Jon Roemer

Jon Roemer – Editor

My focus is memoir, upscale fiction and LGTBQ+ in all genres. I run an award-winning publishing house and editing genuinely thrills me.

Overview

I'm a seasoned senior editor at an award-winning indie publishing house, working for over ten years with experienced and debut authors of acclaimed nonfiction and fiction books. I studied writing at Northwestern and, before working as a book editor, delivered big editorial projects for a lot of big brands.As a book editor, here's my core principle: to fully embrace and uphold each author's vision. My job is to refine your voice, message and story authentically, true to you and in service of your readers. That holds for any category or genre, from business books to memoirs to novels. We'll work together to make sure your message or story lands with your readers the way you want it to.I have one bias. I'm a big believer in concision -- always striving for fewer, more powerful words. Precision in writing is more engaging and persuasive, and that's one of the few personal preferences I'll advocate for with anybody's work.We can start from scratch together, you can lean on me for a final polish, or if you're stalled or uncertain, I can find ways to keep your manuscript moving forward. Regardless of our starting point, we'll work in stages, with clear deliverables and timeframes, so you can move at your own pace, charging ahead or pausing if you need to. We'll find a process and rhythm that works best for you. Editing thrills me. I look forward to working together!
Services
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs LGBTQ Non-Fiction
Fiction
Contemporary Fiction LGBTQ Fiction Literary Fiction
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

Outpost19 Books

Aug, 2011 — Present
For the past 13 years, I've served as senior editor/publisher of an award-winning indie publishing house, earning praise from major and indie media as well as booksellers nationwide. Authors and books have been featured in the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Publishers Weekly, and by dozens of others. My primary focus is literary fiction and mainstream nonfiction, principally novels, memoirs and biographies but also LGBTQ titles and business/management titles. Each project stands on its own legs, and I work to help each author realize their own vision, refining and elevating their individual voice and message. Clients I work with via Reedsy are engaged with separately from the editing and publishing services provided by my imprint.

Jon has 24 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Charles R.

Charles R.

Apr, 2026

Jon was a pleasure to work with from start to finish. He was responsive throughout the process, communicated clearly, and delivered his critique ahead of time. Most impressively, the quality of his feedback far exceeded my expectations — he went well beyond the scope of the brief, offering insigh...
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Darran S.

Darran S.

Apr, 2026

After my first session with Jon, I made some significant rewrites to my manuscript. Since I trusted him with the story and my voice, I asked him to do a 2nd read. He really focused on the things that mattered and provided incredible feedback. I feel confident that my manuscript has been elevated ...
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Joyce T.

Joyce T.

Feb, 2026

Jon pinpointed weaknesses in my manuscript and made suggestions for reworking them. On time, good communication, gentle constructive criticism.
Darran S.

Darran S.

Feb, 2026

I am very pleased with the quantity and quality of feedback that Jon provided for my manuscript. I feel that he really understands the story I'm trying to tell and knows exactly how to get my message out there. He gave me a lot to work with, shared viewpoints that I never considered, validated so...
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Paul L.

Paul L.

Jan, 2026

John has been invaluable in helping me keep hold of the narrative threads I’d dropped and guiding me to understand why certain choices worked while others needed refining. His assessment was consistently balanced—clear about the strengths, honest about the weaknesses, and always focused on improv...
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