Noo Saro-Wiwa - Editor
Award-winning author and editor with 16 years experience on various books and newspapers, including The Times, Lonely Planet and UCL Press.
Request a quote
Verified identity
Overview
I’m an award-winning author, journalist and copy editor with versatile writing and editing skills.
My book, Looking For Transwonderland: Travels in Nigeria (Granta, 2012), was BBC Radio 4’s Book of the Week in 2012; The Sunday Times Travel Book of the Year, 2012; shortlisted for the Author’s Club Dolman Travel Book of the Year Award in 2013; named by The Financial Times as one of the best travel books of 2012. In 2016 it was awarded Italy’s Albatros Travel Literature Prize.
I have contributed to four anthologies: An Unreliable Guide to London (Influx Press, 2016); A Country of Refuge (Unbound, 2016); La Felicita Degli Uomini Semplici (66th and 2nd, 2016); The New Daughters of Africa anthology (Myriad Editions, 2019).
In 2019 I became a Rockefeller Foundation Arts & Literary Fellow at the Bellagio Center in Italy.
As a journalist I write book reviews, travel, opinion and analysis articles for The Guardian newspaper (UK), The Financial Times, The Times Literary Supplement, City AM, Prospect magazine and The New York Times, among others.
I also edit and proofread copy for The Times, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, as well as academic papers and books for UCL Press.
As an editor I will breathe life into your prose, making it sharp, succinct and engaging, while removing all those repetitive rhythms and sentence constructions. And through my experience as an author I can advise you on how to structure your long-form narrative, be it fiction or non-fiction.
Services
Languages
English (AUS)
English (UK)
English (US)
Non-Fiction
Biographies & Memoirs
Political Science & Current Affairs
Sociology
Travel
Fiction
Historical Fiction
Humor & Comedy
LGBTQ Fiction
Romance
Certifications
- Msc Journalism, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, NY
- BA Geography, King's College London
Awards
- Italy's Albatros Travel Literature Prize
- Sunday Times Travel Book of the Year
Work experience
Copy editor
News International
December, 2014
–
March, 2020
(about 5 years)
The Sunday Times & The Times:
Edited, fact-checked and proofread digital and print news articles and features; wrote headlines and photo captions
Freelance copy editor
The Guardian newspaper (UK)
March, 2020
–
Present
(about 1 year)
Editing web articles, creating headlines and photo captions, fact-checking, proofreading; uploading photos; ensuring SEO
Freelance copy editor/proofreader
University of Neuchatel (Switzerland)
October, 2019
–
Present
(over 1 year)
I edit and proofread academic research papers and dissertations for the Institute of Geography.
Temporary production manager/proofreader
Thomson Reuters
March, 2018
–
September, 2018
(6 months)
As the temporary production manager/proofreader for employment law, I edited and proofread employment law handbooks and the IDS Employment Law Brief, a twice-monthly journal that reports on new employment legislation.
Freelance proofreader and copy editor
UCL Press
January, 2018
–
Present
(about 3 years)
Freelance proofreader and copy editor of academic journals and papers.
Freelance journalist
Various
January, 2015
–
Present
(about 6 years)
I write book reviews for The Times Literary Supplement. I also write travel, opinion and analysis articles for City AM, The Guardian, Prospect magazine, The Financial Times, The New York Times and Condé Nast Traveler magazine.
Online sub-editor (maternity cover)
New Scientist magazine
April, 2012
–
October, 2012
(6 months)
I copy edited and proofread articles, using the bespoke content management system to upload and format articles and images. I delivered content that was accurate, scientifically literate, libel-free, adhered to house style, and contained hyperlinks and multimedia content where appropriate.
In addition, I wrote accurate, attention-grabbing headlines and captions that promoted the stories while conforming to New Scientist's consumer-friendly style and SEO requirements.
Copy editor/proofreader
NHS Choices website
May, 2008
–
November, 2011
(over 3 years)
Edited the NHS website to produce accurate copy that conformed to house style and contained appropriate cross-links and relevant multimedia content, while meeting the standards for search engine optimisation.
Portfolio (10 selected works)
Looking for Transwonderland: Travels in Nigeria
Saro-Wiwa, Noo
Urban Claims and the Right to the City: Grassroots Perspectives from Salvador da Bahia and London
Walker, Julian, Walker, Julian, Carvalho, Marcos Bau, Diaconescu, Ilinca
Lonely Planet Africa on a Shoestring
Kevin Anglin, Becca Blond, Jean-Bernard Carillet
The Rough Guide to West Africa (Rough Guides)
Richard Trillo
A Country of Refuge
Popescu, Lucy, Popescu, Lucy, Barry, Sebastian, Boyd, William, Kennedy, A.L., Kureshi, Hanif
An Unreliable Guide to London
Budden, Gary, Caless, Kit
Noo has 10 reviews
Professionalism
Professionalism
Quality
Quality
Value
Value
Communication & Punctuality
Communication & Punctuality
My work with Noo was positive in every aspect. She responded timely, communicated and collaborated with me on my specific needs for my essay, and most importantly, did an excellent job with the developmental suggestions and edits on my piece.
Tammy Rabideau, February 2021
Noo was profession and delivered good service. She was understanding of my sensitivity and offered really helpful tips on how to edit my manuscript. I would definitely request her assistance in future.
Gailann Alicia, February 2021
I am so grateful to work with Noo for the second half of my project- proofreading and copyediting. Her changes made the manuscript read much nicer and I am so excited to self-publish my first book! I will definitely work with Noo again.
Leslie Cadet, February 2021
I was totally pleased with the work that Noo provided for my memoir. I was specific in my request that she proofread my manuscript, not over-edit but keep to identifying and correcting typos, stylistic inconsistencies, grammatical, punctuation, numeration and spelling errors. I wanted her to make sure my voice inflection and verbal personality was not lost in the editing and Noo came through wi...
Read more
Ivan Leshinsky, January 2021
I am so happy that I found Noo for my project. Her recommendations were spot on, and she even provided some coaching, as I am a new writer. I look forward to working with her to finalize my book with copyediting and proofreading.
Leslie Cadet, December 2020
Explore the Reedsy Community
Reedsy is a community of top publishing professionals. Join Reedsy today to browse 1000+ profiles.
Heidi Shoham
Editor with 14+ years experience with NYT/USA Today bestselling authors. Line editor at Harlequin, a division of HarperCollins.
Joanne Gledhill
Editor, copy-editor and proofreader, formerly editor at Orion Books. Now working with authors to help them achieve their writing goals.
London, United Kingdom
