Seaman launches new editorial consultancy business

Katie Seaman, formerly senior commissioning editor at HQ, has launched a new freelance editorial consultancy business, Katie Seaman Editorial Services.

Seaman will offer editorial services including manuscript assessments and development editing to polish writers’ work. She will also offer book coaching to help those struggling to turn their idea into words on the page or going through the querying process.

Seaman has a decade of experience as an editor in trade fiction publishing having worked at Hodder & Stoughton, Orion, Ebury and latterly, HQ, and she’s been a mentor on Penguin Random House’s WriteNow programme and the HarperCollins Author Academy. She’s been part of the publishing team behind authors including Anthony Horowitz, Michael Connelly, Veronica Henry and Caitlin Moran.

She was awarded the London Book Fair Trailblazer Award in recognition of her innovative publishing of her first acquisition, Hot Mess by Lucy Vine (Orion). More recently at HQ, she published Dial A For Aunties by Jesse Sutanto, which won the Comedy Women In Print Prize, and Midnight in Everwood by M A Kuzniar.

Seaman has also launched new voices such as the inaugural winner of the Primadonna Prize, Elissa Soave and Stacey Thomas, winner of HarperFiction’s Killing It Competition. She also acquired and edited Millie Bobby Brown’s debut novel, Nineteen Steps (HQ) and the second book from M A Kuzniar, Upon a Frosted Star (HQ), both set for publication this month.

She commented: “While I’ll miss working with wonderful authors and agents I’ve left behind, I’m proud to have published award-winners and bestsellers, and commissioned a host of brilliant authors for 2024 who I’ll be cheering on. After a much-needed summer break, I’m very excited to be launching Katie Seaman Editorial Services and being able to work more closely on supporting authors with editing and coaching to develop their manuscripts, hone their pitch and demystify the publishing process."

Seaman can be contacted at katie@katieseaman.co.uk or via her website www.katieseaman.co.uk.