Michael Braff – Editor

Ahoy there! I am a fiction editor of sci fi, fantasy, and horror novels, including Pierce Brown's bestselling Red Rising series. After ten years in New York with Penguin Random House in both the Random House Children's Books and Del Rey divisions, I moved out to Los Angeles to start up a new genre fiction imprint partnership between Simon & Schuster and Robert Kirkman's Skybound Entertainment. While starting up this business was a fun and engaging challenge, I found myself missing out on the pure collaboration that comes from editing manuscripts, hence my Reedsy profile!

In addition to editing genre fiction books, I also play a bit of music and I look at the writer/editor collaboration much in the same vein as when I am playing music with friends. One person plays their song (or, in this case, shares their manuscript) and then I help come up with some ideas to make it catchier, more epic, or more streamlined--whatever it needs. We'll go back and forth until you're loving the way it sounds (reads) and feel that it accurately represents the original intent you had when writing in the first place.

My feedback tends to be hands-on and blunt, but is always goal-oriented and growth-focused: I'm not going to blow smoke and I'll always give it to you straight. I'm comfortable working with writers of every experience level and work best with folks who are open to collaboration and eager to hone their craft.

I look forward to working with you on your manuscript!

TESTIMONIAL:

"My work with Mike consists of four novels, all New York Times Bestsellers. While most editors tend to focus on the logistics and content of a story, Mike focuses on its heart. Yes, he is savvy with pacing, character motivation, structure, and thematic elements. Yes, he is thorough, diligent, and provides incisive editorial letters. But his greatest skill is in understanding the nature of the tale he is editing. Instead of imposing his will upon it, he seeks to maximize the voice of the author and the effectiveness of not just the prose but the tale itself. Anyone would be lucky to have him on their team."

--Pierce Brown, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of the Red Rising series

AI & GENERATIVE CONTENT POLICY:

AI-use is increasingly common among aspiring authors, so I think it important to state my policy explicitly: I will not work on any projects that use generative AI to replicate or replace human writing. If any percentage of a manuscript was created with or by artificial means, I am afraid I am not the editor for the job. Thank you in advance for understanding this policy, and for being upfront about any AI usage in your writing process.