Hi, I'm Jessica!
I’ve copyedited everything from science to sociology to those crazy texts and worksheets you may remember from your school days. I’m thrilled to help authors with literary fiction, all kinds of fantasy, and those genres that are hard to pin down. My passion is, of course, historical fiction, where I balance accurate immersive information with a story you can’t put down. I love getting up to speed with any time period or place, but if your novel takes place during the European Middle Ages, I’m the editor you’ve been looking for.
My Story
I’m the author of Seven Noble Knights, a novel that emerged from some documents I read while studying for my PhD in medieval Spanish literature at Brown University. I also earned a distinction from the Medieval Studies MA program at the University of Leeds, where I learned more than anyone should know about Anglo-Saxon England. You may have seen me at Kalamazoo or the International Medieval Congress. I’m a member of the Historical Novel Society, and at its conference in Portland, Oregon, I met the fabulous Jenny Q.
I also write contemporary fiction. My paranormal urban fantasy, Awash in Talent, was published by Kindle Press through the Kindle Scout program. I’ve studied writing with such luminaries as Shay Youngblood, Margot Livesey, Aimee Bender, and Manuel Gonzales at the University of Iowa and the Tin House Summer Workshop, among others. Check out the madness at my author website.
I got my editorial start at a small press that specialized in historical fiction and went on to cofound a tiny literary publisher. I’ve worked with HarperCollins, Hawthorne Books, The Worcester Review, university presses, and educational publishers, where I became proficient with the Chicago Manual of Style, MLA, the Real Academia Española, APA, and in-house style sheets. Please see my editorial page for a publications list and testimonials. I’m a member of the Editorial Freelancers Association and the American Literary Translators Association.
After wandering all over the United States with my beloved departed husband, I’ve settled down in Castilla y León, Spain, my favorite place in the world. When I’m not editing, writing, or teaching English at the local high school, I get to visit castles, palaces, churches, and even Paleolithic caves that reach across time with their compelling stories. You’re as likely to find me at an early music jam as at a Spanish pop rock concert, and I love rhinos.