I hired Nomi after I met her when she taught an editing class at UCLA Extension. Not only was she teaching a class at UCLA to people who wanted to become professional editors, but also she was working for the Getty Museum as an editor of their elegant publications. She had a positive and cheerful demeanor, and I knew this was the person I had to at least try.
Even though I had worked as the senior editor at a publishing company, I knew enough that I could not be my own editor. At the time, I had my first collection of short fiction that I wanted published. I started slowly with her, having Nomi edit just a few stories. I liked Nomi's editing style in that she did not ever X out big sections in red ink but rather she'd circle a section and write in the margin, "Needed?" I'd look at it and realize she was absolutely right.
I liked her work, and not only did she edit the entire book, she's edited two other books of fiction for me. They have gone on to win awards.
At the end of the first book, she didn't like one of the stories. She said, "This story just doesn't fit the collection, and it's not as powerful as the others. Do you have another story?" I had only one more, but it had been rejected 40 times. Maybe with some editing she could fix it.
When I gave to her, she hardly changed a thing, and said she loved it. It was one of her favorites. That story was called "Dear Ma." After her belief in it, I sent it out one more time, and the editor of the journal I sent it to called to say he loved it. It then was published there and in another journal before the book came out.
I see the review by K.G., and I can't say what happened. First, I would never hire an editor to be a graphic designer. An editor isn't a word processing expert. I gave Nomi my stories on paper, and she worked on paper. When I'm an editor, I'm much more efficient working on paper.
K.G. was unhappy, and that's his or her truth. I happen to find Nomi an outstanding editor, and I'm glad her name is in my books.
--Christopher Meeks, author of "The Middle-Aged Man and the Sea" and four other books read more