Fifth Avenue Press

Hannahs's work with one of the Fifth Avenue Press authors was truly transformational and we are grateful for her talent and guidance with such an important work! Writing a memoir is already a fraught experience so it was a blessing to have Hannah’s safe guidance on the journey to bringing their story to light. The graceful compassion that Hannah exudes combined with her skillful discernment for structure is a rare and valuable gift and any writer would be lucky to work with her. 

– Erin Helmrich (Fifth Avenue Press)

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Alex Alberto

Hannah's comprehensive edits helped me take my manuscript to the next level. She pushed me to better ground my scenes, and suggested some key cuts that made my essays more powerful. Her feedback, both at the line-level and developmental level, has helped shape my book. I highly recommend working with her.

– Alex Alberto (author of Entwined, Quilted Press, 2024)

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Gina DeMillo Wagner

Hannah is a phenomenal editor. She recently helped me polish a series of essays for an eventual collection. Her thoughtful notes allowed me to excavate deeper themes, fine-tune my structure, and make connections I hadn’t seen before. I love her intuition, her attention to detail, and the way she gently invites writers to examine their blind spots and take risks in their work. Not to mention, she’s incredibly organized and provided the deadlines, accountability, and encouragement I needed to get each essay over the finish line. I'm so grateful for her wisdom and support.

– Gina DeMillo Wagner  (author of Forces of Nature, Running Wild Press, 2024)

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Kate Doyle

I warmly recommend working with Hannah, whose edits on my short story collection have been essential. Feeling a bit at sea in the world of publishing as a debut author, I sought Hannah out for an additional perspective on my manuscript, and her attention to my work was grounding, illuminating, and just what I needed. Hannah helped me reimagine the endings of a few stories I wasn’t happy with; she also provided an amazingly thorough and satisfying close read on a particular motif I'd been wrestling with, and she helped me reframe a story that felt hard for the reader to follow — to name only a few things our work together helped me resolve. Her insights were always in tune with my intentions for the project; she often located keys to my questions in other parts of the book. My stories are stronger and I’m more confident in them because of our work together, and as I’ve continued to edit my manuscript, I’ve been grateful to be able to return to Hannah for her clarifying perspective.

— Kate Doyle (author of I Meant It Once, Algonquin Books, 2023)

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Barrak Alzaid

Hannah is a thoughtful and rigorous editor with a well developed (yet flexible) framework for her editorial process. She began with a dialogue, asking a series of questions to better understand my manuscript and my needs. I came with a lot of baggage that she helped me unpack and sift through, particularly with the sequencing and structure of the first fifty pages. She validated my impulses, and justified them with insights I hadn't considered, and which brought me to tears.

Besides her caring and careful critiques and offerings, she is a champion cheerleader. I felt cared for throughout the process, and have enjoyed her periodic email follow ups inquiring about my progress and sending me welcome encouragement.

– Barrak Alzaid (founding member of the artist collective GCC)

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Fern Angel Beattie

I became aware of Hannah's editing services via recommendation from a writer I trust very much. This trust was extremely well-placed, as Hannah's full comprehensive edit elevated my manuscript in a way I could not have done on my own. Not only did she provide insights that were hidden in my blind spots, but she also boosted my confidence with suggestions on many sections that I had issues with, but hadn't made her aware of. That we were on the same page, enabled me to fully relax and accept her notes as the best plan of action - which is difficult for someone like me who is a bit of a control freak! Hannah is warm and friendly and I truly enjoyed working with her, she treats your work as if it were her own.

– Fern Angel Beattie (author of Seven Women of Saturn, Write Bloody Publishing UK, 2024)

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Vanessa Friedman

Hannah is skilled, generous, thorough, and kind—truly the dream combination for an editor. She read my manuscript deeply and carefully, offering large developmental ideas to strengthen my story’s plot and smaller grounding techniques to enhance my story’s details. Every note she offered made my story better on a craft level, but even more amazing, her perspective made my story better on a me level. I couldn’t have approached my revision without her, and I will always seek out her feedback in the future. Working with Hannah is a dream.

– Vanessa Friedman (author of HOME: A Year of Love Letters and deputy managing editor at Hey Alma)

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Trish Bendix

Hannah was extremely helpful, professional, and easy to work with. She understood what I wanted to achieve with my manuscript and offered thorough notes and feedback so that revisions were actually an exciting prospect. I found Hannah a pleasure to work with and would gladly recommend Hannah for a novel consultation.

– Trish Bendix (New York Times, TIME)

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Christina Kelly

Hannah read the first draft of my novel and I was looking for feedback to help guide my priorities for the revision. Her correspondence and comments were thoughtful, insightful, and very helpful. I've been referring to her notes as I revise. She's drawn my attention to elements I hadn't considered or noticed and through the process I've learned so much about my manuscript.

– Christina Kelly (Paris Short Film Festival, Lighthouse Film Festival)

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Christina Dimopoulos-Verma

I gifted myself Hannah’s 5-Prompt Poetry Course in December 2022, and had a wonderful experience. I took her course during a time when I had several ideas that I wanted to translate into poetry, but was having trouble figuring out how to get them onto the page. Her prompts allowed me to think of new and creative ways to communicate these ideas, and I'm so grateful that I was given this way of unlocking them. At the end of the poetry course, I ended up submitting my work for edits, and couldn't be happier with the final product. I would highly recommend taking a poetry course with Hannah.

– Christina Dimopoulos-Verma, MD (underscore_magazine)

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Kelli Connell

I am so proud to have had the opportunity to work with Hannah on my project Pictures for Charis. Hannah edited one of the earliest and most-unwieldy versions of this book. Her attentiveness to my voice and writing style were kept in tact as she diligently, sensitively, and expertly made suggestions for edits that made my writing more clear, strong, and lean. Working with Hannah was an absolute gift and I look forward to working with her on future projects.

