“Briana has one of the most important talents an editor can have—the gift of sight.”

— Jana Smith, Tribeca award–winning filmmaker and writer

As that idea is transformed into story, it becomes a detailed response to that stimuli, addressed to a future, unseen audience we can’t possibly conceive of, to beget its own web of conversations and happenings, propelling us ever forward in a cycle of action, art, and reaction. To me, there is nothing more exciting than imagining that: the intricate tapestry of collaborations leading up to (and resulting from) the moment when I discover a new work of writing—be it a poem, an essay, or a book.

Over the years, I’ve worked as an editor at literary magazines and independent publishers; a creative writing instructor; a communications and content strategist; and a manuscript consultant for authors. Keep scrolling to get to know some of the writers I’ve worked with over the years. 

The very conception of an idea for a writer, is the product of a rich network of conversations and happenings around them. 

My statement:

Working with Briana was my first experience being edited as a creative writer. I was anxious and concerned about what would happen to my voice if I let another person into my creative process. Briana was so gracious, careful, and insightful.
— Savannah Bowen

My editorial approach:

My approach to editing, educating, and facilitating centers a philosophy of leading with curiosity and embracing the possibilities that arise from generous, non-hierarchical dialogue. I hope to engage in  generative and transformative collaboration with every artist I encounter.

A few words from past writers.

My editorial portfolio:

In 2023, I was the editor-in-chief for Seventh Wave’s Community Anthology, “On Permanence,” a digital folio showcasing 9 writers and artists.

Among the voices featured in my anthology are an Afro-Caribbean scholar dedicated to revivifying Haitian lore; a first-generation Nevada-born witch reclaiming power from the depths of intergenerational trauma; and a Filipina/-American/Mestiza poet investigating what lives in the negative spaces of erasure. These identities may appear disparate from one another, and yet their work—poems, hybrid pieces, essays, art, and short stories—sings in collective harmony, joined together across time and space by the evocation of a single powerful word: permanence.

Briana is a freelance editor, copywriter, and manuscript consultant. She’s worked with literary magazines, independent publishers, established writing programs, and individual clients.

  • I began my literary citizen journey as an editorial fellow with Guernica magazine back in 2019. Since then, I have also worked as a contributing editor, managing editor, and (currently) a  a senior prose editor for Seventh Wave's annual literary magazine; an editor-in-chief for the Seventh Wave’s inaugural Community Anthology cohort; a  creative nonfiction mentor for the low-res MFA program, PocketMFA; an editor & storyteller for the independent press Milkweed Editions; and most recently a critique group instructor for the womxn-centric digital community space, HerStry. 

    • Intermediate Manuscript Editing, Chicago Manual of Style

    • Basic Manuscript Editing, Chicago Manual of Style

    • Creative Writing Certificate: Paris Writing Intensive

    • MFA Fiction & Nonfiction Writing, The New School

    • BA Creative Writing, Sarah Lawrence College

    • Accountability and Generative Exercises

    • Beta Reading

    • Book Coaching

    • Book Proposal Writing

    • Copyediting

    • Developmental Editing

    • Editorial / Publishing Consulting

    • Fact Checking

    • Ghostwriting

    • Interviews

    • Line Editing

    • Proofreading

    • Sensitivity Reading

    • Substantive Editing

    • Interviews

    • Publishers Panels / Q&A’s

    • Speaking Engagements

    • Workshop facilitation

  • When it comes to providing feedback, I’m interested in sitting with the way a work has changed me before making suggestions on how to change it. There is no one-size-fits-all approach for me, as I’ve learned that some writers can find success in breaking the rules, while others might benefit more from a sense of increased structure. In this way, I think of my approach as more intuitive than instructional.

    Through my own trials and tribulations as a writer, I’ve found that the point-blank, assertive “do this, cut that” approach can often feel alienating and unnecessarily critical, so as an editor and mentor, I aim to guide from a place of openness and generative questioning. I won’t tell you what I think I know about your work; I’ll treat our time together as an ongoing conversation rife with discovery. I’ll get to know you through your words on and off the page, and help you examine where the pulse of your piece is. Through these gentle interrogations, I hope to push you outside of your comfort zone, and to reaffirm your belief in this process—but most importantly, I hope to remind you that you are always in control of your own story, and you will have the ultimate say in the final shape of your work.

  • I’m thrilled to work with all kinds of writing, but I’m especially interested in supporting the words of emerging marginalized artists and amplifying urgent and untold perspectives across the genres of poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and hybrid work.. If you believe working with me will be nourishing and beneficial to your creative process, I’m interested in working with you.