editorial specialist, I offer my clients the opportunity to take their work to the next level. I believe in maintaining each author's unique voice while helping them create and polish every sentence to make it the best it can be.

Writers are often too close to their own work to be objective about what they've written, and one of my fortés is my ability to home in on writing weaknesses and help writers convey their message in the most powerful way possible—regardless of the subject matter.

Whether helping an author organize ideas before writing begins or during the writing process, fine-tuning details such as spelling, punctuation, syntax, word choice, and organization of ideas, proofreading for errors in a manuscript before or after typesetting, or polishing a book proposal, I work in a collaborative and supportive environment that allows authors to achieve the most professional quality possible in their work.

Portfolio

Developmental Editing Copy Editing Book Coaching
A 7-step path to manifest and strengthen self-love, and quiet our inner critic. A book with such a powerful title requires a few qualifiers. Spoiler alert: reading this book won’t actually res... read more
Copy Editing
Women thrive on connection, and research studies continue to show that we are happier and healthier when we share close connections with other women. In this engaging combination of personal a... read more
Developmental Editing Copy Editing Editorial Assessment Book Coaching
A new model of addiction that incorporates neurobiology, social relationships, and ecological systems. Understanding addiction is no longer just about understanding neurons or genes, broken br... read more
Copy Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review
Today more than ever, everyone must be her or his own healer, and this is especially true in the management of anxiety and depression. In the first major conceptual leap in mental health care ... read more
Developmental Editing Copy Editing Query Letter Review Book Coaching
Every parent wants his or her child to be happy and grow into a productive, fulfilled adult . . . and according to parenting expert Maureen Healy, the secret to that success is in providing a ... read more
Developmental Editing Copy Editing
ABC News anchor Dion Lim’s empowering workplace communication strategies for women in any industry “As women, we’re constantly told to speak up, lean in, and be a badass . . . We absolutely sh... read more
Copy Editing Book Coaching
Treating Couples Well

David C. Treadway

Treating Couples Well shows clinicians how to create a collaborative approach to couple therapy, which will empower couples to take charge of their own treatment. Written in an engaging and co... read more
Copy Editing
Copy Editing Editorial Assessment Book Coaching
Bring an end to emotional eating by getting to the root of the problem.Most books about emotional eating tend to focus on how to strengthen self-restraint or how to identify what triggers it. ... read more
Copy Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review Book Coaching
Stories carry the seeds of our humanness. They help us, teach us, heal us, and connect us to what matters. As Far As the Heart Can See is an invitation to be in relationship with deep and life... read more
Copy Editing
Following the success of the bestselling Clean Gut and Wheat Belly comes this essential guide to improving digestive health from an expert in functional medicine—who reveals why everything tha... read more
Developmental Editing Copy Editing Query Letter Review
Welcome to a new approach to addiction recovery. The Law of Sobriety combines the power of positive thinking with definite action steps to create and maintain a clean and sober life that is fi... read more
Copy Editing Book Coaching
The challenges we face over the course of a lifetime, especially those that involve major personal loss, can seem devastating, as radio personality and self-help specialist Dr. Raeleen D'Agost... read more
Copy Editing
We all have a song to sing―something that sets us apart as special, worthy, and unique. To be our absolute best, we must find our own voice. That's the message in this encouraging you-can-do-i... read more
Copy Editing
Newsday columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning social journalist Lauren Terrazzano championed the causes of abused children, the elderly, and the homeless, truly becoming a voice for the voicele... read more
Copy Editing
Legions of self-help authors rightly urge personal development as the key to happiness, but they typically fail to focus on its most important objective: hardiness. Though that which doesn't k... read more
Copy Editing
Let Your Soul Evolve, Spiritual Growth for the New Millennium, is a book authored by Phil Diaz and P.D. Alleva, that explores the world of human and spiritual potential. Using their own works ... read more
Copy Editing
Snoozby and the Great Big Bedtime Battle begins with a day in the life of a young boy named Sam-who resisted sleep the night before and now faces the numerous and often frustrating challenges ... read more
Developmental Editing Copy Editing Editorial Assessment Query Letter Review Book Coaching
Here's what people are saying about Wanting to Want:"Dr. Castellanos presents a refreshingly integrated view of sexual health that includes the physical and psychological dimensions. This book offers you a clear and concise roadmap to identify your stumbling b... read more
In the very same region of upstate New York where, just a few years earlier, the summer of love was in full, psychedelic bloom, Matt Ziselman experienced his own summer of love. Well, minus the love. And the music. And, the most prevalent drug at the time—at l... read more
A self-help guide to help you deal with adversity, get through challenges and obstacles, learn how never to quit, and give to make a lasting impact on others. (Formerly Three Phases of Endurance During Crisis)
A book about the history of the Xpill and how people can use it breakthrough blocks, commit to actions and learn about themselves.
Women of all ages want to make others happy―it's just in a woman's nature, isn't it? But what happens when that "need to please" goes wrong, and a woman keeps pushing herself harder while simultaneously ignoring her own needs? What happens when a woman begins ... read more
"Dr. Susan Powers has used her considerable training and knowledge as a psychologist and her experience as one who has ‘been there’ to open up a deep and necessary dialogue on this subject. I have no doubt that she will be helping people for decades to come as... read more
Everyone wants happiness that endures. So why are so few people able to achieve it? Having spent over two decades researching the answer to this question, Drs. Lickerman and ElDifrawi argue in this eminently practical and groundbreaking new book--presented as ... read more
While growing up has never been easy, today's world undeniably presents kids and their parents with unprecedented challenges. The upside, cites Maureen Healy, is a widespread acknowledgment that emotional health, resilience, and equilibrium can be learned and ... read more

Candace has 7 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Jana A.

Jana A.

Dec, 2020

It was great having Ms Candace working on my manuscript was very pleased and satisfied with her services and it was done with such excellence. Will defiantly request her services on my next project, she is very professional in her work. You won't regret working with her.
Ian E.

Ian E.

Apr, 2020

So grateful for Candace's great work on my book. Her edits we clear and greatly improved my book. Thanks Candace!
Denise B.

Denise B.

Apr, 2020

Candace was absolutely fabulous to work with! She is a high quality editor and has a wealth of knowledge about writing, editing, promotion, and marketing. She helped me get my book proposal into a stellar form that I am very excited to share out with literary agents. I could not have gotten to this point without all her help. Thank you so much Candace!
Candace J.
Denise is an editor's dream client: open to ideas, eager for feedback, willing to try ideas that are new to her, and above all, a wonderful writer and communicator. Working with her was a delight, ...
Read more
Chris L.

Chris L.

Mar, 2020

Candace was extremely helpful in turning my manuscript into a shining gem, when previously it had been something not fit to see the light of day. She went above and beyond all my expectations and added tremendous value to everything she did. I never would have been able to get my book into the state it's in without her. I strongly recommend her services, and I'd use her again in a heartbeat.
Candace J.
Thank you, Chris, for such a glowing review! I enjoyed working with you to polish your manuscript. I love working with first-time authors and adding value to a project, and I'm happy I was able to...
Read more
chuck T.

chuck T.

Jan, 2020

Great Job!
Candace J.
Thanks so much, Chuck. Working with you has been a pleasure!

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