Laura Gerrard - Editor
Former Commissioning Editor at Orion, interested in commercial fiction, reading group, crime, thriller, women's fiction & more
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Overview
I am a freelance fiction editor with over nine years' experience in the publishing industry. Most recently I was Commissioning Editor at Orion (whose authors include Michael Connelly, Linwood Barclay, Ian Rankin, Kate Mosse, Erica James, Katherine Webb, Jodi Ellen Malpas and Nicky Pellegrino) where I edited and published many award-winning and Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling authors.
Previously I worked for Hodder & Stoughton as an ebook proofreader and interned at Blake Friedmann Literary Agency. I have appeared on panels for the Romantic Novelists' Association and I was also on the judging panel for the Crime Writers' Association Debut Dagger Award in 2015.
I have a degree in English Literature from the University of Leeds and an MA in Publishing from University College London.
I now work as a freelance editor and am available to work with authors and publishers at any stage of the editorial process, from structural and developmental editing, to line editing, copy-editing and proofreading.
Interests: commercial fiction, women's fiction, reading group fiction, crime fiction, thrillers, psychological suspense, saga, historical fiction.
Previously I worked for Hodder & Stoughton as an ebook proofreader and interned at Blake Friedmann Literary Agency. I have appeared on panels for the Romantic Novelists' Association and I was also on the judging panel for the Crime Writers' Association Debut Dagger Award in 2015.
I have a degree in English Literature from the University of Leeds and an MA in Publishing from University College London.
I now work as a freelance editor and am available to work with authors and publishers at any stage of the editorial process, from structural and developmental editing, to line editing, copy-editing and proofreading.
Interests: commercial fiction, women's fiction, reading group fiction, crime fiction, thrillers, psychological suspense, saga, historical fiction.
Languages
English (AUS)
English (CAN)
English (NZ)
English (UK)
English (US)
Fiction
Action & Adventure
Historical Fiction
Holiday
Literary Fiction
Mystery & Crime
Romance
Thriller & Suspense
Women's Fiction
Work experience
Editor, copy-editor, proofreader
Self-employed
April, 2018
–
Present
(almost 5 years)
Commissioning Editor
Orion Publishing Group
July, 2015
–
March, 2018
(over 2 years)
Editor
Orion Publishing Group
April, 2013
–
July, 2015
(about 2 years)
Assistant Editor
Orion Publishing Group
June, 2012
–
April, 2013
(10 months)
Editorial Assistant
Orion Publishing Group
September, 2011
–
June, 2012
(9 months)
Paperbacks Departmental Administrator
Orion Publishing Group
October, 2009
–
September, 2011
(almost 2 years)
Proofreader
Hodder & Stoughton
September, 2009
–
October, 2009
(about 1 month)
Intern
Blake Friedmann Literary, Film & TV Agency
April, 2009
–
June, 2009
(2 months)
Portfolio (19 selected works)
The Companion
Sarah Dunnakey
How do you solve a mystery when the clues are hidden in the past? Billy Shaw lives in a palace. Potter's Pleasure Palace, the best entertainment venue in Yorkshire, complete with dancing, swing-boats and a roller-skating rink. When it is arranged for him to become companion to the child at the big house above the valley, Billy leaves home to find a wild, peculiar boy in a curiously haphazard h... read more
Citadel
Kate Mosse
The enthralling new Sunday Times bestselling gothic novel from the author of THE WINTER GHOSTS, CITADEL and LABYRINTH.The clock strikes twelve. Beneath the wind and the remorseless tolling of the bell, no one can hear the scream . . .1912. A Sussex churchyard. Villagers gather on the night when the ghosts of those who will not survive the coming year are thought to walk. And in the shadows, a ... read more
The Evidence of Ghosts
A K Benedict
Maria King knows a secret London. Born blind, she knows the city by sound and touch and smell but now that surgery has restored her sight, the world seems a scarier place and she doesn't want to see it. DCI Jonathan Dark also sees a different side to the city. He's in the shadows, haunted by his failure to save a woman from the hands of stalker, and he won't let it happen again. Now a killer h... read more
The Daughter's Secret
Eva Holland
My daughter is a liar. A liar, liar, liar. And I'm starting to see where she gets it from.When Rosalind's fifteen-year-old daughter, Stephanie, ran away with her teacher, this ordinary family became something it had never asked to be. Their lives held up to scrutiny in the centre of a major police investigation, the Simms were headline news while Stephanie was missing with a man who was riskin... read more
This Man (This Man Trilogy Book 1)
Jodi Ellen Malpas
