Peggy Paul – Editor

I'm a Philadelphia-based editor, writer, project manager, and recipe developer with more than 20 years of experience in food and cookbook publishing. After eight years in New York publishing — the last three at Clarkson Potter, Penguin Random House's cookbook imprint — I left my corporate editorial career in 2011 to build a freelance practice, helping authors carry their books from proposal to finished manuscript.

I've since developed a particular expertise in self-publishing, having gone through the process myself with my second cookbook. That firsthand experience shapes how I coach clients through their own self-publishing projects, from structuring a manuscript and developing recipes to managing production timelines and the countless decisions that separate a home project from a finished book.

My editorial work spans developmental editing, recipe testing and development, book proposal writing, and full project management, for clients ranging from James Beard Award winners and Michelin-starred chefs to independent authors publishing their first cookbook. I bring the same rigor to every project, regardless of whether it's headed to a major publisher or straight to press under an author's own imprint.

In addition my self-published book, I'm also the author of two traditionally published cookbooks, and my writing has appeared in Wired, Parents.com, TheKitchn.com, and Edible Philly, among other outlets.

If you're working on a cookbook or other illustrated nonfiction title — whether you're exploring traditional publishing or building it yourself — I'd welcome the chance to help you bring it to life.