The best children's book developmental editing services

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Sean 5 star rating

Denton, TX, United States

Editor of bestselling, award-winning middle grade, YA, and adult books, specializing in fantasy and sci-fi. Let's make your book stand out!

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Young Adult Fantasy, Young Adult, Middle Grade Fantasy, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Epic Fantasy, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Romantic Fantasy, and Romance.

Work experience:

  • Andrea Hurst and Associates, LLC
  • Andrea Hurst and Associates
  • Self-employed
  • Relay Publishing, LLC
  • The Editorial Department

Julie 5 star rating

New York, United States

I'm an editor with nearly two decades of experience in publishing, most recently at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Short Story, Middle Grade, Children's, Mystery & Crime, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Thriller & Suspense, and Dystopian.

Work experience:

  • Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Nevin 5 star rating

Portland, OR, United States

My goal is to guide writers to their best work, to coach them in eloquence and clarity, to lead them to their best stories and storytelling.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Picture Books, Children's, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Scholastic
  • Penguin Random House
  • Government Technology magazine
  • Self-employed
  • Green Bean Books
  • Portland State University

Jim 5 star rating

Perry Hall, MD, United States

Crafting a work of fiction is a gloriously arduous process. With over twenty years of experience at one of the big NYC houses, I can help.

Genres: Action & Adventure, Fiction, Middle Grade, Children's, Middle Grade Fantasy, Coming of Age, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic, Young Adult, and Fantasy.

Work experience:

  • Random House

Lindsay 5 star rating

New Jersey, United States

I'm an enthusiastic freelance editor with experience across the industry--bookselling, marketing, publicity, agency, editorial, and writing.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Picture Books, Children's, Christian Fiction, Women's Fiction, Short Story, Middle Grade, Dystopian, and Science Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency
  • Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Margaret K. McElderry Books at Simon & Schuster's Children's Publishing Division
  • Abrams Books for Young Readers/Amulet Books
  • Candlewick Press
  • Borders Books and Music
  • Verily Magazine

Steven 5 star rating

Vermont, United States

Intuitive, expert editor with 30 yrs experience teaching fiction writing at a major university. Well-published, knowledgeable, honest, kind.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Historical Fiction, Short Story, Middle Grade, Children's, Fantasy, and Young Adult.

Work experience:

  • Miami University, Oxford, OH
  • Colby College, Waterville,ME
  • Self-employed

Julia 5 star rating

Charleston, SC, United States

Line and copy editor, with content capabilities. I have the most experience in nonfiction, but my favorite edits are middle grade and YA.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, and Children's.

Work experience:

  • The History Press
  • Newgen KnowledgeWorks
  • Amnet

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Diane 5 star rating

Lawrence, Kansas, United States

My sweet spot is MG and YA fiction. I'll help you find your story (ornery manuscripts don't scare me!) and figure out how to tell it.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Middle Grade, Children's, Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, and Women's Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

Angela 5 star rating

Los Angeles, United States

Editor of more than 800 books. I specialize in sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, horror, mystery, thriller, YA, and dystopian fiction.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, Young Adult, Horror, Thriller & Suspense, LGBTQ Fiction, Middle Grade, Children's, Mystery & Crime, Fantasy, and Science Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Alyson Books
  • Self-employed

Leila 5 star rating

Austin, TX, USA

12+ years experience in children's and YA book publishing as an editor at Penguin Random House and author of critically-acclaimed novels.

Genres: Children's, Fiction, Young Adult, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Penguin Random House
  • Macmillan, Chronicle, Simon & Schuster, Abrams, etc.
  • BookPeople

Elizabeth 5 star rating

Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Supportive editor & instructor. Experienced author of fiction and nonfiction books and magazine stories/articles for young readers.

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

Work experience:

  • McDaniel College
  • Word Association Publishers
  • Self-employed
  • Highlights Foundation

Larry 5 star rating

Honesdale, PA, USA

Founding editor of Highlights for Children's Boyds Mills Press, now working independently with writers for young readers.

Genres: Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, Picture Books, Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, History, and Humanities & Social Sciences.

Work experience:

  • Boyds Mills Press
  • Highlights for Children
  • Henry Holt and Company

Hank 5 star rating

Mankato, MN, USA

I have experience editing children's nonfiction and fiction, indexing, fact checking manuscripts, and proofing at Capstone Press.

Genres: Young Adult Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Middle Grade, Children's, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Capstone

Orli 5 star rating

Clifton, NJ, USA

Professional Children's Book and Content Editor. 20+ years of experience, including Scholastic and Callisto Media. Expertise in ages 0-12.

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

Work experience:

  • Callisto Media
  • Scholastic, Trade Division
  • Simon & Schuster

J 5 star rating

New York, NY, USA

Creative (some say quirky), euphemistically detail-oriented (read: minutia-obsessed) editor ready to dive in and spin your words into gold.

Genres: Travel, Non-Fiction, Children's, Fiction, Women's Fiction, Romance, Biographies & Memoirs, Children’s Non-Fiction, Inspirational, and Calendars.

Work experience:

  • Rizzoli
  • VanDam Inc.
  • Independent K–12 school in New York
  • Simon & Schuster
  • HarperCollins
  • Independent K-8 school in New York

Katherine 5 star rating

Huntington Beach, CA, USA

Award-winning author and highly experienced former publisher of illustrated children's books

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

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Nosy Crow
  • Scholastic UK
  • Simon & Schuster
  • Campbell Books (Macmillan UK)

Dan 5 star rating

New York, NY, USA

Personable and experienced editor of nonfiction with a long list of titles for the world's best publishers.

Genres: History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Travel, Entertainment, Education & Reference, Children’s Non-Fiction, Art, Middle Grade, Children's, Fiction, and Biographies & Memoirs.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Rizzoli International Publications

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Hire the best children's book developmental editors

Congratulations! You’ve finished writing your children’s book, and wrapped it up by typing “THE END”! Now the real challenge starts: editing everything that you’ve written.

The editing process always begins with the developmental edit, which is a thorough review of your story’s “big picture,” from its structure to its characters to its pace. This is arguably the most important stage of editing — which is why you may want to consider hiring a children’s book developmental editor. These developmental editors have the experience and knowledge to make sure that your story is structurally sound and wonderfully readable by the time it hits the shelves.

Looking for the best children’s book developmental editors? You’re in the right place. Simply sign up for a free account on Reedsy today, and start browsing the portfolios of hundreds of developmental editors for children’s books around the world in a matter of seconds.

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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

Collaborate

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