If you don't know where to turn next after the Fifty Shades movie: welcome to the sensual world of This Man...Young interior designer Ava O'Shea has no idea what awaits her at the Manor. A run-of-the-mill consultation with a stodgy country gent seems likely, but what Ava finds instead is Jesse Ward - a devastatingly handsome, utterly confident, pleasure-seeking playboy who knows no boundaries.... read more
With This Man (This Man 4)
Jodi Ellen Malpas
Jesse Ward is back in the newest novel in the Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling This Man series!Life is good for Jesse 'The Lord' Ward. Perfect, actually. He still has the charm, he's in great shape, and he still reduces his wife, Ava, to a pool of desire with a mere look. He's in full control, just how he likes it.But Jesse's perfect world falls apart when a terrible accident lands ... read more
Trust Your Eyes
Linwood Barclay
What would you do if you witnessed a murder - but no one believed you...? Map-obsessed Thomas spends his days and nights on a virtual tour of the world through his computer screen, believing he must store the details of every town and city in his head. Then one day, while surfing a street view program, he sees something that shouldn't be there: a woman being murdered behind a window on a New Y... read more
A Year at Hotel Gondola
Nicky Pellegrino
used - read only once - good tight copy
You Can Run
Steve Mosby
The Drop (Harry Bosch Book 17)
Michael Connelly
Is it the end of the line for Harry Bosch? When evidence links a brutal murder in 1989 to a convicted rapist named Clayton Pell, the case should be watertight. Pell's DNA was found on the victim - but he was only eight years old at the time. This is not the only mystery Harry Bosch has to solve. A man jumped - or was pushed - from a window. The victim's father is Councilman Irving, who's been ... read more
The Twelve (Passage Trilogy 2)
Justin Cronin
THE TWELVE Death-row prisoners with nightmare pasts and no future. THE TWELVE Until they were selected for a secret experiment. THE TWELVE To create something more than human. THE TWELVE Now they are the future and humanity's worst nightmare has begun. THE TWELVE The epic sequel to THE PASSAGE
The Killing Lessons (Valerie Hart 1)
Saul Black
When the two strangers turn up at Rowena Cooper's isolated Colorado farmhouse, she knows instantly that it's the end of everything. For the two haunted and driven men, on the other hand, it's just another stop on a long and bloody journey. And they still have many miles to go, and victims to sacrifice, before their work is done. For San Francisco homicide detective Valerie Hart, their trail of... read more
Can her fight for the country fix her broken heart? A knock on the door early one morning wouldn't normally be cause for concern but it is 1941, Britain is at war, and Kitty Williams's fiancé Joe is far from home fighting Hitler with the Navy. As Kitty's heart is shattered into pieces hearing the news she had been dreading, resolve kicks in and she becomes more determined than ever to do her b... read more
The Barn of Buried Dreams: When will they see daylight?
Chrissie Bradshaw
Erin and Heather Douglas are struggling. Their mother’s death has left a void in their family and everyday life has side-lined their dreams. Erin has buried herself away in the family home and left her stage career. By hiding away, she is evading the pain of returning to London and the acting world where her ex-fiancé is enjoying success and a new relationship. Heather is juggling babies, work... read more
25 Days Till Christmas
Poppy Alexander
Someone’s watching you…Living in a beautiful home on the edge of a council estate, Kara Bannon can’t imagine what it’s like to have nothing.An eerie phone call plays on her mind and within three days she loses everything – her job, her home and Justin, the only person she thought she could trust.Alone and terrified, she makes a decision that will change her life forever.Suddenly she has to ent... read more
Laura has 3 reviews
Professionalism
Professionalism
Quality
Quality
Value
Value
Communication & Punctuality
Communication & Punctuality
Laura Gerrard is a true professional who has been helping me develop a fiction project. Her notes have been super-helpful and she really understands the market. Also, she's a prompt and clear communicator who delivers on what she says she is going to. Highly recommended.
Tim Adler, September 2019
Laura has been nothing but wonderful during this process and I cannot thank her enough for her guidance, patience, and speedy replies. Her comments were thorough, detailed and well-explained, I can see that she has put a lot of effort into editing my project for which I am very grateful. Her work has exceeded my expectations and I would definitely chose to collaborate with her again in the future.
Emma Laing, December 2018
Reply from Laura Gerrard
Laura is such a talented editor who understands my genre and has improved my MS beyond measure. Her eye for detail is incredible and she has a real grasp of the modern woman reader. She will be my first choice next time.
Chrissie Bradshaw, July 2018
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