Lisa Edwards – Editor

I am a freelance editor, writer, publisher and yoga teacher, having spent 29 years in the publishing industry, primarily in the children's books trade as a publishing director. As a freelance consultant for the last five years, I have advised major publishing houses and brands on publishing strategy, brand management, digital publishing and licensing.

I pride myself on having an honest and direct approach to authors' work as I find it has served me well over the 29 years I've been in the industry. I don't mislead authors or fluff any egos – I tell you straight. Don't choose me if you're not ready for that. Do choose me if you've had a string of beta readers, family and friends telling you your book is great, but you know in your heart it could be better.

You can expect my work to deliver a detailed opinion on the commercial and creative strengths of your work, clear and concise ideas on how to improve it, and sound editorial notes on how to carry your text through to a publishable/queryable state. I can also help you with self-publishing your work.

I believe in a collaborative approach to all my work – the relationship between editor and author should be symbiotic as we work together towards the end goal of achieving a great book.

During my career I have been lucky enough to publish: His Dark Materials; The Hunger Games; Horrible Histories; Stick Man (and other Julia Donaldson picture books); Jonny Duddle; Roddy Doyle; the Tom Gates' series; The Beano, Disney; Captain Underpants and Klutz. More recently I led the revitalisation of Templar Publishing for their its 40th anniversary, worked with Beano on their fiction strategy and with Little People, BIG DREAMS on their brand licensing strategy.

Across my 29-year career, myself and my teams have won or been shortlisted for over 25 prestigious awards including: the British Book Award for Publisher of the Year, the Carnegie and Greenaway Medals, the Waterstones Prize, the Costa Book Award, the Blue Peter Book Awards, the Stanford Travel Writing Awards, the Klaus Flugge Prize, the Royal Society Science Prize and the Roald Dahl Funny/Lollies Prize.