Maartje Scheltens

Maartje Scheltens – Editor

Experienced and friendly non-fiction editor with a passion for bringing your stories, research and ideas to a wide audience.

Overview

I'm a freelance editor with 12 years of experience at Cambridge University Press and over 6 years as a freelancer. I understand what your publisher is looking for, and can work with you to develop an effective, marketable proposal and a professional, well-prepared manuscript. I will take care of tidying up your grammar, references and bibliography and making the index, if needed.

I’m also a keen reader and writer, and have studied creative non-fiction with the National Centre for Writing and the Arvon Foundation. I will have your readers at the forefront of my mind as I help you bring your ideas to life and polish your prose.

My academic background is in literature and history (I have an English degree from Cambridge and a PhD in seventeenth-century literary history). I have also copy-edited in classics, philosophy, environmental studies, education and linguistics and have a good knowledge of a number of European languages.

I love working with authors to present their material in the best possible way; I am flexible in how we achieve this, and can offer different levels of editing depending on your needs.

Feel free to contact me for a chat about how we might be able to work together.

Services
Non-Fiction
Art Biographies & Memoirs History Nature Writing & Publishing
Languages
English (UK) English (US)
Certifications
  • Professional Member of the Chartered Institute for Editing and Proofreading

Work experience

Freelance

Mar, 2017 — Present

EDITING
I copy-edit books and articles in the humanities and social sciences, working with a number of publishers and authors.
WRITING
I write jacket copy for books, features and interviews for development publications in the university sector and promotional copy for events.

Cambridge University Press

Nov, 2003 — Mar, 2016 (over 12 years)

Managing Editor, Digital Humanities and Social Sciences (2013–2016)
Commissioning Editor, History (2012–2013)
Editor/Assistant Editor, Literature (2003–2012)

Maartje has 6 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Brandon M.

Brandon M.

Feb, 2023

Maartje was of excellent help. She made sure to address all of my needs and was punctual and quick to respond. She was a joy to work with and noted things I had missed or not thought of. She noted mistakes in facts and references I had included and without her these mistakes would have gotten through. She made the whole process easy and enjoyable and at a good price. You won't regret working...
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Maartje S.
Thanks so much, I really enjoyed working on this project!
John b B.

John b B.

Dec, 2022

as a new writer, and completely rubbish at English and writing, this lady has gone the extra mile for me, helping me extensively, i couldn't have found a better person that suited my needs at this time. Thank you maartje. John b
Maartje S.
Dear John Thank you for your lovely words, I've enjoyed working with you, and learning so much about the history of King's Lynn! all good wishes, Maartje
Pierre R.

Pierre R.

Sep, 2022

Great collaborator. Works fast and well with attention to details. Would hire again.
Maartje S.
Dear Pierre, thank you for your kind words! It was a pleasure working with you. Maartje
Bruce H.

Bruce H.

Apr, 2022

Of the half dozen editors I requested bids from on Reedsy, Maartje was the only editor willing to take on my project. I found her fees to be very fair, but with her living in the UK, I found the dollar/pound conversion a nuisance. I have worked with other editors who over-edited my work, which tended to change my voice. Maartje was more sensitive not to over-edit. She did Developmental, Copy,...
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Bruce H.

Bruce H.

Mar, 2022

I have worked with other editors but Maartje did the best job of not over-editing my work while preserving my voice as much as possible. Response time to my emails is always within an hour. Even though the pound/dollar conversion adds 23%, her overall fees are still competitive with US competitors.
Maartje S.
Thank you for this great review; I really enjoyed our collaboration.

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