DO NOT USE THIS UNPROFESSIONAL SO - CALLED EDITOR! I wrote a book and have had it edited 2 times before I hired this editor to re-edit my book for a class I teach. The class has 3 sections over the course of 3 months and was already in a word document and was about 90% edited. She was referred to me by one of her students, who is a friend of mine. I looked over her website and had a few talks with her. Everything seemed to be ok. Then it got messy... She quoted me $1500 to complete my 172 page book before the start of the class. I asked her if she would do the re-editing, and make it look exactly like a book. Including formatting it within a word document. She said yes, absolutely. I have 3 sections in the book. She had agreed to do all 3 sections by the start of the class. About 3 weeks in, she said the project became bigger than she anticipated and she underbid for herself. Even though I felt that this comment was unprofessional to make to me as a client, I compromised with her. I told her she could just get me each section before the next class started so I could copy the sections, so section 1 needed to be done by class 1, section 2 by class 2, etc. I had already paid her 50% and I was not willing to pay her more. I was on a budget and she had agreed. We even sign a contract. I got the 1st section and there were 21 typos and some of the formatting needed to be redone. I thought, "well, she is getting used to this and maybe didnt understand how I wanted it exactly"? I sent it back and she started complaining again that the scope of the editing job was too big and that she wanted some sort of compensation-- maybe to take my class and learn some things from a few of my students after they graduated from the class. I told her "maybe" with the class but to complete it anyway. Then she hinted around that she wanted to take the class directly from me without paying. I did not respond I was so shocked. The class had started and I had no choice but to complete the process with her. Otherwise I would not have continued and fired her immediately. Section 1 got done 2 days before the course started and she was late in sending it back to me after I told her to fix the 21 typos. She then argued that the typos were not her fault that she was only responsible for 2 of the 21 typos! And she took no responsibility for the formatting issue. And mentioned that she would not be changing the formatting from here on out. I insisted that she complete the formatting because she promised that. I reminded her in an email about what she had agreed to do and she then backed down and said she would "do her best". So, then Section 2 was started on. It too, came back late. So late in fact, that I could not figure out how to change the tracking in Word and so ended up having to print out the section on my own printer. She also argued with me that she insisted on using a very old version of the Word program because she felt it was better for her. The issue with that was it had funny quirks in it, like me not being able to turn off the tracking when I needed to make a copy of the section 2. She continued to insist that Word was not the correct program to edit a a document like this in, but she could not give me any suggestions. She said she could not format it because it was too hard to do within Word. I find this crazy, since most people write documents in Word. Section 3 was also a total mess and late, but worse. I could not open the corrupt document she sent me. I use an Apple and she said she did too but the file was corrupt. I had to send it to a friend so she could fix the corruption within the file and send it back to me so I could get the section 3 printed. I told her how frustrated I was and that I was an unhappy customer. I mentioned that I didn't get what I expected and that she did not really fulfill her promise as an editor. She did minimal formatting but did not make it look like a book at all. And never even completed the table of contents. I decided it would be more of a pain in the neck to get her to do the table of contents then try to figure it out myself. So, I asked for my belongings back: my original binder of the book with my notes and a copy of the DVD of her work. She refused to give it back to me unless I paid her the other 50% of her fee. I had to actually consult a lawyer about her. She insisted on meeting with me to do a hand off of my belongings for her check. I decided it was quicker to do a hand off for my belongings for the check, so I agreed to meet with her in a public location for the exchange. Thankfully, that went off without a hitch. I will never work with this person again. She was the most unprofessional person I have ever had to deal with. She lied about her abilities, she attempted to manipulate me to go to my class for free and get more than what she agreed upon with her fees. And her delivery was far from professional. You are officially warned! read more

My experience with Nomi was amazing. I needed help with an article I wrote about massage therapy. I'm not a writer, so I attempted to write down my version of what I was trying to say. Nomi then took my piece and transformed it into an easy-to-read, colorful, clean, copy that I used . . . Nomi is easy to speak with, and is very sharp when it comes to the written word and punctuation. I will contact Nomi again in the future for any and all editing and writing projects. She is amazing! read more

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

Nomi Isak has helped me fine-tune articles and essays. She is insightful, professional, and has a very kind way of delivering useful criticism. I especially appreciated the attention she paid to the tone and flow of the pieces. I recommend her if you want a talented editor who has a great bedside (deskside?) manner! read more

About a year and a half ago, before I consulted with Nomi Isak about my personal creative writing practice, I felt uninspired, and I feared my most productive days were behind me. Nomi straightened out my mind about this. The muses don't desert us, she assured me emphatically. And as for me not having the energy I had when I was younger, Nomi argued--correctly, as it turns out--that creativity brings its own energy. I only needed to let go of the fantasy I had of my younger self in order for a new vision of my writing life to be born. "Write from where you are," she advised me. "If you're sad, write from there. Chances are you'll move through it, maybe even that same day." I found Nomi's coaching to be authentic, caring, grounded, wise, insightful, and extraordinarily effective. Thank you again, Nomi! --Marc Polonsky, freelance writer read more

I used Nomi Isak as an editor for my book Connecting: Beyond the Name Tag. This is the second book she has edited for me. She did an outstanding job: detailed, professional, helpful. She is great to work with and did exactly what I wanted done. I would not only use her again, but recommend her without hesitation. In addition to being a great editor, she assisted me in getting a booth at the LA Times Book Festival. read more

Nomi has a gentle way of giving feedback that does not make you feel bad about your work. She is able to keep the larger perspective that is often lost when you are critiquing your own work. She has an eagle eye for punctuation and grammar errors, but she also has an intuitive feel for tone and organization. She can look at a piece of writing and know what is needed. She makes simple suggestions that have dramatic impact. read more

Good experience here. I needed some input/rewrites on my website. She got to it quickly, and her notes were clear and helpful. She suggested things I hadn't even considered to make my writing more effective, so much so that I asked her to write additional material for me. Since then, I'm getting better results. She was honest and professional but not brutal, like some other editors I've worked with. Fair pricing too. I would definitely use Nomi's services again. read more

I worked on my writing for about two years with Nomi and couldn't disagree more with the person who said not to work with her. I think Nomi is extremely talented, helped me greatly with my writing, and knows how to put things in their logical order, knows the rules of grammar and punctuation, knows how to use emotive language to its best advantage. She's great at weaving storylines and timelines into a seamless, lovely stream. DO WORK WITH THIS EDITOR/WRITER IF YOU GET THE CHANCE! read more