Marya Pasciuto, Editor in New York, NY, USA

Overview

I'm an editor with 7 years of professional experience editing nonfiction! I especially love working with first-time authors to shape their ideas into strong manuscripts. In my years at Penguin Random House and Andrews McMeel, I acquired and edited many projects—including New York Times bestsellers!—with a focus on narrative nonfiction, pop culture, biography, humor, and history/politics. As part of this work, I've reviewed hundreds of nonfiction book proposals, and I know exactly what catches an editor's eye.

Outside of editing, I've worked in translation (Italian to English) and as a sensitivity/authenticity reader.

I'm proud of my work and am happy to share more, but more importantly: I want to hear about *your* big idea!

Services

Developmental Editing

Copy Editing

Editorial Assessment

Proofreading

Query Letter Review

Non-Fiction

Biographies & Memoirs Entertainment History LGBTQ Non-Fiction Political Science & Current Affairs Sociology

Languages

English (US)

Work experience

Editor

Andrews McMeel Publishing

Sep, 2022 — Aug, 2023 (12 months)

I worked with first-time and experienced writers on nonfiction in the pop culture, humor, and lifestyle spaces at Andrews McMeel, an independent publisher known for its beautiful and fun illustrated books, as well as poetry juggernauts including Rupi Kaur. I also worked with the company's in-house team to develop intellectual property, building new book concepts from the ground up.

Assistant Editor

Penguin Random House

Jul, 2016 — Mar, 2022 (over 5 years)

I worked with first-time and experienced writers on a wide range of nonfiction at Dutton and Plume, two imprints at Penguin Random House.

Edited books include Trixie and Katya's Guide to Modern Womanhood and its sequel, Working Girls (humor), American Rule and The Midnight Kingdom by Jared Yates Sexton (pop history), A Song for You by Robyn Crawford (memoir), Glimmer of Hope by the March for Our Lives Founders (political/memoir), Sidelined by Julie DiCaro (feminist essays), and the Queens of the Resistance series (pop political biographies).

Editor

Callisto Media

Mar, 2022 — Jul, 2022 (5 months)

I worked with contract writers (typically first-time authors!) on a range of prescriptive nonfiction, from wellness-focused journals and trauma-recovery workbooks to beginners' guides to meditation and aromatherapy.

Portfolio

A Song for You

Robyn Crawford

The New York Times Bestseller!After decades of silence, Robyn Crawford, close friend, collaborator, and confidante of Whitney Houston, shares her story. Whitney Houston is as big a superstar as the music business has ever known. She exploded on the scene in 19... read more

American Rule

Jared Yates Sexton

From writer and political analyst Jared Yates Sexton comes an eye-opening journey through American history that unearths and debunks the myths we've always told ourselves. Recent years have brought a reckoning in America. As rampant political corruption, stark... read more

Sidelined: Sports, Culture, and Being a Woman in America

DiCaro, Julie

Trixie and Katya's Guide to Modern Womanhood

Trixie Mattel

*A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER*The RuPaul's Drag Race legends, stars of UNHhhh, and expert biological women share the secrets of their feminine mystique in this satirical guide to beauty and homemaking. Drag superstars Trixie Mattel and Katya have long captivate... read more

Stonewall

Martin Duberman

The definitive account of the Stonewall Riots, the first gay rights march, and the LGBTQ activists at the center of the movement. “Martin Duberman is a national treasure.”—Masha Gessen, The New YorkerOn June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York's... read more

Revolutions

Hannah Ross

A history and celebration of women's cycling—beginning with its origins as a political statement, beloved pastime, and early feminist act—that shares the stories of notable cyclists and groups around the worldMore than a century after they first entered the ma... read more

Failure Is an Option

H. Jon Benjamin

“Writing this funny requires immense talent.” —AV ClubH. Jon Benjamin—the lead voice behind Archer and Bob's Burgers—helps us all feel a little better about our own failures by sharing his own in a hilarious memoir-ish chronicle of failure.Most people would co... read more

The Midnight Kingdom

Jared Yates Sexton

From the author of American Rule and the host of The Muckrake podcast, an ambitious account of the rise of “the West” in world history, and the ways that it has exported its most dangerous tendencies across the globeIn his 2020 book, American Rule, Jared Yates... read more

Working Girls

Trixie Mattel

Trixie Mattel and Katya Zamolodchikova took the world by storm with their Guide to Modern Womanhood, a book of expert advice on beauty, homemaking, and relationships. Now they’re tackling an even bigger challenge: finding success in the modern workplace. In Wo... read more