Leslie Lutz earned her MA in English from Southern Methodist University and her Certificate in Editing from the University of Washington. Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in various journals, including Typishly, The Lyric, Kaaterskill Basin Literary Journal, Orca, and Raintown Review. Her young adult thriller, Fractured Tide (HarperCollins Blink), was voted “Best of 2020” in the Young Adult category by Suspense Magazine and was a Junior Library Guild pick. Her next novel, The Dark Place, is forthcoming with Holiday House (fall of 2023). She is an officer of the DFW Writers’ Workshop and the founder of the North Texas Chapter of the Editorial Freelancers Association. To read more about her life as an author, visit her website, lesliekarenlutz.com.
Below you will find a selected list of her editing projects. Below that list you can browse all her projects, separated by genre.
For developmental editing, Leslie specializes in the following genres: mystery/thriller, women’s fiction, young adult (speculative), horror, fantasy (high and low), soft sci-fi, and romance.
Selected Recent Projects
Foolproof, by Mary Ann Little (forthcoming in 2022)
White Out, by Danielle Girard (Thomas and Mercer, 2020)
The Hunter’s Rede by F.T. McKinstry (second edition, 2020)
City of Fear by Larry Enmon (Crooked Lane Books, June 2019) — read the Publisher’s Weekly review here
Pharma Con by Peg Herring (self-published, 2019)
Black Mangrove by Stephanie Chambers
Just Another Girl on the Road by S. Kensington (Troubador, 2019) –read the Kirkus review here
Eight by W.W. Mortensen (second edition, 2016)
What She Gave Away by Catharine Riggs (Thomas and Mercer, September 2018)
Expire by Danielle Girard (Thomas and Mercer, July 2019)
Expose by Danielle Girard (Thomas and Mercer, July 2018)
Blood of Moldara by Breanne Earhart and J. Norwood (Myth Machine, June 2018)
All In by L.K. Simonds (Morgan James Publishing, 2018)
The Rebirth of Hope, a memoir by Sau Le Hudececk (TCU Press, 2017)
Complete List of Projects Separated by Genre
Mystery/Crime/Thrillers
What She Gave Away by Catharine Riggs (Thomas and Mercer, September 2018)
Expose by Danielle Girard (Thomas and Mercer, July 2018)
Excise by Danielle Girard (Thomas and Mercer, November 2017)
City of Fear by Larry Enmon (Crooked Lane Books, June 2019)
The Burial Place by Larry Enmon (Crooked Lane Books, April 2018; UK rights to Bloodhound Books, titled Wormwood, November 2017)
Pharma Con by Peg Herring (self-published, 2019)
Kidnap.org by Peg Herring (self-published, 2017)
Genocide by Pat Krapf (self-published, 2017)
Dead for the Show by Peg Herring (LL-Publications, 2014)
Kill the Crazy by Lucy Carol (self-published, 2014)
Killing Despair by Peg Herring (LL-Publications, 2014)
Killing Memories by Peg Herring (LL-Publications, May 2013)
And I Love Her by Brett Wallach (Wild Child Publishing, 2013)
Dead for the Money by Peg Herring (LL-Publications, April 2012)
The Dead Detective Agency by Peg Herring (LL-Publications, Winner of the EPIC eBook Award for Best Mystery 2012)
Ultimate Justice by Ryder Islington (LL-Publications, 2011)
Young Adult Speculative and Fantasy
Blood of Moldara by Breanne Earhart and J. Norwood (Myth Machine, June 2018 – note, pen name spelling change)
Secrets of Moldara by Brianne Earhart (Myth Machine, 2018)
Imminence by Kat Stiles (self-published, 2017)
A Calling of Quarrels by Shannon Wendtland (self-published, 2016)
A Quarrel Called by Shannon Wendtland (self-published, 2016)
Connected by Kat Stiles (Wild Child Publishing, June 2015)
Horror
Eight by W.W. Mortensen (self-published, forthcoming second edition)
Slithers by W.W. Mortensen (self-published, 2017)
Omnipotent Blood: Sisters in Blood, Book 2, by C.M. Michaels (Freya’s Bower, October 2015)
