Lindsey H. – Editor

I'm a developmental editor, copyeditor and proofreader with more than seven years' experience in the publishing industry, largely in the Young Readers team at Penguin Random House Australia. I worked with both emerging and established authors to help craft books that have become bestsellers and firm fan favourites.

My experience spans fiction and non-fiction from picture books to upper YA, but my specialities are middle grade and YA fantasy. I particularly love fiction that tells a truly engaging story, creates strong emotion and has something to say – helping readers either escape reality or add more nuance to their understanding of the world without sounding didactic. It's a fine line to hit in books for younger audiences, and I've focused my career on helping authors delve into the heart of their work and craft books that readers can't put down.

In a developmental edit, I want to deeply understand an author's vision and help them realise it on the page without compromising their voice. I ask lots of questions aimed to help authors add depth and clarity to the story, as well as to help ensure reader reactions align with an author's vision and make the reading experience the best it can be. I also add plenty of comments reacting to moments in the story – I love the books I work on, and I don't hesitate to let my authors know it!

In copyedits, I'm far more granular, focusing on style, grammar and inconsistencies, though I won't hesitate to ask more developmental questions surrounding character development, pacing, story arc and more if I see the need. One of my specialties is creating project-specific style guides, and I'm confident working across a range of unique style rules as well as within US, UK, Australian and Canadian English.