Client praise
Published works:
“Lydia Bird, editor par excellence, nurtured me through valuable additions, deletions, and clarifications as we worked together over many productive months. She helped turn a compilation of records and memories into a coherent narrative, then shepherded me through the complex process of book production.”
— Nancy Forster, Acknowledgments, Encounters: A Lifetime Spent Crossing Cultural Frontiers (Wind Shadow Press)
“Lydia persevered through draft after draft.”
— Steven Voien, Author’s Note, In a High and Lonely Place (HarperCollins)
“To say this is a better book thanks to you is an understatement. I’m a great admirer of your skill and wisdom.”
— Larry Bjornson, author, Wide Open (Penguin/Berkley)
“Top billing goes to my extraordinary editor, Lydia Bird. This memoir has been influenced and aided by many people, but its biggest blessing has been your involvement. In addition to your proficiency and unerring instincts, you quickly became the guardian angel of Please Talk.”
— Sean Murphy, Acknowledgments, Please Talk about Me When I’m Gone: A Memoir for My Mother (Bright Moments Books)
“Lydia Bird, my editor, cared deeply about this story from start to finish. Your astute suggestions and insightful comments contributed to a clear framework. At every stage of the book process, you encouraged and guided me with wonderful perception and beautiful editing. I’ve learned so much and truly could not have come this far without you. Thank you.”
— D’Anne Burwell, Acknowledgments, Saving Jake: When Addiction Hits Home (FocusUp Books)
“Addressing Lydia’s insightful questions, comments, and criticisms enabled me to produce the final manuscript. Plus she understood my mission—‘Takes one to know one.’”
— James Waste, Author’s Note, Don’t Shoot the Ice Cream Man (Ringwalt Press)
“My heartfelt thanks to Lydia, who made sense of it all.”
— Steven Voien, Author’s Note, Black Leopard (Knopf)
“Lydia Bird’s expertise, input, and humor were essential in shaping this book.”
— Sue Fox, Author’s Acknowledgments, Etiquette for Dummies (Wiley and Sons)
“You’ve helped me crucially and I will always be grateful.”
— Phyllis Koestenbaum, author, “The Secret Climate the Year I Stopped Writing” (Massachusetts Review)
“Lydia Bird, an expert developmental editor, worked tirelessly on this material. I’m fortunate to have worked with someone who is not only talented but dedicated to the project.”
— Susan Lankford, Acknowledgments, Downtown U.S.A.: A Personal Journey with the Homeless (Humane Exposures Publishing)
“My editor, Lydia Bird, made the telling possible.”
— Klaus Schmidt, Dedication, A Spy for Life (FirstBooks)
“Lydia Bird, my wonderful manuscript consultant, is kind and talented with the patience of a saint. Our brainstorming sessions were phenomenal, and we made a great success team.”
— Linda Hollander, Acknowledgments, Bags to Riches: Seven Success Secrets for Women in Business (Ten Speed Press)
“I want to thank Lydia Bird for her thoughtful critique and editing of my manuscript.”
— Michael Paymar, Acknowledgments, Violent No More: Helping Men End Domestic Abuse (Hunter House)
“I am totally dazzled by the work you did on the manuscript. Such sustained, quality attention.”
— Kia Penso, author, Wallace Stevens, Harmonium, and the Whole of Harmonium (Shoe String Press)
“Many thanks to developmental editor Lydia Bird, who helped not only with sentence structure and voice, but with honest critique about parts of the story that just didn’t hold together and needed to be reimagined, rewritten, or deleted.”
— Karl Bozicevic, Acknowledgments, Cardinal Hoax (Flow Focusing Press)
“Gratitude to Lydia Bird for her invaluable comments on early drafts.”
— Joel Jacobsen, Author’s Note, Such Men as Billy the Kid (University of Nebraska Press)
Works in Progress:
“I am incredibly grateful for your ideas and edits—this novel has been made incomparably better due to your input.”
— Lara Young (historical fiction)
“Lydia, of course writers work alone (unpublished ones I dare say more alone than the published ones) but I feel like I’ve had a coworker on this project. Thank you.”
— Michael Shaler (mainstream fiction)
“THANK YOU!!! You did a terrific job. I completely agree with your comments on the POV, the need to improve the setting descriptions, and so many others. I can’t begin to tell you how useful all your feedback was.”
— Susheela Vasan (young-adult fiction)
“This book would not be what it is without your guidance, creative input, and patient teaching. You’ve challenged me and opened my mind to so many possibilities, allowing the story to take its final shape. You’ve made me a better writer. I thank you for that gift.”
— Ana Corman (lesbian romance)
“Looking forward to your comments on my second attempt and need I say—you were right, you were right, you were right...”
— Serita Anand (suspense fiction)
“High quality, relevant, professional commentary is something I’ve had difficulty locating up to now. Yours is exactly what I need. While I can easily fix the punctuation goofs, the most important things to me are your comments on character consistency, believability, tone consistency, and style.”
— Tom Dodington (mainstream/science fiction)
“You are right-on in so many areas, and on more than a few occasions your insightful comments made me laugh. I have lots of work to do, but I think I have a good sense of what needs to be done.”
— Tammy Burton (biography)
