Editing
“prompt, communicative, and respectful as a person. They carry themself with a rich and sweet humor that only supports the total professional rigor with which they approach their work.”
In the process of completing an MFA I began to ask myself, ‘what makes my voice so important?’ The answer: nothing. The voices of all poets, all artists, and all people are of value, and yet far too many creators have been denied the platform, opportunity, or assistance to share their work. It was during this time that I first recognized my capacity to serve the poetry community as not only an author, but as a publisher and editor.
Over the years since, it’s been my privilege to work with numerous poets in the editing and publication of poems, chapbooks, and full-length collections. This is work I engage with both as an independent editor and as the co-founder of Lightship Press; it remains my constant joy.
My objective when editing is always to center and elevate the unique voice of each author, to discover their talents and intentions, and to help realize their literary aspirations.
I’ve previously served as editor on the following titles:
I Know Pronounce You by Caroline Earleywine
Lessons on Being Tenderheaded by Janae Johnson
Let Go With The Lights On by Lexi Pelle
Here I Am Burn Me by Kimberly Nguyen
Love Ends in a Tandem Kayak by Derrick C. Brown
Heirloom by Ashia Ajani
Built By Storms by Miriam Kramer
Labors of Mercy by Zia Pollis
Seaglass Strange by Red O’Hare
Voracity by Christopher Luna
Monster Colored Glasses by Ken Yoshikawa
Her Way With Words by Brianna Renae
I Remember Not Sleeping by Sherri Levine
apocrifa by Amber Flame
La Llorona by Olga Rosales Salinas
…and many more.
“I have worked with over 100 editors and Sam is one of my top two choices to turn to for clear ideas, non-pushy guidance, truly useful insights, thoughtfully detailed responses, and skills in editing that only come from a hunger to help.”
— Derrick C. Brown, President, Write Bloody Publishing
“Sam’s editorial expertise is phenomenal and thorough. They have incredible attention to detail and a wealth of knowledge of poetry and language, which they bring to every project, be it a single poem or a whole book. I especially appreciate their ability to listen to the poet’s voice and have a constructive editing dialogue with the poet. I highly recommend Sam to anyone who wants their work to get the attention it deserves.”
— Igor Brezhnev, author of Dearest Void, america is a dry cookie, and Nights Since
“With a distinct technical style and an eye for clarity, Sam is not afraid to challenge the writer to be a better craftsperson. Sam asks excellent questions and approaches sensitive matters, like my foreign language and personal experience, with nuanced respect. To be clear, I had no idea what I was doing, and brought a smorgasbord of my own work which Sam helped parse down to a concise collection. I didn't know how, in a way, intimate the relationship between a writer and an editor can be, but trusting Sam with myself and my work was a solid move.”
— Ken Yoshikawa, author of Monster Colored Glasses
Editing services include everything from proofreading individual poems to revising full-length manuscripts.
