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Karen Robinson - Editor
Texas
Experienced copy editor of fantasy, dystopian, paranormal, and speculative fiction. Specializes in working with indie authors.
Overview
I have a solid background in grammar. I know the rules. I understand the rules. I also know how and when to break them. I’m not going to be pedantic and insist on a change just for the sake of correctness if it is going to cause a problem with readability. Fiction is flexible—sometimes sentence fragments are useful, for example.
As a copy editor, I am focused on the details of the story—the sentence-level concerns. Although I do check for consistency (making sure Sally doesn’t suddenly change eye color, for example), I don’t make global comments about your book. I’m not going to give you a list of plot problems or places where characters/scenes should be more developed. That’s the job of a developmental editor (and something that should be done before sending the manuscript to me). If there’s something that really jumps out at me, I sometimes make a comment about it, but I’m not reading your book at that level. If that’s the kind of feedback you are looking for, please work with a developmental editor first. Then come back and let me clean things up at the sentence level.
But don’t take it from me. Here’s what a couple of the authors I’ve worked with have to say:
“In the course of a long career writing analytic reports and technical monographs, I became well acquainted with professional editors. Taking up writing fiction a few years ago, I had difficultly finding an editor who could satisfy my requirements, and so released three novels that were largely self-edited. Recently, a fellow author recommended Karen, and I could not be happier. She is responsive, diligent, meticulous without being overbearing, and affordable. Most importantly, she has a fine feeling for a writer’s style. In the past, I have had to ‘train’ editors to not attempt to reduce my writing to their notion of acceptable ‘lowest common denominator’ verbiage, which has generally not been a congenial exercise. Imagine, therefore, my delight that there was none of this with Karen. From the first, her suggestions enhanced the writing without altering the voice — a rare and wonderful thing in my experience. I recommend her services without reservation and look forward to working with her again in the future.”
~ Owen O’Neill, co-author of the Loralynn Kennakris series
“Look no further for the perfect editor. I initially chose Karen to edit my YA fantasy novel given her impressive education, skill sets, and that she had edited similar books. From our very first interaction, Karen demonstrated a strong, passionate editing philosophy and I immediately felt comfortable working with her. She made many skilled observations that allowed me to polish my novel without changing my voice, which is something of utmost importance to an author. Karen goes above and beyond the scope of an ordinary editor because she possesses a genuine interest in her client’s projects and wants to see them succeed. I highly recommend her and I can’t wait to work with her again.”
~ Amie Irene Winters, author of Strange Luck
Services
Languages
Fiction
Work experience
Line editor
INDIE Books Gone Wild
Part of the editing team at INDIE Books Gone Wild.
Freelance Copy Editor
Self-employed
Although I have done freelancing here and there since 1997, I started working full-time at freelancing in August 2012. I have copy edited everything from websites to cookbooks but my preferred focus is fiction.
English Faculty Fellow
Ivy Tech Community College, Lafayette, Indiana
Taught freshman composition and literature courses.
Editorial Assistant
Arthuriana (academic journal)
Copy edited and proofread articles; laid out articles for journal
Technical Writer
AgIT Department, Purdue University
Wrote documentation supporting in-house computer programs and other programs and revised existing documentation.
Instructor
Purdue University
Taught courses in composition, literature, and Latin. Was a graduate student during this time and earned a PhD in English.
Instructor
Texas A&M University
Taught courses in composition, literature, and technical writing.
Writing Center Tutor
Blinn College
Tutored students in one-on-one writing sessions
Developmental Lab Tutor
Blinn College
Worked with students in computer lab during developmental reading and writing courses as a teacher's aide.
Senior Medical Editor
Cancer Information Group
Edited and proofread articles for four oncology journals
Copy Editor
Arthur Andersen
Edited financial documents
Editorial Intern
Texas A&M University Press
Proofread manuscripts
Portfolio (17 selected works)
A Call to Arms: Book One of the Chronicles of Arden
Shiriluna Nott, SaJa H.
