Overview
I'm a fiction and non-fiction editor with 20 years' experience, having climbed the ranks from editorial assistant to editorial director/company board member, and my skills are subsequently wide-ranging.
I’ve commissioned and grown authors (both mainstream and genre) to bestselling and award-winning status, and I now work in various capacities with publishing companies, literary agents, private authors and writers'/literary festivals. Publishing clients include: Bookouture; Elliot & Thompson; Hachette Ireland; HarperCollins; Little, Brown; Orion; Pan Macmillan; Penguin Random House; Transworld and Whitefox.
I work on fiction and non-fiction, across all editorial areas, e.g. >
- query letter review and advice
- manuscript assessments
- structural/developmental edits
- line-editing
- copy-editing
- proofreading
Do get in touch about your project; I'd love to hear from you!
Some titles I've worked on as a freelancer:
* John Marr's sci-fi hit The One (now on Netflix)
* The Summer of Impossible Things by Rowan Coleman and Killer Intent by Tony Kent, which were both chosen for the 2018 Zoe Ball TV Book Club
* Two of the six WHSmith Richard and Judy Book Club summer 2019 titles - How to be Famous by Caitlin Moran & Marked for Death by Tony Kent
* The No.1 bestselling novel (Ireland), Hungry Road by Marita Conlon-McKenna (2021)
* Winner of the Romantic Novelists’ Association Popular Fiction Award 2022 (voted for by librarians, book bloggers and reviewers, and booksellers): The River Between Us by Liz Fenwick; and the Festive Holiday Romantic Novel Award 2022: Winter at Cliff’s End Cottage by Sheila Norton
* Sunday Times Bestsellers:
- Lucky by Ed Jackson (rugby union player turned Paralympics presenter)
- Get Divorced, Be Happy by Helen Thorn (award-winning comedian and podcaster)
- Knee Deep in Life by Laura Belbin (author of the Knee Deep in Life blog)
- Hear Me Out by Sarah Harding
- Friend Request by Laura Marshall
- Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar
- A Different Kind of Happy by Rachaele Hambleton (aka Part-Time Working Mummy)
- With This Kiss by Carrie Hope Fletcher
- No Shame by Laura Belbin (author of the Knee Deep in Life blog)
- Be Yourself and Happier: The A-Z Guide to Wellbeing by Will Young
- Springtime at Cannon Hall Farm by The Nicholson Family
- Ten Things I Hate About Me: How to Stay Alive With a Brain That's Trying to Kill You by Joe Tracini
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Services
Non-Fiction
Fiction
Languages
Awards
- In 2012, I was one of four people shortlisted for the prestigious Kim Scott Walwyn Prize, which recognises women's creativity, professionalism and ambition in publishing.
Certifications
- BA Arts (Joint Honours – English and Philosophy), University College Cork
- MA Publishing Studies City University, London
Work experience
Self-employed
Harlequin UK Ltd
Little, Brown
Portfolio
Donna has 35 reviews
Professionalism
Quality
Value
Responsiveness
Jan M.
May, 2025
Melanie J.
Feb, 2025
Fiona M.
Dec, 2024
William D.
Dec, 2024
Frank B.
Sep, 2024
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