The best developmental editors for hire in Australia

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Brenda 5 star rating

Melbourne VIC, Australia

I'm a professional children's book editor with 20+ years of experience in working with picture books and junior fiction.

Genres: Picture Books, Children's, Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Red Paper Kite Publishing
  • Insider Guides
  • The School Magazine

Alex 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

I am a publisher, editor, ghostwriter and content curator with 25 years' experience in almost every genre.

Genres: Women's Fiction, Fiction, Social & Family Issues, Young Adult, Holiday, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Business & Management, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Health & Wellbeing, Contemporary Romance, and Romance.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Nicola 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

A seasoned developmental editor of narrative. I help shape your novel, be it crime, historical, or high-end literary.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Thriller & Suspense, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, and Mystery & Crime.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Indigenous Literacy Foundation
  • HQ / HarperCollins Australia
  • HarperCollins Australia
  • Walker Books Australia

Katia 5 star rating

Melbourne VIC, Australia

Manuscript nurturer, sentence polisher, eagle-eyed proofreader, wordsmith, preserver of voice and vision; fiction and memoir specialist.

Genres: LGBTQ Fiction, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Themes & Motifs, and Health & Wellbeing.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Sam 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

Expert manuscript developer and editor. I specialise in literary fiction and nonfiction, and general / popular fiction and nonfiction.

Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Historical Fiction, Short Story, Thriller & Suspense, Political Science & Current Affairs, Humanities & Social Sciences, History, and True Crime.

Work experience:

  • Brow Books
  • Self-employed
  • The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australia, The Saturday Paper
  • University of Melbourne, Deakin University, RMIT University, Victoria University

John 5 star rating

Brisbane QLD, Australia

Editor with over twenty years of experience working for major commercial publishers (Wiley, McGraw-Hill and Cambridge University Press).

Genres: Business & Management, Non-Fiction, Economics, Humanities & Social Sciences, Education & Reference, Psychology, Sports & Outdoors, Health & Wellbeing, Parenting & Families, and Biographies & Memoirs.

Work experience:

  • Wiley
  • Cambridge University Press
  • Self-employed

Sherryl 5 star rating

Melbourne VIC, Australia

Writer, teacher, editor- my job is to help writers create terrific, publishable stories.

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Picture Books, Young Adult, Poetry, Short Story, Historical Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Victoria University

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Anjanette 5 star rating

Newcastle NSW, Australia

A passionate publishing professional, I love empowering writers by offering manuscript appraisal and mentoring. Upmarket fiction specialist!

Genres: Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Romantic Comedy, Romance, Biographies & Memoirs, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Rick Raftos Management

Jessica 5 star rating

Sydney, Australia

Edited over 100 fiction and non-fiction titles, including Prime Minister's Prize, The Age and various Premiers' literary award winners.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Home & Garden, Mystery & Crime, Education & Reference, Parenting & Families, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Amnesty International
  • Thomson Reuters
  • Arts Hub Magazine
  • News Ltd

Garima 5 star rating

Adelaide SA, Australia

An editor with expertise in STEM editing (books, research papers, and theses). Worked for Macmillan, Elsevier, Springer, Cengage, AACR

Genres: Business & Management, Non-Fiction, Education & Reference, Health & Wellbeing, and Math & Science.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • MacMillan Publishing Services Ltd. (MPS Ltd.)
  • Aptara, Inc.
  • Thomson Digital

Kelly 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

I love working with authors on their manuscripts, helping them tease out their ideas and realise their publishing dreams.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Coming of Age, Contemporary Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Women's Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, and True Crime.

Work experience:

  • Allen & Unwin

Jane 5 star rating

Toowoomba QLD, Australia

I'm a freelance editor, author and librarian with an eye for detail. Kids' books, fiction, non-fiction, history books: I love them all!

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Picture Books, Historical Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Action & Adventure, Contemporary Fiction, and Health & Wellbeing.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Concordia Lutheran College

Christina 5 star rating

Murwillumbah NSW, Australia

I edit memoir, history, philosophy, arts, literature, self-help and personal development, trauma recovery. Memoir is my specialty.

Genres: Architecture, Non-Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Humanities & Social Sciences, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, and Design.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Michelle 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

Experienced publishing professional to polish your words till they glow. Memoirs, dissertations, monographs, textbooks - all welcome

Genres: Education & Reference, Non-Fiction, Humanities & Social Sciences, Biographies & Memoirs, Medicine, Nursing, & Dentistry, Math & Science, Contemporary Fiction, and Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Cengage Australia
  • Pearson Australia
  • Longman Botswana

Daniel 5 star rating

Melbourne VIC, Australia

Accredited non-fiction editor with more than 40 published titles. Specialising in art, spirituality, well-being, history, science & ESL.

Genres: Education & Reference, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, Art, Humanities & Social Sciences, History, Religion & Spirituality, True Crime, Classics, Fiction, and DIY & Crafts.

Work experience:

  • Arcturus Publishing
  • Search Press

Ed 5 star rating

Newcastle NSW, Australia

Astute, experienced and empathetic, I'm a narrative problem solver and sentence sharpener who works well with big presses and solo authors.

Genres: History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Sports & Outdoors, True Crime, Biographies & Memoirs, Literary Fiction, Fiction, Poetry, Short Story, and Contemporary Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Puncher and Wattmann
  • Murdoch Books

Michele 5 star rating

Brisbane QLD, Australia

An editor of all genres, having worked for indie and trade publishing clients for 20 years, my expertise is developmental and copyediting!

Genres: Action & Adventure, Fiction, Coming of Age, Fantasy, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Children’s Non-Fiction, Business & Management, and Children's.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • University of Queensland Press
  • Macmillan Education Publishers
  • New Holland Publishers
  • Steve Parish Publishing

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Hire the best developmental editors in Australia

After months, or maybe even years, of hard work and determination, you’ve finally completed your manuscript.

But now, in the midst of celebrating this accomplishment, you might be wondering: “What’s next?”

Well, for your best chances of coming to market with a professional and polished book, your answer should be: “Hire a developmental editor.”

A developmental editor works to ensure that your plot, characters, structure, prose, and all other pieces of your story are fine-tuned and cohesive as possible.

So how do you find a developmental editor in Australia you can trust to really make your story shine? Our marketplace is home to hundreds of experienced editors — many who worked for Big 5 publishers or with bestselling authors like Neil Gaiman. Sign up for a free account to start browsing the profiles of developmental editors in Australia today.

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Step 3

Request quotes

Request quotes from up to five freelancers at any time. They’ll look at your sample pages to give you a tailored quote as well as a sense of how they work.

Step 4

Collaborate

Once you agree on terms and a timeline, you’ll start collaborating using the many communication and editing tools available on Reedsy.