Gibben Nemesio is in trouble. His parents are dead, his sister is missing, and he's been left the sole provider for his two younger brothers. With a war brewing in the east and no guarantee of surviving another brutal winter, Gib's life is plagued by uncertainty. To make matters worse, he suddenly finds himself uprooted from his home and drafted into the army. Forced to leave his siblings behi... read more
Gibben Nemesio is in trouble. His parents are dead, his sister is missing, and he's been left the sole provider for his two younger brothers. With a war brewing in the east and no guarantee of surviving another brutal winter, Gib's life is plagued by uncertainty. To make matters worse, he suddenly finds himself uprooted from his home and drafted into the army. Forced to leave his siblings behi... read more
Fated Mate (Red Moon Pack Book 1)
Vanessa Sims
What would you do if the man destined to be your mate tells you he is going to look for another mate? You make him see the error of his ways. Ethan and Isaiah are Beta's in the Red Moon pack. They are best friends and mates. They have denied their wolves for five years. Author Note: Title has been edited and revised for your enjoyment. One fateful night Ethan tells Isaiah he's looking for anot... read more
What would you do if the man destined to be your mate tells you he is going to look for another mate? You make him see the error of his ways. Ethan and Isaiah are Beta's in the Red Moon pack. They are best friends and mates. They have denied their wolves for five years. Author Note: Title has been edited and revised for your enjoyment. One fateful night Ethan tells Isaiah he's looking for anot... read more
The Heart Thief (The Rhapp's Barren Triptych Book 1)
S. Lee Benedict
Ezra Keene is an artistic sixteen-year-old who wants nothing more than to settle in at his new school and put the tragedy of his brother’s death behind him. He awakens one night, reeling from a hazy dream, to find his fingers blackened with pencil lead and a new drawing in his sketchbook—a drawing that depicts the grisly murder of someone he knows. The next morning he is shocked to learn the p... read more
Ezra Keene is an artistic sixteen-year-old who wants nothing more than to settle in at his new school and put the tragedy of his brother’s death behind him. He awakens one night, reeling from a hazy dream, to find his fingers blackened with pencil lead and a new drawing in his sketchbook—a drawing that depicts the grisly murder of someone he knows. The next morning he is shocked to learn the p... read more
Believing Magic: Believing Magic Series
Shane Shelton
Having never been a recreational reader, Jane Miller is not sure what to think as strange events from the book she’s reading begin to mirror into her everyday life in odd ways. She’s been told to report any unusual ‘side effects’ she experiences while in the drug study, but is ‘book deja-vu’ a side effect, or is it something that’s totally normal when your really into a good book? CONTENT ADVI... read more
Having never been a recreational reader, Jane Miller is not sure what to think as strange events from the book she’s reading begin to mirror into her everyday life in odd ways. She’s been told to report any unusual ‘side effects’ she experiences while in the drug study, but is ‘book deja-vu’ a side effect, or is it something that’s totally normal when your really into a good book? CONTENT ADVI... read more
Renaria: Into the Adyton
J.L. Wilson
A small memento, a universal power... It’s the year 2126, post-World War V. Leda, age seventeen, bounds through the lush forested region of the Desintor Foothills as a regal, bow-wielding, High-Elf Scout. That is, when she’s logged into her favorite game: Renaria. One crisp fall afternoon, an unseasonal storm fractures the sky of Trinton, New Texas with splinters of emerald lightning and other... read more
A small memento, a universal power... It’s the year 2126, post-World War V. Leda, age seventeen, bounds through the lush forested region of the Desintor Foothills as a regal, bow-wielding, High-Elf Scout. That is, when she’s logged into her favorite game: Renaria. One crisp fall afternoon, an unseasonal storm fractures the sky of Trinton, New Texas with splinters of emerald lightning and other... read more
Kingdom Come: Believing Magic Series
Shane Shelton
One teen from the drug study is dead, along with his entire family. Others from the study have been taken to a government facility where they are being kept in highly controlled isolation. The rest, those too powerful to control, have taken refuge in The Hale House, a historic mansion located on the banks of the St. Johns River. Cornelius Amen Hale, the only living descendent of Nathan Hale, h... read more
One teen from the drug study is dead, along with his entire family. Others from the study have been taken to a government facility where they are being kept in highly controlled isolation. The rest, those too powerful to control, have taken refuge in The Hale House, a historic mansion located on the banks of the St. Johns River. Cornelius Amen Hale, the only living descendent of Nathan Hale, h... read more
