Margaret Milan Wright

Margaret Milan Wright – Editor

Developmental Editor specializing in Y/A and middle grade, formerly at Penguin and Simon and Schuster

Overview

I am a developmental editor with 20 years of experience specializing in young adult, middle grade, and picture books. As a developmental editor, I provide my clients with a letter extensively detailing my feedback on the structure, clarity, and tone of their work with suggestions for revision as well as line by line edits and notes within the manuscript. As a line editor, I polish final drafts with a focus on syntax, style, and tone. I review and revise query letters to align with industry standards and grab the attention of agents and publishers.

At Penguin’s cutting-edge young adult and middle grade imprint, Razorbill, I edited novels in a variety of genres, developed plots, and helped to create original concepts for series. During my time at Aladdin, an imprint of Simon and Schuster, I edited a variety of mass market middle grade books including the bestselling New Nancy Drew series, Hardy Boys Adventures, and Childhood of Famous Americans series.


Services
Non-Fiction
Children’s Non-Fiction
Fiction
Coming of Age Middle Grade Picture Books
Languages
English (US)

Work experience

Self-employed

Jan, 2015 — Present

SYDA Foundation

Jul, 2007 — Jan, 2015 (over 7 years)

● Edited and approved all content and communications distributed to a global audience
● Advised more than forty writers and editors by making comprehensive comments on their work in written form and in one-on-one meetings

Simon and Schuster/Aladdin Paperbacks

Sep, 2006 — Jul, 2007 (10 months)

● Edited middle grade series, such as Nancy Drew: All New Girl Detective and Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers
● Read and evaluated query letters and manuscripts
● Negotiated with literary agents

Penguin Group (USA)/Razorbill

May, 2003 — Sep, 2006 (over 3 years)

● Edited original young adult titles, such as Simon Bloom: The Gravity Keeper
● Created original concepts for writer-for-hire projects, such as Pretty Little Devils
● Read and evaluated solicited and unsolicited query letters, manuscripts, and proposals

Portfolio

Made with Reedsy
The Daring Rescue of Bodhi the Crow

Pettyjohn, Kellie

Developmental Editing
Made with Reedsy
My Girly Unicorn

Pedicini, J.

Editorial Assessment
Made with Reedsy
Bullies and Peeps (The Peeps Series)

Suhre, J.D.

Developmental Editing
Made with Reedsy
The Drag Strip

Pow, J T

Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing
Hawk's Flight

Holtman, Ronald

Developmental Editing
Developmental Editing

Margaret has 30 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Melissa C.

Melissa C.

Jan, 2024

I'm very pleased with Margaret's developmental edit on my middle grade novel. She took the time to really understand what I was trying to accomplish with my story, and she easily pinpointed where the manuscript needed work. Her insightful feedback not only identified weaknesses in the plot but also highlighted the unique elements that made my story shine.
Gloria W.

Gloria W.

Dec, 2023

I choose Margaret because she seemed to "Get" what my protagonist was about. Afterwards, the work I received was right on target for what I was working to accomplish. She even went beyond what I had expected. She gave me a sample outline to show me what she was telling.
Robert P.

Robert P.

Dec, 2023

Margaret gave me the advice--and challenges--that seem needed to make my novel successful. Her compliments encouraged me to continue, and she opened my eyes to weak points that were beyond my seeing--without lambasting me. Even better, she gave all this at a lower cost than for page-by-page editing.
Rhett D.

Rhett D.

Nov, 2023

Margaret was professional, responsive, and on time with the deadline. Her work has helped me with my novel plenty, and I would definitely recommend her to anyone needing an editor.
Emma F.

Emma F.

Sep, 2023

Margaret was incredible from start to finish. She pushed my manuscript to new places, that I never dreamt of exploring. She is so collaborative, thorough and thoughtful. I will be using her, most certainly, for the next stage of the process.

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