– Kelli Connell (author of Pictures for Charis, Aperture, 2024)

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Annabel Graham

Working with Hannah was one of the greatest gifts I could've given myself during the process of editing my debut memoir. I felt seen, held, and understood—invaluable qualities in any author-editor relationship—but beyond that, Hannah challenged me in the very best ways, fluidly guiding me towards a fuller embodiment of my own artistic potential. With thoughtful precision, profound sensitivity, and a poet's eye for language, metaphor, sensory detail, and paratactic resonance, Hannah elucidated vital aspects of my project that I hadn't yet been able to see clearly, then articulated those aspects in a concrete way that made immediate sense to me. She possesses a unique ability to usher a piece of writing into its most effective form without ever sacrificing the author's vision, integrity, or idiosyncratic style. She helped my project become somehow more itself, honing it shrewdly and elegantly while preserving—with the utmost care and grace—its beating heart.
– Annabel Graham (Vogue, Wall Street Journal)

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Melissa Ximena Golebiowski

Hannah was recommended to me by a friend during a time when I was thinking of hiring an editor for short stories in my collection that were feeling stagnant and having trouble finding a home (being published). I am immensely grateful for said recommendation. My experience with Hannah was like no other. She took the time to not only analyze my work but to discuss with me what it was that I was trying to achieve before making line edits. That collaborative conversation provided a deep edit that aligned with my particular style and process. Hannah’s approach provided that validation I needed to jump back into editing. A piece she edited was placed for publication within a few months. I plan on working with her again and again and again!

– Melissa Ximena Golebiowski  (Catapult, Lit Hub)

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Jaime Zuckerman

The hardest part of working with Hannah was psyching myself up to fill out an inquiry–it meant saying to myself, "yes, I'm writing a book." But Hannah took my writing and goals seriously, listened, and provided thoughtful feedback that was both gentle and critical. Communication and planning was a breeze. In writing, I'd struggled seeing the forest for the trees, but Hannah helped me step back and consider the big picture. It was a very collaborative process. Afterward, when I was excited to dive into revision, it was reassuring to know Hannah would be there as a continued support.

– Jaime Zuckerman (author of Letters to Melville, Ghost Proposal, 2018 and Alone in this Together, Dancing Girl Press, 2016)

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Nada Alic

Hannah is an absolute dream editor. Her ability to understand and elevate a writer’s voice without compromising the core essence of it is what really sets her apart from the rest. I reached out to Hannah to edit several short stories for a story collection. Much like a therapist, you want to make sure an editor is a good fit and I could tell from our early correspondence that she was thoughtful and perceptive and really paid attention to my goals. Her notes were always so detailed and filled with insights and connections I hadn't made myself. I truly felt seen, which was as important to me as her excellent structural revisions and line edits. As a writer herself, she knew how vulnerable I felt about sharing my work and offered herself more as a collaborator than a critic. It felt like we were on the same team and she cared as much about my project as I did. She also gave me a sense of accountability—a rare gift for any writer. She provided clear notes, line edits and deadlines, and her enthusiasm motivated me to be more productive. Her guidance was like a lifeline to me, and her kindness and mentorship tricked me into actually enjoying the editing process. For that, I’m forever grateful.

— Nada Alic (author of Bad Thoughts, Vintage Books/Knopf, 2022)

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Daria-Ann Martineau

For years I have known Hannah as both a powerful writer and a thoughtful reviewer, which is why I have sought her help as I put together my first manuscript. Both encouraging and discerning, Hannah gently suggests ways to make the writing clearer, stronger and more truthful. Though she does not hold back, I never feel overwhelmed or frustrated by her notes—just eager to go back to the work and make it better. She is the second set of eyes you need when you have spent too much time alone with your writing. What’s more, Hannah always gets her notes back to me in a timely fashion. I am always impressed and grateful, because I get to keep my momentum, one of an artist’s most valuable tools. It also does not hurt that she is a lovely person and so, that much easier to work with! I highly recommend her services.

— Daria-Ann Martineau (Founder of PRINT (Poets Reclaiming Immigrant Narratives & Texts), Narrative)

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Sammi LaBue

Reaching out to Hannah was the best choice I've ever made for my writing. When I was lost in the weeds of a very personal memoir project, Hannah untangled the mess of memory dump my manuscript had become so I could see it for the narrative I hoped it could be. She has an extremely fast turnaround time, but the care and attention she gave every page of my draft and every question and concern I had about my manuscript made me feel like I was her only client in the world. Her editorial suggestions and tips have led me to finish a book that I am proud of, and will continue to lead me, as I learned so much from her. She has an incredible eye for structure, poetic edits, and such a kind and encouraging attitude. Hannah's fee is the smartest money I've ever put into my writing practice.

— Sammi LaBue (author of Words in Progress, DK Books, 2020 and founder of Fledgling Writing Workshops, NYC)

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Ivy Liuyu Chen

I have known, admired, and trusted Hannah for nearly a decade. First of all, she is one of the most talented writers I know. I immediately, humbly fell in love with her gracefully mastered words when I first read her poems in 2012. Second, she is a dearest friend, editor, and mentor who has supported me emotionally and intellectually through some of the most difficult years in my writing career. She is there when I feel alone. She cheers me on when I need some lift. Most importantly, she challenges me to see my blind spots, stretch my perspective, and trim my language so that it is lean and ready to leap out from the page.

— Ivy Liuyu Chen (Co-founder of TransWords Translations LLC)

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