The best book editors for hire in the United Kingdom

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Jude 5 star rating

United Kingdom

Multi-award writer & editor (MA Writing–Distinction). Published since 2004: Collins, Pearson & more. Expert fiction & non-fiction support.

Genres: Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, ELT, Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Picture Books, Biographies & Memoirs, Education & Reference, Young Adult, and Poetry.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Laura 5 star rating

Brighton, United Kingdom

If you're a writer of romance, women's fiction, historical or psychological thrillers, I'll ensure your work is the best it can be.

Genres: Women's Fiction, Fiction, Thriller & Suspense, Parenting & Families, Non-Fiction, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Health & Wellbeing, Contemporary Romance, Romance, and Historical Romance.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Selena 5 star rating

Preston, United Kingdom

Highly experienced proofreader and copy-editor of healthcare/biomedical, academic, business and miscellaneous subjects at competitive rates.

Genres: Health & Wellbeing, Non-Fiction, Medicine, Nursing, & Dentistry, Math & Science, Humanities & Social Sciences, Nature, Education & Reference, and Life Sciences.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • I.M.S. Health (now IQVIA)
  • Elsevier Science (Pergamon Press)

Thalia 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

Editor with over a decade's experience working with best-selling authors at Pan Macmillan and HarperCollins. I'd love to hear from you.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Women's Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Thriller & Suspense, Health & Wellbeing, and Coming of Age.

Work experience:

  • Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation
  • HarperCollins
  • Pan Macmillan
  • The Dreamwork Collective

Copy editor and proofreader with experience in non-fiction books, arts and culture, biography, business, the environment and general history

Genres: Design, Non-Fiction, Business & Management, Architecture, Earth, Space, & Environmental Sciences, Math & Science, Travel, Art, and Humanities & Social Sciences.

Maartje 5 star rating

Cambridge, United Kingdom

Experienced and friendly non-fiction editor with a passion for bringing your research and ideas to a wide audience. **AVAILABLE AFTER JUNE

Genres: History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Writing & Publishing, Art, Biographies & Memoirs, and Nature.

Work experience:

  • Freelance
  • Cambridge University Press

Judith 5 star rating

Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

Children's book editor, specializing in middle-grade and picture books. Experienced in helping authors turn good ideas into great books.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Middle Grade, Education & Reference, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Plurus Books
  • Oxford University Press
  • Jacaranda Literary Agency
  • Oxford Brookes University

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Lucy 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

Editor with 9+ years experience developing projects for leading publishers, dedicated to guiding first-time authors.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Nature, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Sex & Relationships, Historical Fiction, Fiction, and Biographies & Memoirs.

Work experience:

  • Bloomsbury Publishing
  • The Siren Press
  • Watkins Publishing
  • Pan Macmillan
  • Hachette

Chris 5 star rating

Exeter, United Kingdom

I am an experienced copy- and developmental editor specialising in Business, IT and Physical Sciences for authors, academics and publishers.

Genres: Business & Management, Non-Fiction, Computers & Internet, Engineering, Math & Science, Music, Humanities & Social Sciences, Physics & Chemistry, Technology, Photography, and Economics.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Sophron Partners
  • McKinsey & Co.
  • Cambridge Consultants

Katie 5 star rating

Cornwall, United Kingdom

Over 25 years' experience in the publishing industry as a writer, editor and project manager – predominantly in children's non-fiction.

Genres: Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Political Science & Current Affairs, Geography, Earth, Space, & Environmental Sciences, and Math & Science.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • National Asthma Campaign (now Asthma + Lung UK)
  • Aladdin Books Ltd

Clare 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

A freelance copy-editor and proofreader specialising in cookery, craft and other lifestyle titles.

Genres: DIY & Crafts, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, Home & Garden, and Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits.

Work experience:

  • Cico Books
  • New Holland Publishers
  • Clare Sayer

Julia 5 star rating

Cambridge, United Kingdom

I am an editor and writer with a mission to make everything I work on the best it can be. I specialise in non-fiction and children's books.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Nature, Middle Grade, Children's, Fantasy, and Education & Reference.

Work experience:

  • Reader's Digest
  • Macmillan Children's Books
  • HarperCollins Children's Books
  • Penguin Books, Ltd.
  • Harcourt Education
  • Orpheus Books
  • Self-employed

Nigel 5 star rating

Steyning, United Kingdom

My aim is to enhance the saleability (is that a word? . . . it is now!) of publications, by providing indexes of the highest quality.

Genres: Business & Management, Non-Fiction, Economics, Humanities & Social Sciences, Engineering & Materials Science, Math & Science, Finance & Accounting, Medicine, Nursing, & Dentistry, Physics & Chemistry, Psychology, and Technology.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Sandy 5 star rating

Hampshire, United Kingdom

Sandy is a seasoned editor of non-fiction and fiction titles, and has been helping authors 'give birth' to their books for 20 years.

Genres: Health & Wellbeing, Non-Fiction, Religion & Spirituality, Psychology, Humanities & Social Sciences, Sex & Relationships, Mystery & Crime, Fiction, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Parenting & Families, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Godsfield Press
  • Tigerprint Limited
  • Self-employed
  • AA Publishing

Claire 5 star rating

Chelmsford, United Kingdom

Reliable and versatile proofreader and copy editor with a passion for all things Sci-Fi and Dickens.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Horror, Thriller & Suspense, Mystery & Crime, Fantasy, and Science Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self employed

Donna 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

Fiction & non-fiction editor; over 20 years' experience including 'Big Five' (regular clients incl. HarperCollins, Penguin RH, Hachette)

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Women's Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Thriller & Suspense, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Romantic Fantasy, Romance, and Literary Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Harlequin UK Ltd
  • Little, Brown
  • Self-employed

Anna 5 star rating

London, United Kingdom

Award-winning editor and publisher with a near-obsessive eye and over twenty years experience in the industry.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Horror, Thriller & Suspense, Short Story, Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Women's Fiction.

Work experience:

  • The Pigeonhole
  • Random House
  • Peters, Fraser & Dunlop
  • Curtis Brown
  • The Bookseller

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Hire the best book editors in the UK

Finished writing your book, and wondering what you should do next? After you’ve done as thorough a self-edit as you can, you’ll be looking to hire a book editor in the UK or beyond.

It can be a little tricky to know what kind of editing you need, but a good choice for anyone who’s unsure is to partner up with someone who specializes in editorial assessments. This takes the form of an overview of your manuscript that will tell you where you should focus your editing efforts. These types of editors aren’t usually too expensive, yet they can be invaluable to your project. After all, if you have no idea what’s wrong with your book, how can you make a plan to remedy it? If you’re ready to dive deep into everything that may not be working with your manuscript, a developmental edit is the most thorough editorial process, which will delve into both big picture elements and issues within individual chapters. For a more surface-level polish, a copy edit or proofread will help guide an already edited book to the final stage of publication, removing any remaining errors or inconsistencies.

To hire a book editor in the UK, simply sign up to Reedsy and start browsing through our editing professionals today.

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Step 3

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