Rachelle Gardner
Line Editing, Developmental Editing,
Publishing Coaching,
Social Media Coaching
Rachelle Gardner has been in publishing for 20 years, worked in-house at two publishing companies, and worked directly with authors on hundreds of books. As a freelance editor, she’s been hired by individual writers as well as by publishers, including Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster, Random House, and many more. Over the years she’s developed expertise in substantive editing, line-editing, book doctoring, and general author coaching.
Rachelle has edited numerous award-winning books, including:
Christa Parrish: Stones for Bread (Christy Award, 2014)
Ginger Garrett: Chosen: The Lost Diaries of Queen Esther (Christy Finalist, 2011)
Lisa Samson: The Passion of Mary Margaret (Christy Award, 2010)
Mary DeMuth: Watching the Tree Limbs (Christy Finalist and Carol Finalist, 2007)
Rachel Hauck: The Wedding Dress (Romantic Times Novel of the Year)
Neta Jackson: Stand By Me (Romantic Times Top Pick)
Beth Webb Hart: Sunrise on the Battery (Romantic Times Top Pick)
As a literary agent and publishing coach, Rachelle has negotiated 200+ contracts with more than 20 publishers, and worked with more than 100 authors to bring their books to publication and build their careers. A large part of Rachelle’s publishing career has involved coaching. She coaches writers through their journey, including conceptualizing and writing books, building platforms, leveraging social media, and navigating all aspects of the publishing business.
Rachelle’s website (www.rachellegardner.com) has been one of Writers Digests Top 100 Websites for writers, five years running. She blogs weekly at Books & Such. Join her Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/agent.rachelle.
Here are a few testimonials for Rachelle’s work:
I can't overstate how awesome it was to work with Rachelle on my memoir. Her keen editorial insights and brilliant revision directions made the difference between a half-baked book and one that drew eight publishers to the table. Her instincts are simply dead on. She has a rare gift for seeing the book that is trying to happen and helping the writer bring it to fruition.
~Bestselling author Heather H. Kopp
Rachelle Gardner is an exceptional editing partner. Her understanding of the trends in the publishing industry, her attention to detail and her professionalism caught my attention right away. But it was her day-to-day commitment to the stories we were creating together that made the partnership between author and editor such a solid one. She's encouraged me, inspired me to stretch my skills and has improved my understanding of the writing craft.
~Award-winning author Kristy Cambron
I’ve worked with Rachelle on numerous writing projects, and she has been an integral part of each step in my publishing process. She has helped me expand and develop my ideas, strengthen my writing, consider my audience, craft proposals, and negotiate contracts. One thing I particularly appreciate about Rachelle is her honesty—she is straight-forward and direct. She has always been willing to tell me the truth, even if it hurts. This also means that when she loves my writing, I know her sentiment is genuine and my writing is strong. For an author, this is an invaluable quality of a writing/publishing coach.
~Zeke Pipher, author of Man on the Run and In Pursuit