Sally Apokedak

Sally Apokedak – Editor

Literary agent specializing in children's lit. I edit and sell General Market (big NY houses) and Christian Market (Tyndale, etc.) books.

Overview

I'm an agent, publisher, and freelance editor with over 20 years experience in General Market children's books, and in books for all ages in the Christian market. Books I've edited have won major awards and one series has sold over a million copies.

If you are writing novels, I can help you


1) find a vibrant voice that will make your books sing

2) build rich story worlds that will draw readers in and hold them captive

3) create active characters your readers will love (even long after they finish reading)

4) plan and execute twisting plots that will surprise and delight your readers

5) weave in meaningful themes so your readers will finish your books with a satisfied sigh.


I also have tons of experience editing board books and picture books. With these I can help you with plot (or concept), character development, voice (rhyme and meter and words that wow!), page turns (pace), and theme.

And, after reading tens of thousands of query letters, I can tell you very quickly if your query letter is going wrong and help you shape a letter that will grab an agent or editor's interest and make them flip to the manuscript and give it a read.

I do work on adult nonfiction and novels, but my first love is the children's market. Great children’s books entertain and also teach. The best books show children how to love well, cherish beauty, and think deeply; and they give children the courage to live heroic lives. With every edit I do, I strive to help authors write and publish books that are excellently crafted--books that will entertain children and also encourage them to live large.

Services
Non-Fiction
Children’s Non-Fiction Christian Non-Fiction
Fiction
Christian Fiction Fantasy Middle Grade Picture Books Young Adult Fantasy
Languages
English (US)
Awards
  • SCBWI WIP grant 2008
  • ECPA bestselling books over a hundred times
  • Edgar nomination
  • Realm Award Debut Winner
  • Foundations Scholarship
  • ACFW Genesis Spec-fic Winner
  • ACFW Genesis YA finalist
  • Sunshine State Young Readers Award
  • Georgia Children's Book Award nomination
  • Christian Book of the Year nomination
  • YAYOMG! Award
  • Creative Child Preferred Choice Award
  • Realm Award Book of the Year Finalist
  • Realm Award YA Finalist

Work experience

My Company

Mar, 2017 — Present

A boutique publishing company with an eclectic list, including YA fantasy, MG poetry, picture books, novels, and even nonfiction.

Udemy

Dec, 2015 — Present

I have four writing courses up on Udemy that cover Voice, Plot, Punctuation, and Query Letters. I have over 7000 students enrolled who live in over 90 countries.

My Agency

Sep, 2012 — Present

Specializing in children's books, I have a select few authors, including the award-winning and best-selling Hannah C. Hall and Taryn Souders.

Self-employed

Sep, 2001 — Present

--I’ve done editorial assessments for SCBWI conferences for years. I'm honest, but I've never made a writer cry. I point out where the writer excels, as well as areas needing improvement.

--In developmental edits I focus on story world, character, plot, pace, and theme. These all work to pull readers in, keep pages turning, and provide satisfying endings.

--In copy edits, I focus on voice. I look for places to use figures of speech, I consider how words sound, and I look at pacing and description.

--I’ve gotten tens of thousands of queries. I can help you write a strong query letter.

--When editing picture books, I look all of the above—character, plot (or structure in concept books and nonfiction), voice, theme, pacing (page turns), descriptions, and so on. I also consider what kind of opportunities the author has given the illustrator.

Portfolio

Mommy Cuddles

Hannah C.

Sally has 198 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

AnnA G.

AnnA G.

Sep, 2023

It was a pleasure working with Sally. She maintained communication throughout the process> Her feedback and suggestions were clear, and explicit, and understandable. This can be a daunting process for a first time writer and Sally 's approach helped relieve some of the stress involved. Thank you
Heather T.

Heather T.

Aug, 2023

Great communication, fast work, and good advice given throughout.
Toni W.

Toni W.

Aug, 2023

Sally was wonderful to work with. She kindly challenged me to see the lines in my book in a different way and helped me find wording and ideas to improve the work. She's very good with helping to match meter and rhythm, and offered excellent ideas for the story line to be better developed. I was very, very pleased with her edits, both developmental and copy, and will definitely plan to reque...
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Amanda L.

Amanda L.

Aug, 2023

I had a great experience working with Sally. She was professional and had great customer service. She checked in with me on any questions that came up and was easy to work with.
Linda P.

Linda P.

Aug, 2023

Sally provided much needed suggestions and corrections in a way that encouraged me to continue working on my manuscript rather than discouraging me. She provided explanations of what I was missing as well as examples of how to include those elements.

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