Pronouns: she, her
Languages: English (fluent/bilingual), Hindi (mother tongue), French (basic/learner)
I have worked as in-house staff at Wolters Kluwer, Oxford University Press, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). As a contractor, my major clients were the International Maritime Organization (a UN specialized agency) and the McGill-Queen's University Press (a Canadian publisher) during the 2021-2023 period.
I have had the pleasure of editing and project managing the works of experienced, well-known, well-regarded, as well as new and upcoming authors; working with a single line manager as well as a matrix reporting structure; and successfully handling projects of various length, complexities, and timelines. I am adept at liaising with vendors, service providers, and stakeholders as well as cross-functional teams.
I have had a progressive career path from being an assistant editor to being a managing editor, with expanded scope of responsibilities as well as increased exposure to several genres within the humanities field itself.
In terms of publishing and content operations, I have expertise in handling multiple projects at a time; planning and scheduling projects; managing timelines, processes, and workflows; and managing a team of independent contractors and interns.
In addition, as part of my in-house role, I led two publishing programmes (medical books desk and digital publishing), was involved with reviewing and streamlining the processes for both digital and print publishing, and was also involved with the planning and implementation of a new publishing system software.
Further details of my work experience and my educational background can be found on my LinkedIn page.
I provide high-quality English language editorial services independently, remotely (though also open to on-site assignments), and as a single-person operation. I am open to long-/short-duration contracts and retainers. My clients include independent authors, institutions, organizations (international, multinational, governmental, and development sector), non-profits, and think tanks.
I specialize in editing and proofreading non-fiction publications. I also specialize in managing the end-to-end publication production and coordination processes including project tracking; scheduling; routing the manuscript through the various stages; managing the vendors, stakeholders, and workflows; and quality control, from conception to the time it goes to print / is published online.
I am familiar with a variety of editorial style manuals and can quickly adapt to the client's house style. I am always looking into means of upskilling, and newer methods and approaches to improve my ways of working as and when I can. I do not use artificial intelligence to do my work, but I am open to the idea of using the technology to aid the workflows, as long as it does not feed off of intellectual property. At no point will I involve AI in the editing or proofreading processes or place a manuscript on to an AI agent for assessment, unless the client has their own secure version for use. Please see the FAQs for a more detailed comment on my thoughts on AI.
Have a look at the services I offer, and a selection of projects I worked on. If there are specific requirements or you need services that I don't offer, I would be happy to recommend someone from my vast network of colleagues. Also, while I do not outsource/subcontract my work to anyone else, I am open to combining my offered services to those of another vendor (i.e. a publications/cover designer or a typesetter).
“Beyond being familiar with the finer points of English grammar and adept at applying house style even when working with complex or specialist material, Abha is also personable, diplomatic, and clear in her communications with authors and publishers alike.”
Kathleen Fraser, Managing Editor, McGill-Queen’s University Press