Olivia Edits

“Your additions to the book are so spot on with my style and voice that it’s scary. Good scary. It’s like you climbed inside my head and grabbed the lines I should’ve written in the first place. I don’t know how you do it, but you always craft the most perfect line at the perfect place.” Darby Karchut, award-winning author of Del Toro Moon

I founded Olivia Edits because I want to provide services that allow authors to feel empowered, connected, determined, understood, and inspired during their writing journey.

If authors feel empowered, they can write the story they want and take feedback in stride, knowing how to apply suggestions.

If authors feel connected, they can support the writing community and create meaningful relationships. 

If authors feel determined, they will work to overcome writing obstacles, from writer’s block to plot holes.

If authors feel understood, they won’t be afraid to seek help. They will trust me or another editor with their work and trust the editor’s ability/skills to help them. 

If authors feel inspired, they will continue to write and change the world through stories.

Every person has a story. I want you to feel empowered, connected, determined, understood, and inspired by my work as an editor so that you can tell that story.

I specialize in developmental editing sci fi and fantasy written by first-time and self-publishing authors. Helping the writer improve their craft is just as important as fixing the story’s punctuation and grammar. Click on the contact link above to get in touch about how we can working together.

For more testimonials, see here.

 

I keep it simple:

A developmental edit is $0.013/word and includes a 10+ page letter addressing the strengths and areas to work on in the themes, character development, worldbuilding, pacing, point of view, plot, dialogue, and more. In-line edits and comments in the manuscript tie in with specific sections in the letter. I also offer a phone or video call before the edit to make sure I understand your vision and after the edit to answer any questions.

I founded Olivia Edits because I want to provide services that allow authors to feel empowered, connected, determined, understood, and inspired during their writing journey. Contact me here or at oliviaedits2 [at] gmail [dot] com to see if your manuscript would benefit from a developmental edit.

You can find a sampling of titles of my previous work below. All of the novels listed were developmental edits, which you can see a description of here. These edits involved two to three rounds of editing. Looking at my previous work can help you see what types of novels I have worked on and to see if we might be a good author-editor fit.

Hi, I’m Olivia Swenson! I grew up saying I wanted to be a book critic, but I didn’t know “fiction editor” was a job. Now I work with authors and publishers to bring life-changing books to readers. After graduating from Brigham Young University with a minor in editing, I freelanced for a new fiction publisher. I got amazing experience developing stories/characters/worlds, finding obscure rules in the Chicago Manual of Style,  and honing my skills as an editor. In 2016, my husband Brian and I moved to Lisbon, Portugal. I took the leap to full-time freelancing and started Olivia Edits. I only wish I had done so sooner.

While I could read all day and be happy, I also enjoy cooking (especially with food grown locally!), running (a half marathon is my favorite distance), and traveling (most recently to Israel and Portugal in November 2022) after living in Europe, the travel bug won’t let me rest). My daughter Ada was born in January 2020 and my son Ira was born in 2022.

My favorite projects are working with first-time and self-publishing authors to help them improve their writing craft and create the story they’ve envisioned. I am currently the fiction editor for Owl Hollow Press and have also edited for Skyhorse Publishing,  Rebellion Publishing and Boutique of Quality Books.

I love hearing from authors, editors, publishers, and everyone in between. You can use the form below or reach out at oliviaedits2[at]gmail[dot]com.