Sophia Blackwell – Editor

I am an editor, author and consultant with twenty years of in-house publishing experience and over ten years of freelance editing. I have worked for big and small companies including four Big Six UK publishers as an editor, marketer and publicist.

Currently, I work as a freelance editor, a radio presenter and podcast creator, and a publishing marketer. I also have five books of my own – one Big Six-published, one self-published and three published by independents – so I have experience from both sides of the fence and can advise on routes for you.

I have edited international bestsellers including the most recent three books by philosopher Roman Krznaric, three books in the Writers’ and Artists’ series (where I have been a freelance editor on the main Yearbook for ten years), a romance trilogy and books published by Oxford University Press, Duke University Press, Pearson and Unbound. For two years I was a judge for the Polari Prize and have been a reader for several UK publishing initiatives including The Future Bookshelf, The Mo Siewcharran Prize and Grow Your Story at Hachette UK.

In 2023 I hosted a five-week masterclass for Bloomsbury on writing and publishing poetry and have recently lectured on writing and publishing with Oxford University’s Continuing Education department, Falmouth University, City University London and University of the Third Age to name but a few. My own writing has been published by Bloomsbury, Bloodaxe, Burning Eye, Muswell Press, Nine Arches, The Emma Press, Mslexia, Writers’ Forum and others. My 2022 guide to writing and publishing is available from Bloomsbury and is used by aspiring poets across the UK.

With all my authors, I provide a bespoke service including editorial assessment, development editing, copy-editing, with proofreading and synopsis help and back cover copy as additional, optional services. I provide one online consultation per project if necessary.

I specialise in LGBT+ fiction and non-fiction as I was getting clients who would find me by accident and realise (happily) that I was gay half-way through a project! But I work across multiple genres and can handle most of them, with a few exceptions.

Feel free to get in touch! Here are some testimonials:

'Sophia is undoubtedly one of the most skilled editors I have worked with over the past decade.' – Penguin, Profile and Unbound author

'Her structural and copy-editing skills are thorough and thoughtful, with great attention to detail, and her approach to delivery was timely and effective.' – Unbound author

‘Having worked with Sophia for several years in-house at Bloomsbury, I’ve sought her out several times on a freelance basis and am always thrilled with her wonderful expertise, excellent ideas and unfailing reliability.’ – Former Routledge, HarperCollins and Bloomsbury in-house editor, now freelance editor and writer