Parisa Zolfaghari

Parisa Zolfaghari – Editor

Former Simon and Schuster editor with 15+ years of experience, specializing in all genres of fiction!

Overview


Even when I'm not actively editing them, I like to be there for my authors because I know that the job never stops. I'm available for any questions during any part of the process. Brainstorming, title choosing, what kind of promos to run, anything. I'm a content editor who has edited a vast number of fiction and nonfiction books, for both bestsellers and debut authors alike, and I've also done digital design on a large number of both fiction and nonfiction books, from highly complex cookbooks to the more simple novel.


I specialize in the following genres: romance, fantasy, sci-fi, horror, young adult, mystery/crime, thriller, suspense, women's fiction, magical realism, narrative nonfiction, memoirs (I especially loves cookoirs!). A smattering of the books I've worked on can be found below!


Testimonials:

"Parisa is smart, thorough, and fantastic to work with. Love her!"

— Susan Hatler, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author


"Parisa is a brilliant editor. She excels at understanding the story I'm trying to tell and pinpointing the exact areas where I need to make changes without changing or undermining my voice. She is also a pleasure to work with - she communicates quickly and clearly, and she always meets her deadlines. She has become an integral part of my writing process, and I can no longer imagine finishing a book without her help."

—Sara Ramsey, Golden Heart winner and author of the Muses of Mayfair series


"Having worked with a number of editors over the years, I've come to realize how important it is to have one who is both technically adept, in addition to being willing to understand and support an author's vision. Parisa excels at both. While passionately advocating for what's best for the story, Parisa communicates in a clear, professional manner. She's a joy to work with and I'd be lost without her."

— JB Lynn, author of the bestselling Neurotic Hitwoman series

Services
Fiction
Fantasy Horror Mystery & Crime Romance Science Fiction Thriller & Suspense Women's Fiction Young Adult
Languages
English (UK) English (US)
Certifications
  • MS Publishing

Work experience

Self Employed

Jan, 2005 — Present

Content editor and ebook designer for all genres of fiction. Some authors I work with include international bestselling author, Kate Perry, bestselling author JB Lynn, and award-winning historical romance novelist, Sara Ramsey.

Simon & Schuster

May, 2013 — Jul, 2015 (about 2 years)

Ebook imprint specialist for Touchstone, Scribner, and Atria. Coding frontlist and backlist ebooks for all e-reader platforms. Some books I've worked on include Hyperbole and a Half, The Way We Ate, All the Light We Cannot See, and Doctor Sleep.

Simon & Schuster

Jan, 2011 — May, 2013 (over 2 years)

Edited (both developmental and line edits) and managed my own titles, working on romance, women's fiction, horror, and mysteries for Gallery/Pocket/Pocket Star books.

Supported two senior editors on romance, women’s fiction, thriller, mysteries, and nonfiction
titles. Helped develop the digital imprint Pocket Star.

Portfolio

Surrogate Colony

Rasti, Boshra

The Girl I Was

Rose, Jeneva

Back Bay Murders

Bonar, Andrew

The Broken

North, C.M.

Evil is winning.The Light Realm could always find solace in the fact that they were five kingdoms strong, giving them power over the Dark Realm for centuries. But following the events of the uprising, one kingdom has cut ties with the Light to join forces with... read more
"A mind-bending, relentlessly surprising debut thriller" from author L. A. Spangler-------------------------------------------------------HOW DO YOU STOPA pathogen designed with artificial intelligence...Engineered to wipe out minorities...About to erupt into ... read more
Un dernier contrat avant la liberté. Et si le prix à payer se comptait en milliards de vies ?Pilote de vaisseau, Mallory Sajean est victime d’un maître chanteur. Forcée d’effectuer un transport qu’elle sait illégal, elle débarque sur un satellite de Jupiter. L... read more
Rooked

Caitlin Sara

Exposing those closest to you could be fatal. . . Despite her desire for control, Ara Hopkins has always felt like a pawn—constantly being maneuvered by those surrounding her. Carrying a riddled past of abandonment by her mother, a jealous step-sister and expl... read more
Fractured Fate

Rochelle Ransom

Preferring football to flirting and snowmobiles to stilettos, Rae never desired more than friendship with boys until she finds herself attracted to both McNeal twins. Daredevil, magnetic Trey personifies “habitual heartbreaker.” But their shared passion for mu... read more
The Immundus

