An editor interested in you

Hi, I’m Holli

My name is Hollianna Bryan (she/her/hers), although Holli is fine. I live in Durham, NC, with one sometimes-grumpy indoor cat, Pooh, and a revolving cast of feral neighborhood porch cats. I want to create honest, empathetic, generative, and productive editing relationships that make it possible for you to take the risks you need to do the work you want, at its very best.

Graduate trained at Trinity College, Dublin, and Duke University, I’m an editing and communications professional specializing in academic humanities work, particularly interdisciplinary monographs. I especially enjoy working with authors at early stages preparing work for professional circulation and publishing submission.

Between developmental editing and copyediting, I have edited books published by trade and academic presses, such as Disney-Hyperion, ABC-CLIO, Perseus, Rutgers University Press, Indiana University Press, UNC Press, University of California Press, University of Pennsylvania Press, and Duke University Press, as well as articles for scholarly journals, public online forums, and other professionalization materials.

Here’s What People Are Writing

  • Photo of the cover of The Violence of Recognition by Pinky Hota, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2023

    UPenn Press, 2023

  • Book cover for Nuclear Ghost: Atomic Livelihoods in Fukushima's Gray Zone by Ryo Morimoto, published by University of California Press in 2023

    UC Press, 2023

  • Cover image for Behind Crimmigation: ICE, Law Enforcement and Resistance in America by Felicia Arriaga, published by University of North Carolina Press, in 2023

    UNC Press, 2023

  • Cover image for Metrics of Modernity: Art and Development in Postwar Turkey, by Sarah-Neel Smith, published by University of California Press, in 2022

    UC Press, 2022

  • Cover image for Continent in Dust: Experiments in a Chinese Weather System, by Jerry C. Zee, published by University of California Press, in 2022

    UC Press, 2022

  • Cover image for Engineering Vulnerability: In Pursuit of Climate Adaptation by Sarah E. Vaughn, published by Duke University Press in 2022

    Duke University Press, 2022

  • Cover image for Redefining the Immigrant South: Indian and Pakistani Immigration to Houston during the Cold War by Uzma Quraishi, published by University of North Carolina Press in 2020

    UNC Press, 2020

  • Cover image for War and Speech by Don Zolidis, published by Little, Brown in 2020

    Little, Brown, 2020

  • Cover image for EC Comics: Race, Shock and Social Protest by Qiana Whitted, published by Rutgers University Press, in 2019; 2020 Eisner Award for Best Academic/Scholarly Work Entertaining Comics Group

    Rutgers University Press, 2019

  • Cover image for The Seven Torments of Amy and Craig by Don Zolidis, published by Hyperion in 2018

    Hyperion, 2018

Here’s What People Are Saying

“I told Holli upfront that as a second-generation immigrant and first-generation college/graduate student I often feel uncomfortable writing, particularly when it comes to making sure my voice shines through the research content. Holli took all that information and provided thorough feedback. I didn't know what a development editor was until about 4 years ago and now I wish I would have known Holli before drafting my Behind Crimmigation: ICE, Law Enforcement, and Resistance in America, but I'm glad and appreciative that she treated my manuscript with care. My press editor was also pleasantly surprised at the extent of the feedback. I can honestly say that Holli made the writing experience much more approachable and I recommend her to anyone who is thinking about writing a book.”

— Felicia Arriaga, Baruch College

“Working with Holli in the beginning stages of my book manuscript was an invaluable and inspiring experience. I can say without reserve that Holli gave me the unusual and irreplaceable gift of allowing me to see my own work as though through another’s eyes—newly, freshly, and with uncommon clarity. This is a perspective that has made my project immeasurably stronger in every way. As a developmental editor, Holli was a true pleasure to work with.”

— Magdalena O. , UC Berkeley

“Working with Holli on my book, The Violence of Recognition, allowed me to expand the scope and ambition of an argument that is somewhat new and unusual within my field. Her help with references for the entire manuscript was particularly helpful at a time of critical deadlines and poor health. I highly recommend her services for junior faculty with a significant teaching load who do not have the privileges of being embedded in an existing research and writing community!”

— Pinky Hota, Smith College

“Working with Holli was both a pleasure and a relief. After having completed my book manuscript, EC Comics: Race, Shock, and Social Protest, I needed more than a friend to look things over, but a professional - someone whose careful attention would catch my crutch words, flag repetition, offer suggestions for style and clarity, and help make sure I was connecting all the dots in my argument. With the help of her in-text editing suggestions and detailed chapter summaries, I really felt like I had a good sense of what worked well and what needed more attention. Holli’s experience in the academy also led to more informed guidance. Today I have a published book (and a book award!) to show for our time together and I couldn’t be more grateful for Holli’s assistance.”

— Qiana Whitted, University of South Carolina

Listening photo of editor Holli, a white woman with bright orange hair, wearing a black sweater and pink vest, sitting at a table in front of pink, purple, and blue graffiti and red brick walls

Let’s make your writing the best version of what you want.