Jeff Shreve

Jeff Shreve – Editor

I'm an experienced publishing consultant and editor specializing in science, technology, business, memoir, and health/self-improvement.

Overview

I am a literary agent and former book editor with over ten years of experience in the commercial publishing world. As an agent, I spend every day reviewing query letters and reading or building book proposals. In my time as an editor at W. W. Norton, I edited and published over forty books—four of them New York Times bestsellers—from astronomers, physicists, tech experts, business professors, historians, journalists, neuroscientists, economists, anthropologists, geologists, mathematicians, and other academics and researchers from the U.S. and abroad. Whether you need a professional agent to review and sharpen your query letter, an experienced editor to shape and polish your manuscript into its best and highest form, or a partner to build your book proposal, I'm here to help!
Services
Non-Fiction
Earth, Space, & Environmental Sciences Humanities & Social Sciences Life Sciences Physics & Chemistry Political Science & Current Affairs Self-Help & Self-Improvement Technology
Languages
English (US)
Certifications
  • The New School, Copy Editing Course completion

Work experience

Self-employed

Jul, 2017 — Present

I provide developmental editing and consulting services for many clients, from individual authors to publishers to communications and technology firms.

W. W. Norton & Company

Apr, 2015 — Jun, 2017 (about 2 years)

I acquired books for Norton in the areas of popular science, politics/current affairs, self-improvement, business, and technology. Notable projects include THE SCIENCE OF INTERSTELLAR by Kip Thorne (NYT bestseller), DATA AND GOLIATH by Bruce Schneier (NYT bestseller), THE WOLF AND THE WATCHMAN by Scott C. Johnson (longlisted for the National Book Award), and GOODBYE THINGS by Fumio Sasaki.

W. W. Norton & Company

Jul, 2011 — Apr, 2015 (almost 4 years)

W. W. Norton & Company

Apr, 2009 — Jul, 2011 (about 2 years)

Portfolio

Designing the Mind: The Principles of Psychitecture

Mind, Designing the

Move: How to Rebuild and Reinvent America's Infrastructure

Rosabeth Moss Kanter

One of our “best known and most influential business scholars” (Boston Globe), best-selling author Rosabeth Moss Kanter tackles America’s most urgent domestic issue.Americans are stuck. We live with travel delays on congested roads, shipping delays on clogged ... read more
Close Encounters with Humankind: A Paleoanthropologist Investigates Our Evolving Species

Sang-Hee Lee

One of Smithsonian's Ten Best Science Books of 2018 In this captivating bestseller, Korea’s first paleoanthropologist offers fresh insights into humanity’s dawn and evolution.What can fossilized teeth tell us about the life expectancy of our ancient ancestors?... read more
The Essentials of Persuasive Public Speaking

Sims Wyeth

A collection of short and insightful pointers on the power, potential, and practice of public speaking.Among the many pieces of expert advice in The Essentials of Persuasive Public Speaking is this nugget: "To capture attention, define a problem that keeps lis... read more
Losing the Nobel Prize: A Story of Cosmology, Ambition, and the Perils of Science's Highest Honor

Brian Keating

A Forbes, Physics Today, Science News, and Science Friday Best Science Book Of 2018 The inside story of a quest to unlock one of cosmology’s biggest mysteries, derailed by the lure of the Nobel Prize.What would it have been like to be an eyewitness to the Big ... read more
The Motivation Toolkit: How to Align Your Employees' Interests with Your Own

David Kreps

Renowned Stanford economist David M. Kreps reveals the fundamental principles of employee motivation.Getting your employees to do their best work has never been easy. But it is a particular challenge for knowledge workers, who must attend to many different tas... read more
DNA Is Not Destiny: The Remarkable, Completely Misunderstood Relationship between You and Your Genes

Steven J. Heine

One of the world’s leading cultural psychologists debunks the hype surrounding DNA testing and puts to rest our mistaken anxieties about our genes.Do you fear what might be lurking in your DNA?Well, now you can find out, and you most likely will. Scientists ex... read more
Goodbye, Things: The New Japanese Minimalism

Fumio Sasaki

The best-selling phenomenon from Japan that shows us a minimalist life is a happy life.Fumio Sasaki is not an enlightened minimalism expert or organizing guru like Marie Kondo―he’s just a regular guy who was stressed out and constantly comparing himself to oth... read more
Not a Scientist: How Politicians Mistake, Misrepresent, and Utterly Mangle Science

