Simone Zapata is a developmental and line editor who provides mentorship in the process of publishing. She believes that writing is a liberatory practice, and she invests in its capacity to transform the ways we relate to ourselves, each other, and the world around us.
Trained as an interdisciplinary poet, Simone approaches writing through a blend of creative and critical inquiry. She helps writers to bridge seemingly disparate themes across their manuscript, and she’s attentive to the subtle but resonant qualities shaping a reader’s experience. She works with writers to elevate the stakes of their work by strengthening what’s already working well in their manuscript, providing thoughtful feedback and guidance on craft. Simone supports writers in clarifying and sharpening their voice across style, form, and genre to produce work that is authentic to its author as it is impactful for its audience.
For the past fifteen years, Simone has led writing workshops independently and in partnership with colleges and universities, high schools, community centers, libraries, museums, and juvenile and adult detention centers. She’s the former Managing Editor of The Beat Within, a bi-weekly print publication by and for incarcerated youth, and she’s served as a poetry editor and first reader for several small presses. Simone holds an MFA in Creative Writing from California Institute of the Arts and is a 2026 Publishing Fellow with the Los Angeles Review of Books.
Simone’s experience mentoring a wide range of writers (and as a writer herself) grounds her editing practice in a translingual approach to writing. This framework troubles the value we place in standardized language by acknowledging the implicit power dynamics that govern how we speak and write. While standards help us to communicate effectively across diverse audiences, different contexts call for different standards. From this perspective, we are prompted to consider whether the standards we invoke serve the effectiveness of the piece or if they reinforce arbitrary rules meant to uphold the status quo. At its core, a translingual approach challenges conventional expectations of what quality writing can or should look like.
Simone knows firsthand how vulnerable it can be to open your work to critique, which is why care and curiosity are central to her editing practice. She prioritizes building trust with her writers so that they feel inspired to evolve their work into the best possible version of itself. Simone is especially versed in editing memoir, narrative/creative non-fiction, poetry, and multi-media/cross-genre/hybrid manuscripts.
In an effort to expand access to the field of editing and publishing, Simone’s services are offered on a sliding scale consistent with the Editorial Freelancers Association’s market rates. She offers a complimentary 15-minute discovery call to discuss your work, as well as a sample edit to gauge her editorial approach.
Out of respect for her clients’ intellectual property, Simone does not use AI in any aspect of her editorial services, and she is not interested in working with writers who recruit LLMs to generate their work.