Christina Enquist

Would you sacrifice your humanity to save mankind?IT’S THE YEAR 2828, and Domus is the last remaining country. Divided into twelve walled cities known as genuses, Domus spans what’s known as the purist lands—lands unaffected by the genetic modifications that k... read more
Not all goblins are bad. Even so, Ben is not trusted in his new home of Saint Louis. The Green Watch is following him, humans make a wide path as he walks by, and he’s not even allowed inside the city library. However, even though most of the city is wary of h... read more
The Good Goblin

David McElroy

Not all goblins are bad.To be sure, most goblins are, but Ben is not like most goblins. He doesn't have the same abilities, isn't interested in causing mischief, and most disgraceful of all, has a secret admiration of everything human.Tired of not fitting in w... read more
Young Aina

Ned Marcus

Seeing her father followed by strange men, Aina races to warn him. But soon they’re pursued by a deadly enemy. They escape deep into the ancient forest in search of a haven. But something quite alien calls to Aina.As it calls, her magic awakens. Her father fea... read more
Thomas Brand’s rational view of the universe is challenged when a sailing ship lands on Clapton Pond during the London riots. The strange alien crew disturbs him and his friend, Lucy Thomson, but the message the ship’s captain gives them is stranger. They must... read more
“Why didn’t we ever dance if we had all this great music?”-Moony.Can you ever escape the past? Kiran Wells, a mid-30’s professional living on the West Coast, thought he was safe until an anonymous letter arrives from his hometown. Its only contents- an old new... read more
“I did it. It looked like an accident, just as we discussed. It was perfect.” When Darla Kelly wakes up in a hospital—confused, disoriented, and alone—she can’t help but add it to the list of personal tragedies that have left her reeling. She had been on track... read more
Beyond Normal

Alexandria Victor

Special Agent Lea McCormack thought she knew everything about her job. She had spent years studying people with unusual abilities and keeping their existence a secret. Her life is however shaken to the core when eighteen-year-old Calvin Apostle accidentally ki... read more
All of the intrigue and royal tangles of Victoria Aveyard’s Red Queen meets the romance of Katherine McGee’s The Dazzling Heights with all of the adventures found in Numbers Game by Rebecca Rode. “Hatred had both united and divided what was left of humanity.” ... read more
New Release! In the year 1919, a woman crash lands in the past, unable to recall even the most basic facts about herself. Her quest for answers turns up more questions, until by chance she meets Damian Glass. After all, some things are meant to be. Or are they... read more
I've been banished for the summer.My parents don't call it that. They call it "some quality downtime with my grandmother," but I know better. It’s totally because of the scandal. Now I’m stuck in the middle of nowhere, living in a lighthouse with a woman I don... read more
A bestselling hot, hilarious eBook by USA TODAY indie author Alice Clayton, the freshest voice to hit publishing in years. “An instant classic…highly recommended!” (New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Jennifer Probst).Caroline Reynolds has a fantas... read more
The Golden Chance

Jayne Ann Krentz

When she gains control of his family fortune, it's love at first fight. Stunning, stubborn, and independent, Philadelphia Fox lost her best friend because of the fabulously rich and powerful Lightfoot family of Washington state. Now she's got her friend's cont... read more
Must Love Fangs

