The best cookbook book developmental editing services

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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

Marah 5 star rating

Washington, DC, United States

Incisive editor and collaborative, results-oriented project manager of health, food, and lifestyle books

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, and Self-Help & Self-Improvement.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Simon & Schuster Trade Paperbacks
  • Scribner

Adaobi 5 star rating

Bronx, NY, United States

I offer services in proofreading and copyediting for all genres, developmental editing of nonfiction, and project management.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Computers & Internet, Technology, Health & Wellbeing, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, and Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits.

Work experience:

  • John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
  • Manuscript Coordinator
  • Self-employed
  • Hachette Book Group
  • McGraw-Hill Education
  • Apress
  • Project Lead The Way

Rebecca 5 star rating

Asheville, NC, USA

Experienced editor specializing in cooking, baking, knitting, crafts, and DIY. Helping readers and writers get creative.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, DIY & Crafts, Art, and Humanities & Social Sciences.

Work experience:

  • Page Street Publishing

Mari 5 star rating

Good Thunder, MN, USA

Writer and editor with 15 years of experience in ed pub, with specializations in recipe/project books and graphic novels.

Genres: Comics & Graphic Novels, Fiction, Children’s Non-Fiction, Non-Fiction, Comics Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, DIY & Crafts, Historical Fiction, Entertainment, Picture Books, and Children's.

Work experience:

  • Capstone Publishing
  • Book Buddy Media

Ray 5 star rating

Northampton, United States

Developmental editing and copy editing for the nonfiction world: health, nutrition, fitness, tech, and entrepreneurship.

Genres: Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Health & Wellbeing, Sports & Outdoors, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Business & Management, Computers & Internet, and Technology.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Winning Edits
  • Rocket Code
  • Amazon Services (Amazon.com)
  • Smart Passive Income
  • Buy Box Experts
  • The Storied Future

Mark 5 star rating

New York, NY, USA

I'm an experienced (400+ books, many bestsellers) nonfiction editor with a real passion for sports, fitness, health, self-help, and memoir.

Genres: Sports & Outdoors, Non-Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Health & Wellbeing, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Children’s Non-Fiction, and Business & Management.

Work experience:

  • Rodale Books
  • Sports Publishing
  • Skyhorse Publishing
  • McGraw-Hill Trade
  • Lyons Press
  • Diversion Books
  • Kevin Anderson & Associates

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Natalie 5 star rating

New York, NY, United States

Writer, editor, and Italian-to-English translator with three decades of experience. I've written and edited dozens of cookbooks.

Genres: Art, Humanities & Social Sciences, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Fashion & Textiles, Biographies & Memoirs, Design, and Travel.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed

My name is Lauren, and I help writers and authors of all backgrounds take their work to the next level. Let's work together!

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Nature, Home & Garden, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Historical Fiction, and Fiction.

Work experience:

  • Pineapple Press
  • SAGE Publishing
  • Fox Chapel Publishing
  • Self-employed

Anna 5 star rating

Winston-Salem, NC, USA

An editor for nonfiction and literary fiction, I specialize in memoir, travel, historical fiction, fantasy and thrillers.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, LGBTQ Fiction, Literary Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Travel, Thriller & Suspense, and Women's Fiction.

Work experience:

  • John F. Blair, Publisher
  • Lookout Books
  • Self-employed
  • Barefoot Books
  • Dialogist Journal
  • Ecotone Journal
  • The Porch Writers' Collective
  • Tennessee Humanities' Tennessee Young Writers Workshop

Molly 5 star rating

New York, NY, USA

Senior editor specializing in non-fiction books focusing on Food and Drink, Personal Development, Popular Culture and Health and Wellness.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, DIY & Crafts, Entertainment, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, and Sex & Relationships.

Work experience:

  • Hardie Grant
  • Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Carey 5 star rating

San Rafael, CA, United States

I am an editor who loves helping authors revise and refine their work so it is clear, precise, and ready for publication.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, DIY & Crafts, Health & Wellbeing, Travel, Sports & Outdoors, Parenting & Families, and Design.

Work experience:

  • Chronicle Books
  • Self-employed

Rebecca 5 star rating

Peterborough, NH, USA

Versatile editor and indexer specializing in cookbooks and other prescriptive nonfiction.

Genres: Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Design, DIY & Crafts, Home & Garden, Parenting & Families, and Self-Help & Self-Improvement.

Work experience:

  • Self-employed
  • Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  • Hollan Publishing
  • Time Warner Book Group
  • Random House
  • HarperCollins Publishers

Jeremy 5 star rating

Lancaster, PA, USA

Editor of how-tos, eco gardening, & reference books. Proofreader of books by Penguin Random House.

Genres: Literary Fiction, Fiction, DIY & Crafts, Non-Fiction, Children's, Agriculture, Biographies & Memoirs, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Home & Garden, and Nature.

Work experience:

  • North Market Street Graphics
  • Fox Chapel Publishing
  • Carl Bloom Associates
  • Cider Mill Press

Dan 5 star rating

Cleveland, OH, USA

Professional editor with over a decade of experience at W. W. Norton, FSG, and top-tier indies.

Genres: Business & Management, Non-Fiction, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, History, Humanities & Social Sciences, Political Science & Current Affairs, Nature, Travel, Historical Fiction, Fiction, and Comics & Graphic Novels.

Work experience:

  • W. W. Norton & Company
  • The Overlook Press
  • Farrar, Straus and Giroux
  • Self-employed
  • Belt Publishing
  • Indiana University Press

Olivia 5 star rating

New York, NY, USA

Nonfiction editor of bestselling books at Penguin Random House, specializing in business, self-help, wellness, and cooking.

Genres: Business & Management, Non-Fiction, Psychology, Humanities & Social Sciences, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Health & Wellbeing, and Technology.

Work experience:

  • The Experiment Publishing
  • Penguin Random House

Thea 5 star rating

Austin, TX, USA

Big 5 publishing house editor specializing in fiction, mystery/thriller, cookbooks, self help, design and lifestyle.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Magical Realism, Literary Fiction, Mystery & Crime, Cooking, Food, Wine, & Spirits, Non-Fiction, Health & Wellbeing, Self-Help & Self-Improvement, Psychological Thriller, and Thriller & Suspense.

Work experience:

  • Hachette Book Group
  • SKLA
  • Penguin Random House

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Hire the best cookbook developmental editors

Just finishing up your cookbook and wondering about hiring a developmental editor? By now, you’ll have probably spent a long time perfecting recipes — so you’ll know the importance of ensuring every ingredient is combined in the right order, at the right speed, and in the right amount. It’s just the same with books but, like with a recipe you’ve loved since childhood, it’s hard to be objective about big picture issues when you’ve spent time with it.

A cookbook developmental editor is like your supportive sous-chef and your biggest critic all in one, analyzing the wider picture and suggesting fixes for your structure, layout, and your recipe introductions.

That said, you’ll need an expert with a strong portfolio to back up their criticisms: here at Reedsy, we only accept the top 3% of professionals, so you can trust your editor’s skills. Sign up for free to connect today.

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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.

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