Karen Bourne

Karen Bourne – Editor

Former agent/editor with extensive experience in the publishing industry. Reader of genre fiction. Dedicated to improving your manuscript.

Overview

As the former Subsidiary Rights Associate at JABberwocky Literary Agency Inc., I represented authors in the English language and sold the agency's translation rights to publishers around the globe. Now I freelance professionally. I am delighted to have worked with acclaimed authors on the editorial side such as up-and-comer Ryan O'Nan, internationally bestselling author Peter V. Brett, and more.

My specialty is editorial assessments. For these, I provide an overview letter that gives a full rundown of the narrative's strengths and weaknesses as well as suggestions on how to improve the manuscript overall. On a case-by-case basis, I may also provide a document with tracked changes. My aim in author feedback is to polish rough manuscripts into high-quality gems, with a realistic eye for both writing as a craft as well as marketability. I'm committed to giving every project its due diligence, so I usually schedule projects up around month out.

I'm a huge fan of fantasy, magical realism, and/or supernatural stories, however I'm open to working with most genres. If you've got a great story to tell, I'd love to read it!

Quotes From Writers:

"Thanks, Karen! I’m incredibly grateful for your input and the quick turnaround."
-Myke Cole, author of the Shadow Ops series, Reawakened trilogy, Sacred Throne series, etc.

"Karen was such a gift! Her thoughts and suggestions were beyond perfect. She knew exactly how to strengthen my plot for my genre and for the story overall. She was quick to respond, very professional, extremely nice, and I loved working with her. I value her feedback so much and I really feel like she helped me grow as a writer. I would love to work with her again in the future."
-Adora Michaels

"Karen's analysis and review was insightful, perceptive, and spot-on. Her feedback was quite helpful and her suggestions were inspiring. I look forward to working with her again!"
-Debra Elliott

Services
Fiction
Epic Fantasy LGBTQ Fiction Magical Realism New Adult Urban Fantasy Young Adult Fantasy
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

JABberwocky Literary Agency Inc.

Nov, 2018 — Present

• Evaluates author-submitted manuscripts for potential representation.
• Manages first reads & developmental edits for multiple agents & their respective client lists.
• Ensures quality of manuscripts with an eye for success in the current marketplace.
• Creates and edits back cover copy, tip sheets, etc.

Delacorte/Macmillan/Picador/Workman

Aug, 2014 — Nov, 2018 (over 4 years)

• Read agented submissions & composed reader reports
• Composed developmental editorial letters for frontlist titles
• Created and edited back cover copy, tip sheets, etc.
• Wrote press & campaign materials to be used in frontlist marketing campaigns

Karen has 6 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Matthew F.

Matthew F.

May, 2022

Another great experience with immense value added
Schaun W.

Schaun W.

May, 2022

Karen was excellent. I had quite a large manuscript, and she not only gave me invaluable feedback that made it a much stronger product, but her turnaround time was also quite fast. She gave me the high-level perspective I needed to tie the different parts of my story together, but also gave me detailed feedback on specific scenes, character development and motivations, and ways to explain aspec...
Read more
Adora M.

Adora M.

Feb, 2022

Karen was such a gift! Her thoughts and suggestions were beyond perfect. She knew exactly how to strengthen my plot for my genre and for the story overall. She was quick to respond, very professional, extremely nice, and I loved working with her. I value her feedback so much and I really feel like she helped me grow as a writer. I would love to work with her again in the future.
Joseph V.

Joseph V.

Nov, 2021

Karen was attentive, professional, fast to respond, and her consultation was a bargain for what I received. Highly recommend.
Matthew F.

Matthew F.

Nov, 2021

Working with Karen was a great experience, I think she completely understood what was needed and provided excellent feedback and suggestions for the improvement of the work at this stage. I will look forward to working with her in the future.

Sign up to read more reviews

Create a free Reedsy account to connect with Karen and thousands of other publishing professionals on Reedsy.

Professionals similar to Karen

Get a range of offers by requesting quotes from multiple professionals.

Saxon Bullock

Saxon B.

Freelance proofreader/copy-editor. I specialise in commercial fiction – crime, thrillers, SF/Fantasy, and solving complex plot problems.

Nottingham, UK

100% reply rate

View profile
Megan Gendell

Megan G.

YA expert, passionate about LGBTQ+ stories, freelancer for Big Five publishers. I've copyedited 400+ books. Let's polish yours next!

Brattleboro, VT, USA

90% reply rate

View profile
Daisuke S.

Daisuke S.

Developmental fiction editor specializing in experimental and speculative fiction manuscripts, as well as short stories.

New York, NY, USA

94% reply rate

View profile