Carol Trow – Editor

I have been editing for just over ten years now and have around 500 books to my credit! Although I have listed some of the topics I have already edited, I always like to meet new subjects - finance and business is a recent addition and I have to say I absolutely love it! What I enjoy more than anything is editing a book in which the writer is really invested, from memoirs (see A Fisherman in the Saddle below) to very erudite books on a niche subject (Peppercorn, his Life and Locomotives for instance).

I don't just edit non-fiction; my fiction editing has been for Severn House (now part of Canongate) and Blkdog Publishing mainly as well as authors awaiting placement and I specialise in spotting 'plot holes' and other issues which will make a reader stop, blink and give a bad review. Fiction editing is a very different thing from non-fiction but the attention to detail I bring to books on monetary systems, trains or crime is just as useful when spotting whether the victim is wearing the same clothes when found horribly murdered in an alley as they were when they left the house. These things matter and in the heat of writing can often get missed even by the most careful author. I am here to put that right.

I have been described as caring, meticulous, 'hawk-eyed' and I love all of those descriptions, but really, I like to think that my main skill is that I can help a writer fall back in love with their work if they have got a bit stale or if they have stalled with a previous editor who didn't quite 'get' them.

To raise the thorny subject of money, once I have given a quote, that is all you pay - I never add a penny, even if the project takes longer. So there is no need to worry about escalating bills. And also, when I join a project, I am there for the long haul, however long that might be!

Review from Arnie Witkin:
Carol edited my book 'Not a Great Thing in Life' . It was like having your hair done at Vidal Sassoon rather than the local hairdresser in Clapham Common (not that I have anything against Clapham Common). It was like the difference between caviar and cod (not that I have anything against cod). I went from uncertainty to confidence that I really had an outstanding product. I felt in safe hands - a comforting feeling. Carol is thoroughly reliable, responsive and replied to my toing and froing on the same day. She was patient but firm where required. I was delighted with my experience.