Does your prose need polishing? I can help.

Could your narrative be more engaging? I can help with that too.

I have fifteen years of experience developmental editing and line editing published and self-published fiction, memoir, and scholarship and am a member of the Cambridge Academic Editors Network. 

The quality of my line editing reflects my flair for writing. Some people say that editing and writing are separate skills. That isn’t entirely true. If I think that something could be put more succinctly, more elegantly, or more clearly, I will reformulate it and I may offer you several alternative revisions to choose among. A client has described me as having “an excellent eye for style and economy.”

As a writer, your goal is to  produce clear, concise, and compelling text. An editor whose writing meets that standard is a good choice.

My recently completed memoir, currently under review, has been well-received. My monograph, Wittgenstein’s Account of Truth, has been called “clearly written” and short-listed for the Canadian Philosophical Association Book Prize. 

A philosopher by training, I am a thoughtful developmental editor of creative writing and scholarship. I focus on issues of interest, plausibility, consistency, and structure in editing your creative work. In editing your scholarship, I will identify any “holes” in your logic, points that need clarification, and arguments that need further development and collaborate with in revising the passages that need work. 

TESTIMONIALS

Sara did excellent work for me on a biography. Her skills aren’t merely formal. She has an excellent eye for style and economy as well. Beyond this, she is prompt and wonderfully cooperative. I highly recommend her.

Bert Stern, Author, Winter in China: An American Life, Xlibris (2014)

Sara Ellenbogen did a wonderful job of editing the text.

Kieran Setiya, Author, Midlife: A Philosophical Guide, Princeton University Press (2017)

I want to thank Sara Ellenbogen for her insightful copyediting of this volume

Daniel O. Sayers, Author, The Archaeology of the Homed and the Unhomed, University Press of Florida  (2023)

For the past two years, Sara has been a great help to me in editing and proofreading my work, which has included technical papers, theater scripts, and blog posts. She is very thorough in her edits with track changes, always suggesting alternatives for better flow. Sara has always delivered her work on time. I feel the hourly rate is very reasonable, given the quality of the work she produces. I have no hesitation in recommending Sara.

Subrata Das, chief data scientist, computer science and engineering professor, and playwright/director at Stage Ensemble Theater Unit

I contacted Sara while searching for someone who could help me with editing my graduate school application essays. The application was due about three days after I initially made contact with Sara. I could not finish my drafts by the time I said I would due to a family emergency. I was frazzled and discombobulated. About six hours before it was due, she edited and proofread two of my essays. She paid keen attention to detail and stayed up late in the evening to make sure I could get these in on time. The finished product was flawless. She goes above and beyond for her clients!

Lanie, PhD student in psychology

I needed help structuring my first novel draft – a wild project. Sara gave me multi-level feedback that really helped. Professional, timely, and personable. I received thoughtful feedback for much less in cost.

Doug, PhD student in architecture

Sara helped me edit my fiction book manuscript over a period of two and a half months. We communicated via email on a weekly basis (due to our geographical distance), but we also met in person several times throughout the project duration. From the start I could tell that Sara was very detail-oriented and always made sure to point out anything from grammatical errors or sentence restructuring to paragraphs that needed further development. She was also cooperative and her comments were always thought out and challenged my thought process! 

Jonela, creative writer

Sara edited a philosophy paper for me that was overlong for a journal and shortened it within a week. I thought she did an excellent job and that her suggestions were right on target. She spotted unnecessary material immediately. I was very busy with other work so her help has been invaluable. I would recommend her to anyone. 

Vaughana Feary, vice president of the American Philosophical Practitioners Association

After having worked with Sara for several months, I was very pleased with her level of detailed insight, efficiency, honesty, and integrity. I highly recommend her to anyone who is looking for a trustworthy, accurate, and hassle free editor!

Huda, Ph.D. student in psychology

In May 2012, I called on Sara for a final reading of my memoir. Since my previous publishing had been confined to five poetry collections, I felt uneasy about going forward in an unfamiliar genre without the critical responses of several readers. I indicated to Sara that I was far less interested in minor issues of syntax than in larger questions of clarity, interest, and plausibility. She returned the memoir to me promptly with red flags around half a dozen sections. In all cases, she had identified what was critical in the manuscript and, moreover, had excellent suggestions for revision. I have incorporated all of her suggestions,  and the result will be a much stronger book that appears next year. I cannot think of a more insightful and consummate professional. 

George, English professor

Sara edited a short story of mine of about 6000 words. Her help was very useful, especially her suggestions on clarifying the narrative and my sentence structures.

Mike, creative writer

Sara was great! She took a thoughtful approach to both my manuscript and my needs as a client. She offered quick fixes for minor grammatical mistakes as well as suggestions for how the overall structure could be improved. And she managed to do it  without bruising my pitiful writer ego.

Jessica, creative writer