Lori Vanden Bosch
Writing Coach, Content Editor, Copyeditor, Proposal Reviewer,
and Proofreader
Aka: An Author’s First and Best Reader!
As a child, Lori read so much and so intensely that she often didn’t hear when her mother called. Thus the worst (and most appropriate) discipline her mother ever subjected her to was depriving her of reading for an afternoon.
Lori still enjoys nothing more than getting lost in a book and views her editing work as a form of play. She loves to fiddle with the structure of a book, moving chapters around like puzzle pieces till they settle into the perfect spot. She likes to tinker with the intricacies of a convoluted sentence, swapping words and punctuation till the meaning shines and the sounds and rhythms sing. With her deeply Dutch heritage, she even delights in the detail work of scrubbing a manuscript clean of typos, punctuation errors, timing flaws, and all manner of typesetting gaffes. But when something is “just right,” she also knows when to leave well enough alone—and liberally compliment the author!
Most of all, though, Lori loves working with authors so they can reach the next level in their writing career. In her 10 years at Zondervan and 15 years as a freelancer, she has edited inspirational fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books as a content editor, copyeditor, and coach. In fiction she has worked with Sarah Price, Amy Clipston, Andrea Boeshaar, Terri Blackstock, Martha Rogers, Mike Dellosso, and Bill Myers, among others. In nonfiction she has worked with Henry Cloud and John Townsend (Boundaries), Jerry Sittser (The Will of God as a Way of Life), and Les and Leslie Parrott (Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts), among others. In children’s books she coached Beverly Lewis on the (pre-Amish) Holly Heart series, and she also wrote the best-selling picture books Legend of the Candy Cane and Legend of the Easter Egg under her maiden name, Lori Walburg. Most recently she has taken on the role of writing coach, helping authors envision and outline their books and giving them detailed feedback as they write each chapter. Recent best-selling authors she’s coached through the book-writing process include Karen Ehman (Keep It Shut and Let It Go) and Ruth Soukup (Living Well Spending Less).
Finally, Lori also reviews book proposals prior to publication, assessing them for writing quality, marketability of book idea and author, audience appeal, and biblical integrity. As a self-employed editor married to a small business owner, she is keenly aware of the need for both integrity and financial viability for a business and an author to succeed, and in her interactions she daily practices the art of discernment and speaking the truth in love. In addition, she serves her clients by consistently finishing projects on time and on budget. Her clients have included Zondervan, Realms, Kregel, Willow Creek Association, and self-published writers.