Dakota Reed

Dakota Reed – Editor

Experienced editor & published writer ▪ I have a passion for literature & words—especially poetry, essay collections, & children's books.

Overview

I've been immersed in the literary and publishing world for 7 years. I began in 2017 as an editorial intern for The Georgia Review, then worked as senior editorial assistant for swamp pink (formerly Crazyhorse) from 2018 to 2020. I'm now an editor, designer, and operations/distribution coordinator for Atmosphere Press. While I am our sole children's book editor, my clientele includes writers of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction as well. I've spent almost four years editing, proofreading, and designing dozens of books published and distributed by Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Target, and Amazon.


I hold an MFA in Creative Writing with a concentration in poetry from the College of Charleston, where I was a Woodfin Fellow. I received my Bachelor's degree in English from the University of Georgia. My work has been published or is forthcoming in the North American Review, Ghost City Review, Hayden's Ferry Review, The Shore, Blood Orange Review, and NELLE. It has received awards and accolades from The Poetry Society of South Carolina, the College of Charleston, and AWP (Association of Writers and Writing Programs).


I love helping writers edit and revise manuscripts to their most polished, refined version, while also ensuring the autonomy and voice of the author remain fully intact. My services range from proofreading to copyediting to extensive developmental editing and assessment. I'm happy to operate on any level of involvement and guidance to best help you hone your book into a beautiful and publishable piece of work.


Reach out if you're looking for an experienced editor to work with you!

Services
Non-Fiction
Art Biographies & Memoirs Nature
Fiction
Contemporary Fiction Picture Books Poetry Psychological Thriller Women's Fiction
Languages
English (US)
Awards
  • Poetry Society of South Carolina: Nancy Walton Pringle Memorial Prize
  • College of Charleston: Creative Writing Prize
  • AWP Intro Journals Prize: Honorable Mention
  • Recipient of the Woodfin Fellowship
Certifications
  • University of Georgia: BA in English
  • College of Charleston: MFA in Creative Writing

Work experience

Atmosphere Press

Aug, 2020 — Present

I exclusively edit all of our children's books at Atmosphere Press and work directly with illustrators to design them. I put each children's book together in InDesign and work with authors until they're 100% happy with the final product. My clientele also includes writers of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction.

University of Bahrain

Jan, 2019 — May, 2019 (4 months)

Crazyhorse Magazine

Aug, 2018 — May, 2020 (over 1 year)

The Georgia Review

May, 2017 — May, 2018 (about 1 year)

Portfolio

Made with Reedsy
Ink & Ember: A poetry collection

Nguyen, Jessie

Made with Reedsy
McQuiddle Riddles: the sea

Morin, Lief

Made with Reedsy
Rewriting Herstory

Kiiru, Mwihaki

Made with Reedsy
One Major Love

Adams, Kimberly

Made with Reedsy
Scarecrow's Keep

Sjoblom, Jo

Made with Reedsy
Gracie's Glamorous Glasses

Kehr, Colleen

Made with Reedsy
Nelly Finds Her Niche

Trout, Lauren

Made with Reedsy
Growing Pains: LGBT Coming of Age Poems

Marks, Taylor

Made with Reedsy
Thinking In Eighths: a poetry collection

Salehipour, Behrouz

Made with Reedsy
Zoetic

Wilson, Hannah

Beneath the Smiling Moon

Valdes, Devon Jeffers

Until We Meet Again, Leo

McGroarty, Alexandra

Our Earth

Calame, Jane

The Mighty Warner

Munns, Darren

Amethyst, The Shallows

Abernathy, Kellye

Seeing Thing

Fowler, Evan

Lovely Minds

Gambacorta, Alyssa

Lovely

Jin, Chu

The Nightmare

Rec, Christina

Time to Play: In Space

Dawson, Bernadette

The Christmas Witch

Katusha, Jaime

Crossroads

Hill, Dre

Where Destiny Decides

McDonald, Jessie

Amaranth

Davenport, Samantha

A Trip From God

Grubb, David E.

Late In the Day

Shapiro, Brett

Addition Problems

Laakko, Janice

Found

Cooper, Irene

Little Town Blues

Gonthier, David

Phoebe and Fred

Johnson, Nathaniel S.

Homecoming Heist

Collin, Tyson

Hart Street and Main

Sprunger, Tabitha

MALL

Palmer-Baker, Pattie

Loved By Fire

Rose, Natalie

Twisted Silver Spoons

Wicks, Karen, M.

Love Against the Law

Klavon, Justine

Just Be Honest

Yates, Cindy

Stronghold

Bakunin, Kesha

All or Nothing

Malach, Miriam

My Place in the Spiral

Beardsall, Rebecca

Helping Howard

Schloss, Sally

Logan and Lexi Meditate

Rodgers, Denesia D

Winston’s Big Wind

Reyelts, Barbara Macpherson

Dakota has 44 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Achanes O.

Achanes O.

Apr, 2024

Value is subjective, monetary especially, and I don't really understand it most of the time (especially on things like this) — but while I was a little on the fence to start the editorial process for my novel, I couldn't be more appreciative for what I got from Dakota's assessment. She is open to communication, straightforward and honest: character traits like that should be enough praise to s...
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Tyler D.

Tyler D.

Apr, 2024

Dakota was incredibly professional and kind. She went above and beyond in editing my work, providing the necessary advice for both writing and editing. I am eagerly looking forward to collaborating with her again.
Chana F.

Chana F.

Mar, 2024

Thank you, Dakota! The feedback and mini-lessons on enjambment and stanzas, were particularly appreciated. Lessons I needed but didn't know to look for! For other writers perusing the reviews, the first editor I submitted my poetry chapbook to provided copy editing and a fun compliment. The second sent what amounted to a book review. Lovely, and nice to feel heard but it didn't help me make th...
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Lorie G.

Lorie G.

Mar, 2024

Dakota was thorough in her assessment and provided some excellent pointers on how to improve and strengthen the poetry. I appreciated her enthusiasm for my work.
Christine Gail G.

Christine Gail G.

Mar, 2024

I will definitely use Dakota in the future if I do another book. Her proofreading is excellent, but it's her editing that stood out. She understood perfectly what I was trying to say and how I wanted to say it; and all of her editing suggestions enhanced and blended in perfectly with my writing style.

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