Jessica Sims

The third book in the “funny, sexy, and lively” (Publishers Weekly) romance series about a paranormal dating service called Midnight Liaisons.From the supernatural dating capital of the world, it’s the Midnight Liaisons Dating Game! Let’s meet our eligible bac... read more
The second elegant and gorgeously written historical novel from new author Michelle Diener, featuring King Henry VIII’s deadliest courtier and a royally commissioned artist caught in a web of Tudor court intrigue. A priceless jewel. A royal court rife with int... read more
The uncensored, New York Times bestselling memoir by the polygamist stars of the hit show Sister Wives, Kody and his four wives openly discuss what it’s like living in a plural marriage.A SINGULAR STORY OF PLURAL MARRIAGE Since TLC first launched its popular r... read more
The New York Times bestselling INSIDE OUT series now in development for TV with acclaimed producer, Suzanne Todd!How It All Started...One day I was a high school teacher on summer break, leading a relatively uneventful but happy life. Or so I told myself. Late... read more
In the bestselling tradition of Augusten Burroughs, a compassionate, witty, and completely candid memoir that chronicles growing up with obsessive-compulsive disorder. When all the neighborhood kids were playing outdoors, seven-year-old Traci Foust was inside ... read more
A baker in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, must travel to Paris to uncover a family secret for her dying grandmother—and what she learns may change everything. The Sweetness of Forgetting is the book that made Kristin Harmel an international bestseller.At thirty-six,... read more
Dr. Benjamin Spock is America’s most trusted name in child care and parenting, and his essential guidebook has topped bestseller lists for over sixty-five years. This fully revised and updated edition of the classic manual provides first time and experienced p... read more
In this entertaining and delightful mystery, an Italian chef and her cousins start their own investigation to clear their grandmother’s name after she’s arrested for murder.At Miracolo Northern Italian restaurant, one can savor brilliantly seasoned veal saltim... read more
***** THIS BOOK CAN BE READ AS A STANDALONE *****Done With Love… a What’s Love??? novel, Book TwoOnce upon a time…Bridal boutique owner Alexis Gorecki used to believe in happily-ever-afters—until Prince Charming turned into a toad. When it seems her evil almos... read more
A lady with a penchant for pets meets a sexy fireman in this magical and saucy steampunk eNovella from the author of Wicked as They Come.In a world ruled by blood, live pets are rare and kindness rarer still. London pet shop owner Frannie Pleasance has a myste... read more
Exiled from his homeland, never to return, Brandyé Dui-Erâth finds himself lost in the wilderness on the coast of a black sea, with the influence of Darkness closing in around him. Here, he learns the true meaning of solitude, and begins to discover that he in... read more
After discovering her fiancé cheated on her, Kaitlin is focused on two things: remodeling her new home and avoiding men at all costs. But her friends insist she get back in the driver’s seat and date again. They strike a hard bargain and agree to paint her hou... read more
In this cozy mystery, a young woman is framed by her boss for embezzlement and flees to her aunt’s pie shop—but when her ex-boss turns up dead on their doorstep she must start her own investigation to find the killer—before he finds her.CHOCOHOLIC CREAM. BOUNT... read more
Nightlife

Matthew Quinn Martin

For centuries an ancient evil has slept beneath the streets of New Harbor. This Halloween, it wakes up.An action-packed debut horror novel from talented new writer Matthew Quinn Martin, Nightlife pits a feisty bartender and a mysterious loner against bloodthir... read more
The Briarleys are one of the oldest families in England -- but after centuries of sin and scandal, they are on the verge of extinction. Now, at the most talked-about house party of the summer, the surviving Briarley heiresses will create a new set of scandals ... read more
A woman courting ruin...No one would suspect prim, proper Prudence Etchingham of lusting after her best friend's brother. Nor would anyone guess that she's responsible for dozens of the best forgeries in London's antiquities markets. But if her love for Alex i... read more
Some jobs are more challenging than others.Take for example, Maggie’s latest assignment: assassinating a heartless, indiscriminate sniper. He deserves to die, but making that happen is tricky, especially considering that a certain red-headed police detective h... read more
Over 3.5 million readers have fallen for Kate Perry's novels. Get into her new Summerhill series… Viola Summerhill needs sex. Her sisters say a rebound fling is just the thing to wash away the bad taste left from her recently crumbled marriage. But Viola knows... read more

Parisa has 114 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Madison K.

Madison K.

Oct, 2024

Valued the feedback from Parisa.
Troy D.

Troy D.

Sep, 2024

Parisa is a true professional with a keen eye for detail. As this was my first time engaging with an editor for a developmental edit, I wasn't sure what to expect and had a lot of questions. Parisa helped to put my mind at ease and was always easy to reach. She helped to clarify what the developmental editing process looked like and was very responsive throughout the engagement. Parisa really ...
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Alex D.

Alex D.

Sep, 2024

Parisa does fantastic work as a copyeditor! She took my manuscript and made it much more straightforward to read. She introduced stronger vocabulary, such as using 'lilt' instead of writing 'accent', and she also just made the sentence fluency flow better. I felt that when I was reading her edit, I had a much better time understanding what I was trying to write than when I was resorting to my ...
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Todd S.

Todd S.

Aug, 2024

Parisa was extremely helpful in pointing out plot holes I had yet to see and making suggestions that would only improve my book. It was clear that she took great care and energy to go through the manuscript, and I greatly appreciate her time and efforts. Thank you, Parisa!
SB S.

SB S.

Jul, 2024

P is amazing. I'm a total rookie and she seriously did so much more than what I originally asked for. She is VERY thorough and attentive with her work. I very much recommend her and will definitely work with her in the future.

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