The best manuscript editors for hire in Australia

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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

Stu 5 star rating

Castlemaine VIC, Australia

I’m a freelance editor with over 15 years’ experience. I work primarily with academics, poets, and neurodivergent writers.

Genres: Education & Reference, Non-Fiction, Poetry, Fiction, Philosophy, Humanities & Social Sciences, and Writing & Publishing.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Vignette Press
  • La Trobe University
  • Deakin University

Jocelyn 5 star rating

Blue Mountains NSW, Australia

Developmental and copy-editor with 25 years' experience at Penguin and indie publishers, specialising in creative non-fiction and memoir.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Literary Fiction, Fiction, and Women's Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Penguin Random House
  • Self-employed

Kate 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

Children's fiction editor with over ten years industry experience with Scholastic, Disney and Marvel.

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Middle Grade Fantasy, Mystery & Crime, Humor & Comedy, and Picture Books.

Work experience:

  • Scholastic Australia
  • Allen and Unwin
  • Lexis Nexis

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

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

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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

Darren 5 star rating

Geelong VIC, Australia

I’m a specialist SF & Fantasy editor with more than 25 years of publishing experience including Gollancz, Orbit and Earthlight.

Genres: Thriller & Suspense, Fiction, Epic Fantasy, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Space Opera, Post-Apocalyptic, and Steampunk.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Victor Gollancz
  • Orbit

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

Emma 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

Non-fiction editor with 20+ years’ experience in all kinds of non-fiction texts – from music biographies to memoirs to how-to guides.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Education & Reference, Entertainment, Art, Humanities & Social Sciences, History, Music, Political Science & Current Affairs, and Parenting & Families.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • NewSouth Publishing

Lauren 5 star rating

Central Coast NSW, Australia

Commercial fiction editor, 20+ yrs. I've worked in-house & freelance for many publishers in Australia, US, UK & with lots of indie authors

Genres: Psychological Thriller, Thriller & Suspense, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Cozy Mysteries, Mystery & Crime, and Romance.

Work experience:

  • Bookouture
  • Atlantic Books
  • Allen & Unwin
  • London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games
  • Self-employed

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

Kirstie 5 star rating

Woodend Victoria, Australia

I work on politics, current affairs, history and memoir. I'm a nonfiction specialist with over 20 years' experience.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Political Science & Current Affairs, Humanities & Social Sciences, History, Inspirational, LGBTQ Non-Fiction, Earth, Space, & Environmental Sciences, and Math & Science.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Black Inc.

Heather 5 star rating

Aldinga Beach, South Australia

Accredited editor specialising in biography, memoir, self-help, psychology, spirituality, general non-fiction. Former editor at Hardie Grant

Genres: Health & Wellbeing, Non-Fiction, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Psychology, Humanities & Social Sciences, Biographies & Memoirs, New Age, Religion & Spirituality, and Inspirational.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Hardie Grant Publishing
  • John Brown Publishing, London

Abigail 5 star rating

Sydney NSW, Australia

I'm a genre-fiction specialist, mentor, editor and literary agent with over 20 years' experience helping authors get their stories written.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Romantic Comedy, Romance, Romantic Fantasy, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Psychological Thriller, Thriller & Suspense, Technothriller, and Mystery & Crime.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

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

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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 2

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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

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