Caroline Leavitt - Editor

Overview

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I'm a New York Times Bestselling novelist with 11 critically acclaimed novels. I review books for the San Francisco Chronicle, The Boston Globe and People, and I teach writing online for Stanford and for UCLA, as well as working with private clients on their manuscripts to get them in shape for agents and/or publication. Being a writer, I know what it's like to be in the trenches and to sometimes feel lost. Being a critic, I know how to find the bones of the novel, how to distinguish what works and what doesn't and why. And being a award-winning writer professor (I won UCLA Writers Program Extension first award for online teaching), I know how to fix the things that aren't working.

I myself have written across the genres. Though I am known for my critically acclaimed novels, I have written middle-grade books, including the popular Wishbone books that were based on the award-winning PBS TV series of the same name. I've written books for kids about healthy eating, and my book, THE KIDS' FAMILY TREE BOOK was featured on the PBS series, Reading Rainbow, and is still selling.

I also write scripts and have won prestigious prizes for them, and am represented by both a Hollywood agent and manager, who is currently shopping a pilot I wrote.

I'm passionate about the work I do and the writers I work with. We all have stories to tell. Let me help you tell yours.

PRAISE

"Caroline Leavitt is more than a gifted author and a talented editor...she is the champion, creative confidant, and literary magician that every writer dreams of having in their corner. When my first novel, The Memory Thief, was still in draft form, she spotted its potential and helped me work through thorny issues of plot and character with an incisive red pen and a kind heart. That novel went on to become a Target Emerging Authors Pick and a New York Times bestseller--and I am convinced that a large part of its success is due to Caroline's encouragement. I recommend her editorial services to emerging writers every chance I get."
Emily Colin, New York Times Bestselling Author and Targets Emerging Authors Pick of the Memory Thief

​"Caroline Leavitt has been a fabulous reader and editor for my work. She has always given me thoughtful, insightful criticism while at the same time being a real cheerleader and helping me stay positive about my work. When some chapters were cut out of my new novel, Gateway to the Moon, that was just published by Knopf Doubleday Caroline told me to pull those chapters together into a short story and that they were brilliant. I would never have done so without her advice. I didn't "see" it. But Caroline did and the story just appeared in a national magazine, "Narrative," as their Story-of-The-Week. I wouldn't hesitate to ask Caroline to read anything I needed help with and also she is extremely fast, always reliable, and supportive of writers in their work. She has my highest recommendation,"
Mary Morris - receipt of Rome Prize in Literature and Ainsfield-Wolf Award in fiction 2016. Author of Gateway to the Moon (Knopf Doubleday)

​"My then-new agent, Marly Rusoff, sent my manuscript for The Wednesday Sisters to Caroline, for her advice on getting the story started a little faster. Caroline was not only amazingly helpful, but also absolutely delightful. A manuscript that had been passed on by the publisher of my first novel, Saint Martin’s Press, before Caroline helped me, went on to sell at auction to Random House/Ballantine for a generous advance; it became a New York Times and USA Today bestseller, and was named by Entertainment Weekly as one of the twenty-five best friendship novels of all time, on a list that included Harry Potter, The Three Musketeers, The Group, and Crossing to Safety. Being able to take a manuscript and make it stronger while at the same time honoring the author’s voice and idea of the book is a rare talent, and Caroline has it. I would recommend her to anyone looking for help editing help.
Meg Waite Clayton, New York Times Bestselling author of The Wednesday Sisters and the Race for Paris

​"Caroline Leavitt is the penultimate writer’s writer. In the more than ten years I’ve known her as a colleague, I have benefited from her insights and brilliant edits—to my debut novel, which became a national bestseller, and current novel, Strangers in Budapest, which was selected as a best new book in November 2017 by Entertainment Weekly. I’ve recommended Caroline to scores of authors at all stages of their career—from beginner to expert—to help them with manuscript development. polishing of drafts, and strategy. As both an editor and writer, she brings enormous talent and insights to other people’s work, able to see the larger picture and determine what is best for the work—whether fiction, non-fiction, or memoir. As a New York Time bestselling author, a reviewer of books for national magazines (People magazine, for example) and social media platforms, she is a prodigious producer of novels, essays, interviews, and reviews. Caroline also flawlessly delivers on time—if not before. She is a mentor supreme—offering guidance to well-published authors and first-timers as they negotiate the complex landscape of drafting, revising, submitting to agents, working with editors and publicists, dealing with social media writing, and speaking to audiences large and small. Caroline’s talent and depth of experience is inspiring and produces outstanding results for all who enlist her professional help. Her work ethic is second to none."
Jessica Keener, national bestselling author of Strangers in Budapest, Algonquin Books

“Caroline’s insights and advice proved invaluable in helping me put together a query letter that not only generated interest in my manuscript, but also helped me land an agent. And… bonus… she’s a delight to work with.”
James King, Author, Bill Warrington’s Last Chance

"I've been in the writing business for over 30 years as a magazine editor, a manuscript editor, and a novelist. If I had to say what has been the most helpful thing in my career, my answer, without hesitation, would be meeting Caroline Leavitt. Caroline is the kind of brilliant editor who makes suggestions that change the trajectory of your career, and she does this quickly, without ever crushing your soul. She has been instrumental in shaping up my manuscripts, connecting me with a top agent, helping me write the query letter that sealed the deal with my agent, and later with HarperCollins, as well as attention from Hollywood producers. Caroline is brilliant, careful, honest, deeply compassionate, and all at breakneck speed. To say I recommend her highly doesn't let you know I have tears in my eyes. She has changed my life. She has made it possible for me to call what I do a career. "
Susan Henderson, Pushcart Prize winner and author of THE FLICKER OF OLD DREAMS, Harper Perennial

​"Working with Caroline Leavitt changed my life. I first met Caroline Leavitt as a student at UCLA. From the very beginning Caroline encouraged me and pushed me to take myself seriously as a writer and to take my work to the next level. She helped me with story and structure, all the while working with my own style and voice, honing it to be the best it could be. After graduating from The Writers' Program, I continued to work one-on-one with Caroline, and thanks to her incredible eye, passion for writing and amazing support, not only did I get a Top NYC agent, but I got a publishing deal with the prize-winning, acclaimed Prospect Park Books. I can not recommend working with Caroline enough, and I will continue to do so. "
Gina Sorell, author of Mothers and Other Strangers, Prospect Park Books, May 2017