About Katherine
Developmental editor and coach focusing on scholarly work
My goal is to be part of your team, helping you to produce your best thinking and writing.
My Story
I started editing because I love engaging with ideas that can change the way we understand the world. As a former tenured professor with an interdisciplinary background, I have a unique insider perspective that will help you to produce the kind of work that gets published. I believe that good editing is about good listening; I prioritize understanding your needs and writing goals so that I can ensure my editorial focus and feedback is as beneficial as possible. I am also a passionate diversity advocate, and enjoy helping clients produce work that responds to contemporary issues of diversity and social justice and engages with urgent global matters.
As a coach, I recognize that academia can feel isolating and overwhelming; I work to be a supportive part of authors’ teams. I help clients identify their goals and determine concrete pathways to meeting them. Producing writing and navigating academia are challenging; I aim to help make these processes more transparent and to help authors gain confidence as writers.
When not editing or coaching, I can be found running, reading, gardening, clogging, or trying to keep up with my six-year-old, Felix (who also likes to write “books” and wonders why it takes grown-ups so long to do so)!
Experiences that inform my work
I have my PhD in anthropology and have a wide range of experiences that I draw on in my editorial work, including:
Experience editing for and coaching scholars from a range of institutions, including Columbia University, Furman University, Florida International University, Georgetown University, Harvard University, Indiana University, NYU-Abu Dhabi, Smith College, Spelman College, Tulane University, University of Washington, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Vassar College, and Wellesley College
Experience working with manuscripts under contract with or published by a range of scholarly presses, including Chicago University Press, Indiana University Press, Lexington Books, Oxford University Press, Pennsylvania University Press, Princeton University Press, Rutgers University Press, and Stanford University Press.
Author of a well-reviewed monograph, published by Indiana University Press as well as a variety of peer-reviewed journal articles in publications such as Africa and the African Studies Review
Former Assistant and Associate Professor at Pacific Lutheran University, with seven years of full-time teaching experience at the collegiate level, as well as in the writing program
Experience editing in a range of disciplines, including African studies, anthropology, art history, Black studies, gender studies, history, Islamic studies, literature, material culture studies, religious studies, slavery studies, and sociology
Proven record of editing successful grant and fellowship applications, including grants from the Mellon Foundation, the First Book Institute, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and various research fellowships; taught grant writing for six years at collegiate level
Committed diversity advocate, prioritizing working on manuscripts that deal with issues related to diversity, justice, intersectionality, and equality
PhD in anthropology (minor in African Studies) from Indiana University
BA in English from Colgate University (summa cum laude)
Lots of other work experience, including Peace Corps Volunteer (teaching English in northwest Africa), reporter, nonprofit worker, and conference coordinator, all of which involved editing in one way or another!
Developmental Editing Training
Beyond my academic training, I have taken courses on developmental editing with the University of Chicago and Ideas on Fire. I regularly participate in webinars and trainings with the Editorial Freelancers Association and ACES: The Society for Editing.
Why Goldenrod Editorial?
Goldenrod is known for its healing properties and its Latin name (Solidago) means “to make whole.” As an editor, I believe that my job is to help make your writing whole and to help you achieve your full potential as an author. Yellow is also my favorite color, largely because it is so joyful! I hope to make your writing process happier and easier by providing clear, detailed feedback to help make your revisions as straightforward as possible. Finally, goldenrod can be found anywhere: beside roads, next to rivers, throughout urban landscapes. I aim to help authors thrive, just like this hearty plant! While some people consider goldenrod a weed, I fall in the camp of the poets whom it has inspired, including Samuel Longfellow, Mary Oliver, Maggie Smith, and Celia Thaxter.
