Lizzie Davis

Lizzie Davis – Editor

Nimble, warm, and energetic literary editor with 10 years' experience shepherding projects from manuscript to award-winning finished book.

Overview

I'm a passionate, attentive, and dynamic literary editor who views editing as an act of facilitation in service to readers and writers. Over the course of a decade in literary publishing, I've developed an author-centric editorial philosophy that prioritizes deep listening, flexibility, and care while shepherding each project toward its most fully realized form. I'm recognized throughout the industry as a nimble, warm, and energetic literary citizen and a devoted advocate for innovative prose, poetry, and translation, and I have a proven track record of helping books find their readers and garner critical acclaim: projects I have acquired or edited have been finalists for the National Book Award in Translation, the National Book Critics Circle Award, the American Book Award, the Kirkus Prize in Nonfiction, and others. Let's chat about your manuscript!

Services
Fiction
Contemporary Fiction LGBTQ Fiction Literary Fiction
Non-Fiction
LGBTQ Non-Fiction Parenting & Families
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

Transit Books

Sep, 2023 — Present

I acquire and edit fiction and nonfiction; collaborate with the cofounders to lead the planning of seasonal book publishing programs—coordinating editorial, marketing, publicity, and development efforts to schedule, launch, and execute season lists; manage foreign rights; and advocate for our authors nationally and internationally. I carry out the full range of house editorial duties on several books per year: structural and line edits, author support, cover briefs, catalog copy, endorsement requests, etc.

We're committed to championing boundary-pushing literature that challenges and excites, and authors we publish have received the Nobel Prize in Literature and been nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award (one winner, three finalists), the National Book Award (finalist), the International Booker Prize (one finalist, four longlisted), the PEN Translation Prize (one winner, one longlisted), and more.

Coffee House Press

Jun, 2015 — Jun, 2023 (about 8 years)

I worked in various editorial roles, played an active part in shaping the future of Coffee House’s prose list, and championed dozens of projects by writers including K-Ming Chang, Karen Tei Yamashita, Tom Comitta, Aurora Mattia, Rikki Ducornet, Valeria Luiselli, Alia Trabucco Zerán, and others. As senior editor, I oversaw the editorial and production department, contracted and closely collaborated with freelancers and series editors, and managed a team of three. I developed a multiple-prize-winning fiction list with an excellent reputation nationally and internationally.

Self-employed

Jan, 2014 — Present

Since 2014, I’ve been translating prose and poetry from some of the foremost writers at work in the Spanish language today, including Juan Cárdenas, Elena Medel, Valeria Luiselli, Pilar Fraile, and Daniela Tarazona. My translations or cotranslations have been nominated for the PEN Translation Prize, the American Book Award, and the Kirkus Prize in Nonfiction, and longlisted for the National Book Award for Translated Literature and the Dublin Literary Award.

Portfolio

The Breaks

Singh, Julietta

Coffee House Press

Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment
The Wilderness (Undelivered Lectures)

Savas, Aysegül

Transit Books

Proofreading
Traces of Enayat

Mersal, Iman

Transit Books

Proofreading
Cecilia (NVLA)

Chang, K-Ming

Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment
The Remainder

Trabucco Zerán, Alia

Copy Editing Editorial Assessment
Editorial Assessment
When Women Kill

Trabucco Zerán, Alia

Copy Editing Editorial Assessment
Jawbone

Ojeda, Mónica

Developmental Editing Editorial Assessment
Developmental Editing Copy Editing

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