2nd Draft Critique Synopsis Editors

Following her completion of the Denver Publishing Institute after graduation, Danielle began interning at acclaimed literary agency Writers House. While there, she realized she wanted to put her English degree and love of the written word to work at an agency and began at New Leaf Literary, where she primarily focused on children's and YA books. She branched out five years later to provide freelance editorial services--specifically developmental editing, copy editing, and proofreading--and is also a copywriter. She has been in the industry for over ten years now, working with established authors, as well as prospective writers who haven't yet been published. She is most interested in MG and YA work of all genres, as well as adult fiction manuscripts (especially contemporary, fantasy, romance). She welcomes questions on the critiques she provides for authors, and always hopes that they are truly a jumping off point, believing the author's vision is the most important and her role is to help support them. 

Mort Castle

Mort Castle is a horror author and a writing teacher who has published over 500 short stories. Twice a winner of the Black Quill award, seven times a Bram Stoker Award nominee, Castle edited On Writing Horror, the primary reference work for dark fiction authors. Mort specialized in horror, dark fantasy, literary, historical, how-to, Pop Fiction, comics/graphic novel. 

Jess Dallow

She has a BFA in Writing for Film and Television from the University of the Arts and worked in entertainment for eight years before returning to her home state of NY where she worked at a literary agency for two years before joining Brower Literary & Management. Jess specialized in YA, adult. contemporary, thriller, romance, crime, & women's fiction.

Margaret Danko

Originally from the heart of the south, Margaret Danko received her BA from Oberlin College before pursuing an MFA from Temple University. While there, she climbed the ranks to become an editor of TINGE Magazine, publishing fiction, essays, and poetry. She has worked as a freelance editor and media consultant. A lover of the dark, the quirky, and the fantastical, Margaret has a keen eye for projects that take unexpected turns or are told from unusual perspectives. Margaret specializes in literary fiction with teeth, historical fiction with a dash of magical realism, fresh literary and commercial suspense, spooky contemporary and fantasy YA, narratives with a deep sense of place and history, quirky and heartwarming family stories, and rom-coms full of charm and whimsy. She is also interested in nonfiction in the areas of humor, lifestyle, popular science, health/wellness, true crime, and current affairs.  

Jackie Lindert

Jackie holds a B.A. in professional writing and book publishing from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and a certificate from the Denver Publishing Institute. After nearly a decade working in NYC at both literary agencies and a big 5 publisher, they are now based in Chicago and splits their time working for a literary scouting agency and freelance editing. Jackie specializes in middle grade, young adult, and adult fiction of all genres (and select narrative non-fiction), but is especially drawn to commercial fantasy and sci-fi; contemporary women’s fiction; LGBTQ characters; and all coming-of-age stories.  

Jordan E. Rosenfeld

Jordan E. Rosenfeld has been writing for the better part of 20 years. She holds a B.A. in Liberal Arts from the Hutchins School and an MFA in Creative Writing and Literature from the Bennington Writing Seminars. Jordan has taught private writing workshops at a wide range of institutions including the Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Gavilan College, the California Writer’s Club, and at conferences such as East of Eden and Mendocino Writers’ Conferences.

Jeff Suess

Jeff Suess is the author of Lost Cincinnati, Hidden History of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Then and Now, AAC 150, Cincinnati: An Illustrated Timeline, and Tomorrowland: The Past, Present, and Future of Disney’s Most Changed Land. He is a history columnist and librarian at the Cincinnati Enquirer. Jeff also writes fiction and has had stories published by Pocket Books, Post Mortem Press, and DC Comics. Jeff specializes in science fiction, fantasy, historical non-fiction, historical fiction.

Terri Valentine

The writing career of romance novelist Terri Valentine is truly a Cinderella story. An avid reader all of her life, she began writing her first historical romance in the summer of 1985 on an old Smith-Corona manual typewriter. To date, she has ten romance novels and a Christmas short story in publication. Sweet Paradise was nominated for Best Romance Adventure by Romantic Times and Louisiana Caress received a coveted K.I.S.S (Knight in Shining Silver) Award from Romantic Times. At present she is under contract for two more historicals, and she is currently working on a high-concept romantic novel that her agent anxiously awaits. She has also written a screenplay that is in production rewrites.

Carolyn Walker

 A former journalist, Carolyn Walker is the author of the memoir Every Least Sparrow, a book about raising her daughter Jennifer, who has the rare Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome.

Her creative nonfiction has appeared in The Southern Review, Hunger Mountain, Columbia: A Journal, The Writer’s Chronicle, Gravity Pulls You In: Parenting Children on the Autism Spectrum, HOUR Detroit, The Detroit News, and many other publications. Her essay “Christian Becomes a Blur,” published in the literary journal Crazyhorse, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.

In 2013, she was made a Kresge Fellow in the Literary Arts by the Kresge Foundation.

Walker is a creative writing instructor for Writer’s Digest University and other organizations. She has led writing workshops in Michigan, Vermont, Nantucket, and Newfoundland. She earned her Master of Fine Arts in Writing degree from Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2004.