Tease by Glenn Fain (self-published, 2014)
Dangerous Waters: Sisters in Blood, Book 1, by C.M. Michaels (Freya’s Bower, 2013)
Pillar’s Fall by Ben Larken (LL-Publications, Winner of the EPIC eBook Award for Best Horror 2012)
Fantasy and Paranormal
The Wolf Lords: The Fylking, Book 2 by F.T. McKinstry (self-published, 2017)
The Angel Experiment by Glenn Fain (self-published, 2017)
Outpost: The Fylking, Book One by F.T. McKinstry (self-published, 2015)
The Woman of My Dreams by Glenn Fain (self-published, 2016)
Lalin Bonheur by Margaret O. Howard (Wild Child Publishing, 2016)
The Angel Experiment by Glenn Fain (self-published, 2016)
Water Dark by F.T. McKinstry (Wild Child Publishing, 2014)
Destined: The Arcanus Series, Book 1, by Catriana Sommers (Silver Publishing, 2011)
Arcanum Academia by Christopher C. Newman (Silver Publishing, 2011)
Women’s Fiction and Women’s Narrative Nonfiction
Foolproof, by Mary Ann Little (forthcoming in 2022)
Black Mangrove by Stephanie Chambers
Just Another Girl on the Road by S. Kensington (Troubador 2019)
The Rebirth of Hope, a memoir by Sau Le Hudececk (TCU Press, 2017)
Misdirection by Maritess Zurbano (forthcoming)
The Elephant Chaser’s Daughter by Shilpa Anthony Raj (September 2017) — featured in NETFLIX film, Daughters of Destiny
Climbing Mountains by Sarabjit Parmar (Wild Child Publishing, 2014)
Romance (sweet = sw / spicy = sp)
The Heart of an Agent by Tracey J. Lyons, sw (Waterfall Press, November 2017)
A New Shade of Summer by Nicole Deese, sw (Waterfall Press, September 2017)
Operation Home by ML Rosado, sp (Hartwood Publishing, February 2017)
Operation Italy by ML Rosado, sp (Freya’s Bower, August 2015)
Operation Interrupted by ML Rosado, sp (Freya’s Bower, 2015)
Love and Lattes by Heather Thurmeier, sp (Silver Publishing, 2011)
Mr. Popsalos by Lisa Worrall, sp (Silver Publishing, 2011)
Caleb by Rie McGaha, sp (Silver Publishing, 2011)
A Nanny for Nate by Lisa Worrall, sp (Silver Publishing, 2011)
Literary Fiction
Broken People by Glenn Fain (self-published, forthcoming)
Woman of My Dreams by Glenn Fain (self-published, 2016)
Christian Inspirational
All In by L.K. Simonds (Morgan James Publishing, 2018)
The Christmas Star by Robert Tate Miller (Waterfall Press, October 2017)
Note: A New Shade of Summer and The Heart of an Agent are also Christian.
Testimonials
“Leslie is beyond thorough, and an indispensable tool for a writer who wants his or her work to shine. Questions she presented about my story and specific chapters not only helped clarify fuzzy writing, but sparked some creative bursts that made my novel so much better than it was before. She has a great feel for what makes intriguing storytelling, and I can’t wait to send her my next one.”
Ben Larken, author of Pillar’s Fall, two-time winner of the EPIC eBook award for horror fiction
“I actually look forward to Leslie’s edits of my work. She approaches each manuscript with a sharp eye, clarifying what I’ve written and making it more engaging. I write two very different series, but she slides into the essence of each piece, sensing how the storytelling should go. Leslie never changes my style; she simply polishes the rough edges so my work appears before the world as shiny and focused as it can possibly be.”
–Peg Herring, author of The Dead Detective Mysteries and the Loser Series, winner of the EPIC eBook award for mystery fiction.
“Leslie’s constructive comments undoubtedly improved my book. She suggested ways to strengthen the voice of the main character, clarify the motivations of characters, and streamline scenes. Her advice on writing strong introductory chapters was particularly helpful to me. I highly recommended her and will ask her to edit future manuscripts.”
Karen Lyn Christopher, author of Refrain.
Elliott Bay Editing 