The books I excel at have something to say about innovation, persistence, character, and connection.
SALLY COLLINGS
Who I Am
With 20+ years’ experience in book publishing, I know what makes a great book proposal and an outstanding manuscript—and I know how to create them. Former non-fiction publisher for HarperCollins and editorial director for Amber Books, I now work as a ghostwriter and developmental editor, specializing in non-fiction manuscripts and book proposals.
My author clients are represented at a number of agencies, including Park & Fine Literary & Media, Talcott Notch Literary, The Palgon Company, and Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. Some have published with HarperBusiness, St. Martin’s Press, Simon & Schuster, and Chronicle Books, while others have successfully self-published their books or worked with leading hybrid publishers.
I’m most drawn to business memoirs and personal leadership titles. Projects with a health or medical spin are a good fit too: I speak fairly fluent “physician.”
Early in my career, my job as an assistant editor for HarperCollins was to look through the slush pile of book proposals and manuscripts to find a diamond in the rough. I reviewed hundreds of submissions. Sadly, I rarely read more than a page before deciding the proposal wasn’t good enough to pass along to my boss.
But with each submission I read, I had an intense desire to fix things. If only I could offer a change here, a fuller explanation there, a tweak in the writer’s voice, even something as simple as rewording an author bio, emphasizing experience and talents so unique they might inspire an editor to make an offer to publish.
At the time, I did no such thing.
Today, however, I get to do precisely that. I use all my experience and passion and channel it into your story, your message, and your book.
Born in Australia, I now call Northern California home, and I get my kicks (literally!) from martial arts and lifting heavy things.
But enough about me. Let’s talk about what brings you to my website.
My Team
Autumn Jade Monroe
Autumn Jade Monroe is an award-winning ghostwriter and bestselling substantive editor living in Nashville, TN. With a background in Psychology and Learning Management, she specializes in trauma, neurodivergence, personal development, and educational content. When Jade is not writing, she enjoys painting, teaching dance, and being a dog nanny.
Anita Ponton
Anita Ponton is an artist and writer based in London, UK. Educated at Central St. Martin's College of Art and Goldsmiths University, she has a PhD in Fine Art. A former academic, she now works independently as an editorial assistant and artist advisor. Anita has published several short stories and is working on her first novel.