Anne Cole Norman
Professional
Book Editor
Projects
About Me
At the start of my career in book publishing, I was quickly drawn to nonfiction -- I was fascinated by people’s real-life stories and loved learning about health and self-betterment. Over the years, my own life has been enriched so much by reading the work of authors with whom I’ve worked.
I was lucky enough to work at some of the best New York book publishers, including HarperCollins, Doubleday, and Hyperion. In those jobs, I learned not only how to be an editor but what it takes to make a project commercially viable. After working twelve years in-house, I switched over to working independently in 2009, which gave me the opportunity to focus on my favorite part of the job: working with authors.
My role as a professional book editor and writer is to find out what my clients need and to provide honest yet supportive feedback to help them bring their story and information to the page in a compelling way. I love working with authors on their manuscript or book proposal to help them find their voice and communicate their ideas in the clearest way possible. Whichever project I’m working on, my goal is to make it “sing” – to make the words leap off the page and engage the reader.
I enjoy working collaboratively with authors to bring a project to its highest professional level; to make it enlightening as well as entertaining. As an editor, I bring not only my expertise in editing gained from working as an acquiring editor at major publishing houses, but also my industry savvy, guiding clients as they navigate the publishing world. Whether you'd like to secure a publisher or self-publish, I provide insider tips and strategies to help you get where you'd like to be with your book.
My specialties are memoir, self-help, health, spirituality, inspiration, how-to, reference, and lifestyle. Books I’ve edited include Playing Doctor: Part One, Medical School – Stumbling Through with Amnesia by John Lawrence, M.D.; Back in Control: A Spine Surgeon’s Roadmap out of Chronic Pain by David Hanscom, M.D.; Becoming Starlight: Surviving Grief and Mending the Wounds of Loss by Sharon Prentice, Ph.D., and The No Guesswork Diet: Discover Your Carb Number for Swift, Healthy, and Sustainable Weight Loss by Rameck Hunt, M.D.
Testimonials
“There are no words in existence to fully express my gratitude for Anne Cole Norman, editor extraordinaire. Her tender and supportive manner was evident in her editing from the first page; her support and guidance and expert editing were a saving grace for me. Thank you, Anne, for giving me your best. Working with a novice writer can never be easy for someone as experienced and talented as Anne but, somehow, she managed to survive me and, because of her expertise, Becoming Starlight emerged the way I always wanted it to.”
--Sharon Prentice, Ph.D., author of Becoming Starlight
"Anne is truly a gift and I feel so fortunate to have worked with her on three books. She is quite simply, awesome. I absolutely loved working with Anne. First of all, she’s such a wonderful person. She actually made the editing process truly enjoyable with her combination of no nonsense detailed notes, along with the encouragement that pushed me to write the best version of the story I wanted to tell. The reason you hire Anne is for her vast editing experience, to help make your book read better, to convey your thoughts more accurately, write more concisely, eliminate those pesky grammatical errors that somehow still exist no matter how many times you’ve re-read and proofed a rewrite -- and this was all something Anne did extremely well. And she does so without bruising your ego. Most importantly for me, Anne understood my voice, the unique story I was telling and the specific tone I did not want to be edited out — this was key for me, having someone in my corner for the story I wanted to tell and how I wanted to tell it — but always pushing for how it could be the best version of what I had put on paper — which was exactly what Anne did. My series, Playing Doctor, has done very well and I am so grateful to Anne for her dedicated work that made publishing them even possible."
--John Lawrence, author of Playing Doctor, Part One: Medical School; Playing Doctor, Part Two: Residency; and Playing Doctor, Part Three: Chief Resident
"Anne Cole Norman edited my book Bardisms: Shakespeare for All Occasions, and I could not have asked for a better experience. Anne made positive and often transformative contributions to the book on countless levels. She supplied crucial insights on its conception and structure, she provided gentle nudges regarding its tone, and she offered astute and sensitive thoughts on the copy. Her every suggestion was leavened with kindness, and not a jot of feedback came at any other than exactly the right moment. And best of all, Anne’s a lovely person, possessed of great good humor and a love of writing. She’s the one you want in your corner."
--Barry Edelstein, author of Bardisms: Shakespeare for All Occasions
Contact Me
If you're interested in working together, please email at anne@annecolenorman.com or fill out this section, and I'll get back to you. Thanks!