Sean Leonard

Sean Leonard – Editor

Proofreader/editor for 14+ years, reader for 40+, and as a lifelong fan, horror is my go-to genre.

Overview

I have worked with Raw Dog Screaming Press, BPP, JournalStone/Trepidatio Publishing, as well as directly with individuals preparing to submit their work to a publisher. Most of my work has been in the horror/sci-fi genres, but I'm open to any genre where a good story can be told.

When you hire me to proofread your manuscript, expect the big things to be found - misspellings, grammar, the usual stuff - but I'll be checking those commas and semicolons and making sure your quotation marks are all pointed the way they should be too. If I notice a word is being used a little too often, I'll let you know. If I see potential timeline errors, character discrepancies, or just strangely worded paragraphs, I'll let you know that as well. And if you have other specific things you want me to watch for, whatever they may be, consider it done. You will see every single change/adjustment I make through the tracking tools, and I'll include notes anytime anything isn't self-explanatory. Basically, I want your final manuscript to look the best it possibly can, and I'll put in the time to make sure that it does! No A.I. ever used.

Services
Fiction
Anthologies Horror Literary Fiction Mystery & Crime Science Fiction Short Story
Non-Fiction
Entertainment
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

JournalStone/Trepidatio

Sep, 2014 — Present

Bizarro Pulp Press

Jan, 2014 — May, 2017 (over 3 years)

Raw Dog Screaming Press

Jun, 2013 — Dec, 2013 (6 months)
Raw Dog Screaming Press took me on as a volunteer to help me establish myself as a proofreader.

Portfolio

The Occultists

Schattel, Polly

Antioch

Leonard, Jessica

The Golden Road

dePackh, Selene

Zeroland

Winters, Ryan

Whitetooth Falls

Joschko, Justin

Wardenclyffe

Wilson, F Paul

Touched by Shadows

Jackson, Vaughn A.

Timewalker

Monteleone, Thomas F.

The Wilderness Within

Smith, John Claude

The Narrows

Malfi, Ronald

Loonies

Bastianelli, Gregory

The Last Night

Dunn, Mark

The Fall of Never

Malfi, Ronald

The Touch

Berkowitz, Adan

The Ghost Finders

McOmber, Adam

The Deer Kings

Wagner, Wendy

The Cuckoo Girls

Lillie, Patricia

The American

Thomas, Jeffrey

Switchboard

Post, Andrew

Strange is the Night

Miskowski, S P

Storm Shadows

Cain, Kenneth W.

Spectral Evidence

Files, Gemma

Shadowdays

Schattel, Polly

Sacculina

Fracassi, Philip

Sisters in Arms

Ruppert, Erica

Rookfield

White, Gordon B

Rogue

Gifune, Greg F.

River of Souls

Bodine, T. L.

Out of Tune

Armstrong, Kelley

Out of Water

Sarah Read

Of One Pure Will

Smith, Farah Rose

Moon City: A Limbus, Inc. Novel

Ethridge, Benjamin Kane

Limbus, Inc., Book III

Jonathan Maberry

Lady Bits

Jonez, Kate

King of Hell: Peter Octavian

Golden, Christopher

I Wish I Was Like You

Miskowski, S. P.

House Call

Schwamberger, Ty

He Who Walks in Shadow

Talley, Brett J.

Hardboiled Horror

Jonathan Maberry

Hallowed Days

Hale, Daniel

Halfway Down The Stairs

Braunbeck, Gary A.

Ghostflowers

Wornom, Rus

Fragile Dreams

Fracassi, Philip

Doorways to the Deadeye

Guignard, Eric J

Divine Scream

Ethridge, Benjamin Kane

Devil's Breath

Gifune, Greg F

Deep Night

Gifune, Greg F

Dead End

DiLeo, Chris

Dark Rescue (Forever Man)

Matthews, Brian W

The Conveyance

Matthews, Brian W.

Come to Dust

MacLeod, Bracken

Blue Hell

Gifune, Greg F

Bleed

Kurtz, Ed

The Bleeding Season

Gifune, Greg F

Black Water

Norman, Bobby

Behold the Void

Fracassi, Philip

Blackwood Estates

Holloway, William

Aleister Blake

Cano, Valentina

A Still and Awful Red

Howarth, Michael

White Indians

Gills, Michael

Corpus Chrome, Inc.

Zahler, S. Craig

Cog

Wright, K. Ceres

Black Gum

Osborne, J David

An Augmented Fourth

McMillen, Tony

This Body of Death

Sessler, A.P.

The Last Projector

Keaton, David James

Pig Iron

Keaton, David James

The ADHD Vampire

Vaughn, Matthew

Retch

Bernstein, David

Necrosaurus Rex

Day, Nicholas

Berzerkoids

Johnson, MP

Battering the Stem

Freville, Bob

Psycho Therapy

Spencer, Alan

The Gypsy Moths

Gifune, Greg F.

Sean has 251 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Thomas J.

Thomas J.

Apr, 2026

Sean Leonard is a great editor! For a surprisingly reasonable price, he copy edited and proofread my novella. Sean caught all my spelling mistakes and typos, refined my voice and the flow of my story, and helped me finally understand the semicolon. I'd totally recommend him to anyone, especially ...
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martin L.

martin L.

Apr, 2026

Sean edited my book in a concise and easy-to-understand manner. He was very responsive and timely and followed all of the convoluted instructions I gave him perfectly. 100% reccomend. Choose Sean!
Kelly C.

Kelly C.

Apr, 2026

Sean is incredibly helpful and really thoughtful. His help is so appreciated as I work to edit and publish my late father's work. Great to work with!
Andrew L.

Andrew L.

Apr, 2026

Sean was friendly and honest. He was the first copyeditor I've ever worked with, so I have no prior experiences for comparison, but my impression was that he does the job well, thoroughly, and speedily. I expect I'll reach out to him again if I ever decide to self-publish again.
Luke H.

Luke H.

Apr, 2026

Sean was very professional and I responded to my inquires in a timely manner. I highly recommend working with him as he even told me I could reach out while I review his feedback on my manuscript. I'm looking forward to going through my manuscript with his notes and begin the final edit on my dra...
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