Sacrifice: Believing Magic Series
Shane Shelton
BOOK 3 of the Believing Magic Series. CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains violence, language, various adult themes and adult situations throughout. This book is NOT erotica or slasher horror. Sacrifice is a Dark Modern Fantasy intended for older readers - 17 and up. Everything has a beginning, and beginnings are usually difficult things. Messy. Changeable. Confusing. As we add new people and fill this ... read more
BOOK 3 of the Believing Magic Series. CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains violence, language, various adult themes and adult situations throughout. This book is NOT erotica or slasher horror. Sacrifice is a Dark Modern Fantasy intended for older readers - 17 and up. Everything has a beginning, and beginnings are usually difficult things. Messy. Changeable. Confusing. As we add new people and fill this ... read more
Garden of Wrath: Believing Magic Series
Shane Shelton
Garden of Wrath is Book 4 of the Believing Magic Series CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains graphic violence, language, sex, various adult themes and adult situations throughout. This book is Dark Modern Fantasy - it is NOT erotica or slasher horror. Intended for older readers - 17 and up who enjoy Modern YA Fantasy - but prefer that genre without the training wheels. It is Saturday, the sixth of Augus... read more
Garden of Wrath is Book 4 of the Believing Magic Series CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains graphic violence, language, sex, various adult themes and adult situations throughout. This book is Dark Modern Fantasy - it is NOT erotica or slasher horror. Intended for older readers - 17 and up who enjoy Modern YA Fantasy - but prefer that genre without the training wheels. It is Saturday, the sixth of Augus... read more
All Around The Throne: Believing Magic Series
Shane Shelton
All Around the Throne is a Companion Book to Garden of Wrath, and the fifth book of the Believing Magic Series. CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains graphic violence, language, various adult themes and situations throughout. This book is Modern Dark Fantasy - NOT erotica. ideal reading for those who enjoy Contemporary YA themed fantasy - but without the training wheels. Intended for older readers - 17 a... read more
All Around the Throne is a Companion Book to Garden of Wrath, and the fifth book of the Believing Magic Series. CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains graphic violence, language, various adult themes and situations throughout. This book is Modern Dark Fantasy - NOT erotica. ideal reading for those who enjoy Contemporary YA themed fantasy - but without the training wheels. Intended for older readers - 17 a... read more
Amendments
H.M. Lynn
Emelia must choose. Her sister or her soulmate. In a world not dissimilar to our own, the Administration have ensured that the human race should not have to live with any regrets. Like millions before her, Emelia now has the chance to go back and make the 'correct' decisions. The little envelope that contains her amendment will change not just her life, but that of the people she loves the mos... read more
Emelia must choose. Her sister or her soulmate. In a world not dissimilar to our own, the Administration have ensured that the human race should not have to live with any regrets. Like millions before her, Emelia now has the chance to go back and make the 'correct' decisions. The little envelope that contains her amendment will change not just her life, but that of the people she loves the mos... read more
Nightfall: Book Two of the Chronicles of Arden
Shiriluna Nott, SaJa H
Gibben Nemesio thought his life was over the day he received a conscription notice demanding he train to be a soldier. When he left his home for Silver City, he never expected he'd thwart a terrible plot to murder the King and become an overnight hero—and he definitely hadn't expected to find love in the form of a handsome mage trainee named Joel. Three years later, Gib has fought his way from... read more
Gibben Nemesio thought his life was over the day he received a conscription notice demanding he train to be a soldier. When he left his home for Silver City, he never expected he'd thwart a terrible plot to murder the King and become an overnight hero—and he definitely hadn't expected to find love in the form of a handsome mage trainee named Joel. Three years later, Gib has fought his way from... read more
Strange Luck
Amie Winters
Daisy Darling embarks on a journey to save her ailing father, but instead lands in a dark world built on stolen memories. Now Daisy must risk her life to destroy the world and restore what is lost.
Daisy Darling embarks on a journey to save her ailing father, but instead lands in a dark world built on stolen memories. Now Daisy must risk her life to destroy the world and restore what is lost.
