My education and experience
I began my publishing career in 2013, as an intern at World Literature Today magazine and then as an editorial assistant at the University of Oklahoma Press, where I later worked as a manuscript editor and rights and permissions manager as well.
I earned bachelor’s degrees in English and letters from the University of Oklahoma in 2015 and a master’s in publishing from Pace University, New York, in 2017. I founded Billie Haffener Editing in 2017, and I’ve been freelancing full-time ever since.
I’m a member of ACES: The Society for Editing and the Editorial Freelancers Association, and I take several editing courses and trainings per year through both organizations to stay educated on conventions in the industry. I’m also a member of a couple of writers’ associations that support folks who write in and about the US West: SouthWest Writers and Women Writing the West.
I live in southwest Colorado with my spouse, three cats, and a cactus collection my brother-in-law has referred to as “unsafe to be housed indoors.”
“Fortunately for me Billie was assigned to copyedit my book, and I couldn’t be happier. I’ve been writing, editing, and publishing for nearly 30 years and have worked with a great many copyeditors. Billie is, by far, one of the best. They made great suggestions and made sure that my manuscript conformed to Chicago’s often confusing guidelines. I hope they edit my next book too!”
—Andy McPhee, retired publisher and author of seven nonfiction YA books and Donora Death Fog: Clean Air and the Tragedy of a Pennsylvania Mill Town
What I can do for you
With my in-house publishing experience, I’m familiar with the traditional publication process and the needs of publishers. At the same time, I’m also a ready advocate for each author’s own voice and vision for their work, and I’m passionate about working with new authors and those from communities underrepresented in publishing.
I’ve worked with academic monographs, novels, short story collections, graphic novels, journal articles, and more, in many fields and genres and at multiple stages of the publication process.
Still, amid such variety we all have our favorites: I love working with histories of the US West, maritime and exploration history, historical fiction, and romance and horror with queer themes.
Billie Haffener Editing 