Dave Levitan

An eye-opening tour of the political tricks that subvert scientific progress.The Butter-Up and Undercut. The Certain Uncertainty. The Straight-Up Fabrication. Dave Levitan dismantles all of these deceptive arguments, and many more, in this probing and hilariou... read more
The Wolf and the Watchman: A Father, a Son, and the CIA

Scott C. Johnson

Longlisted for the National Book Award and named a Washington Post Notable Book of the Year. Growing up, Scott C. Johnson always suspected that his father was different. Only as a teenager did he discover the truth: his father was a spy, one of the CIA’s most ... read more
Idiot Brain: What Your Head Is Really Up To

Dean Burnett

A neuroscientist's delightful tour of our mysterious, mischievous, entirely fallible gray matter.It's happened to all of us at some point. You walk into the kitchen, or flip open your laptop, or stride confidently up to a lectern, filled with purpose―and sudde... read more
Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the Data

Charles Wheelan

“Brilliant, funny . . . the best math teacher you never had.”―San Francisco Chronicle Once considered tedious, the field of statistics is rapidly evolving into a discipline Hal Varian, chief economist at Google, has actually called “sexy.” From batting average... read more
Now: The Physics of Time

Richard A. Muller

“Now” is a simple yet elusive concept.You are reading the word “now” right now. But what does that mean? What makes the ephemeral moment “now” so special? Its enigmatic character has bedeviled philosophers, priests, and modern-day physicists from Augustine to ... read more
The Science of Interstellar

Kip Thorne

A journey through the otherworldly science behind Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated film, Interstellar, from executive producer and theoretical physicist Kip Thorne.Interstellar, from acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan, takes us on a fantastic voyage f... read more
Data and Goliath: The Hidden Battles to Collect Your Data and Control Your World

Bruce Schneier

“Bruce Schneier’s amazing book is the best overview of privacy and security ever written.”―Clay ShirkyYour cell phone provider tracks your location and knows who’s with you. Your online and in-store purchasing patterns are recorded, and reveal if you're unempl... read more

Jeff has 14 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Maria B.

Maria B.

Nov, 2022

Jeff was absolutely wonderful to work with! He was very clear, punctual, thorough, honest, and kind - a true professional with evident experience. I would love to work with him in on future projects!
Jeff S.
Thank you so much, Maria! It was wonderfully inspiring to give feedback on your book -- I wish you all the best with it!
Oscar B.

Oscar B.

Mar, 2022

It was a pleasure working with Jeff! He is an amazing person and extremely good at what he does. He's very professional, punctual, and just great to communicate with. I was impressed at how helpful and clear his feedback was. Not only did he point out the issues that needed to be fixed, but he also provided great suggestions. I dreaded getting his editorial memo back with all the corrections ...
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Jeff S.
Thanks so much, Oscar! It was a true pleasure working with you as well -- all the best with the book!
Kara J.

Kara J.

Aug, 2021

Jeff delivered an editorial assessment and developmental editing for my book Digital Tidiness. He was communicative, punctual, and set clear expectations. He provided extremely helpful suggestions that made my book stronger and more cohesive. Overall it was a great experience working with Jeff! Highly recommend!
Robert W.

Robert W.

Dec, 2020

Jeff provided a wealth of suggestions in his developmental edit. As a first-time author, I wasn't sure to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to agree wholeheartedly with nearly all his suggestions. And grudgingly with a few. Not enough illustrations in the first draft meant Jeff had a tough time visualizing many elements discussed. I do wish he had communicated this was keeping him from evalua...
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Jeff S.
Many thanks, Bob! It was a genuine pleasure to work on your manuscript -- it completely engaged my inner science nerd. All the best with it going forward!
Sini N.

Sini N.

Oct, 2020

I can't put in words how much appreciation I have for the work that Jeff put into my book. He is not only a kind human, but also an in-depth reader and incredibly detail oriented in his approach. I have learned so much about my own writing style and what works and doesn't through his feedback. Jeff will tell you what works and also what doesn't work very honestly and openly. I truly enjoyed wo...
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Jeff S.
Thanks so much for this, Sini! It means a lot. It was terrific working with you, and I hope we have the opportunity to work together again!

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