Scorn of Angels (The Descended Book 2)
John Patrick Kennedy
Creation is Doomed… Nyx, Queen of Hell, lies broken and burning in a box at the bottom of the Lake of Fire, put there but her lover Tribunal, who is God’s Son. Nyx’s daughter Epiphenia, has been slaughtered by Tribunal and Lucifer. Her companions, Persephone and Ishtar, were captured and are now suffering unspeakable torture. Lucifer, one Nyx’s second-in-command, has taken over Hell and is rul... read more
Creation is Doomed… Nyx, Queen of Hell, lies broken and burning in a box at the bottom of the Lake of Fire, put there but her lover Tribunal, who is God’s Son. Nyx’s daughter Epiphenia, has been slaughtered by Tribunal and Lucifer. Her companions, Persephone and Ishtar, were captured and are now suffering unspeakable torture. Lucifer, one Nyx’s second-in-command, has taken over Hell and is rul... read more
Finding Sagrado
Roger E. Carrier
Five stars! San Francisco Book Review (August 2014) "A life-altering coming-of-age story filled with magic and imagination." Five Stars! Midwest Reviews, Diane Donovan (May 2014) "Those seeking powerful . . . sagas will find it engrossing." No BS Reviews in New World Authors, by Nick LeVar (June 2014) "This was one of the best novels I've read in a long time. It is a fast, easy read, and if yo... read more
Five stars! San Francisco Book Review (August 2014) "A life-altering coming-of-age story filled with magic and imagination." Five Stars! Midwest Reviews, Diane Donovan (May 2014) "Those seeking powerful . . . sagas will find it engrossing." No BS Reviews in New World Authors, by Nick LeVar (June 2014) "This was one of the best novels I've read in a long time. It is a fast, easy read, and if yo... read more
The Mirrored City (Architects of the Grand Design Book 2)
Michael J. Bode
Maddox is a broken man, held together by the will of his sentient sword. Heath is a prophet of a forgotten god— and an assassin. Jessa is an inexperienced ruler, struggling to broker a truce between her warring nation and her enemies. That plan for peace is threatened by the local politics of the Mirrored City, a place ruled by dual theocratic governments. Beneath the tenuous accord between th... read more
Maddox is a broken man, held together by the will of his sentient sword. Heath is a prophet of a forgotten god— and an assassin. Jessa is an inexperienced ruler, struggling to broker a truce between her warring nation and her enemies. That plan for peace is threatened by the local politics of the Mirrored City, a place ruled by dual theocratic governments. Beneath the tenuous accord between th... read more
The Price Of Freedom: (Gripping Young Adult Thriller)
Lauren Parkes
The explosive debut by Lauren Parkes Reviews "A chilling tale of love, deception, suspense and greed." "If you like YA fiction and a rollicking plot then this is going to be your cup of tea!" Jenny Knott, Goodreads “The next big thing in young adult thrillers.” Nicola Almond, Twitter advance reader "Startling debut novel from British author, Lauren Parkes." Liz Anne, beta-reader Book Descripti... read more
The explosive debut by Lauren Parkes Reviews "A chilling tale of love, deception, suspense and greed." "If you like YA fiction and a rollicking plot then this is going to be your cup of tea!" Jenny Knott, Goodreads “The next big thing in young adult thrillers.” Nicola Almond, Twitter advance reader "Startling debut novel from British author, Lauren Parkes." Liz Anne, beta-reader Book Descripti... read more
Purr Prints of the Heart: A Cat's Tale of Life, Death, and Beyond
Deborah Barnes
Told by Mr. Jazz himself, an ordinary cat by his own admission, "Purr Prints of the Heart" is a touching meow-memoir that will strike a chord with anyone whose heart carries paw-prints of love as he shares the story of his life from kitten hood to his final days on earth in the physical sense. Cleverly written in cat likeness with incredible insight, candor, wisdom, and humor, Mr. Jazz takes r... read more
Told by Mr. Jazz himself, an ordinary cat by his own admission, "Purr Prints of the Heart" is a touching meow-memoir that will strike a chord with anyone whose heart carries paw-prints of love as he shares the story of his life from kitten hood to his final days on earth in the physical sense. Cleverly written in cat likeness with incredible insight, candor, wisdom, and humor, Mr. Jazz takes r... read more
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Beth Dorward
Seasoned copy editor and proofreader with experience in multiple genres.
Maineville, OH, United States
Joey Quince
Editorial Director at a London/Geneva publishing house, specialising in literary and historical, YA and thriller fiction, poetry and memoir.
Geneva, Switzerland