The Full Story
Mission and Values
Hello and welcome! A bit about me and my qualifications: I'm a Portland native with roots in England, a lifelong reader, and a seeker of exciting new experiences. I hold a Master's in Book Publishing from Portland State University. While there, I was the Acquisitions Manager at Ooligan Press where I shepherded manuscripts through acquisition, contracts, and developmental editing. Prior to that, I was the Book Reviews Editor at Portland Review, as well as the Multimedia Manager at Pacific Sentinel. While studying, I interned with Forest Avenue Press as a publicity assistant and People Speak as a research assistant. My experience isn't just in publishing, however. Throughout my life I've worked in many arenas, from restaurants to schools to farms. All of these inform my spirited approach to work and drive my passion for the underdog.
Mission
My mission is to provide publishing services that come from a place of empathy and collaboration with the author. I'm interested in building a sense of community and optimism, recognizing that artists, freelancers, and anyone who goes against the grain are stronger together.
I provide equitable access to my resources, including holding a certain number of slots with a sliding scale form of payment for marginalized authors. I support diversity and inclusion in all that I do, with an understanding that the literary community is best served when we can inhabit and support as many perspectives as possible.
Reading, writing, and critical thinking are essential to the fabric of society. Without these tools, we are more likely to embrace passivity, abandon our values, and be prone to cultural homogenization. I'm here to continue the literary tradition of supporting writing that contains nuanced perspectives, blurred boundaries, surprising conclusions, and open-ended questions.
Each author I work with is part of this great conversation, and my goal is to help shape your story in ways that reflect your values, desires, experiences, and uncertainties.
Values
Empathy: I am empathetic, showing kindness by listening intently, being sincere, and creating a safe work environment for my authors.
Integrity: I foster integrity by keeping promises and deadlines, communicating setbacks, updates, and needs openly, and checking in with my core values for every project I take on.
Inclusion: I cultivate inclusion by offering sliding scale services for marginalized authors and committing to accepting work that pushes boundaries and expectations.
Collaboration: I ensure that editing is a collaborative process by keeping in close communication with the author, reserving judgement, querying instead of telling, and keeping an open mind.
