Peggy Nauts

A freelance editor, copy editor, and proofreader, Peggy Nauts has worked in publishing for decades. Peggy has been copy chief of several well-respected publications including PC World, Macworld, Health, and San Francisco. She was also a senior editor at San Francisco and a managing editor at Computer Currents, a copy editor at Parenting, and a freelancer for Via, Afar, Diablo, Mother Jones, BabyCenter.com, Peachpit Press, Salon.com, Caring.com, Edutopia, and other publications. In the course of editing and copy editing books, magazines, and websites, Peggy has worked on everything from investigative features to fashion spreads to advertising copy to novels.

A good editor is essentially a fresh pair of discerning eyes, someone who can help pull nuggets of meaning and insight out of the crazy, fantastic jumble of ideas in our heads and arrange them in a way that works. Peggy is also adept at walking the fine line between respecting the author’s voice and considering the needs of the publication in which the author’s work appears.

As a copy editor and proofreader, Peggy does not believe in making changes just for the sake of marking up the pages. But she strives to advocate for the readers: Is the work clear and expressive of the author’s true point of view? Will the average reader understand most of the subtle points, and if not, how could those be better communicated? Is there any unnecessary padding that detracts from the main thrust? Does the piece conform to the publication’s style and tone—and last but not least, are there any typos?

With decades of experience in the production process, Peggy respects deadlines as well as words. She will help make a piece of work as good as it can be within the given time constraints and budget.