Line, Developmental & Copy Editing

Barbara Burgess-Van Aken | Independent & Licensed

A Love For Literature

BBVA is an independent editing service providing by Barbara Burgess-Van Aken, offering more than 25 years teaching, coaching, and editing experience. Barbara lives in Ohio, but supports writers from all over the world.BBVA leads with a collaborative approach. Apart from grammar corrections, Barbara never tell writers what to do. Rather, she listens, respects their goals and voices, and offers suggestions for improving their manuscripts.BBVA helps emerging writers become their best selves and achieve success in publishing their manuscripts via agents, publishers, or self-publishing avenues. Ultimately, BBVA envisions emerging authors who, because they understand the value of effective editing, enjoy publishing success.

• LEARN MORE

Titles Edited by BBVA

Meet Barbara

As a child I was avid about word games and reading, so it’s logical that my work life always involved writing—as an author, a teacher, a nonprofit consultant, and an editor.After a 15-year career in the nonprofit sector, I earned my PhD in English at Case Western Reserve University, where I taught writing and literature and coached student presentations for 25 years. As retirement neared, I gravitated to editing, starting with colleagues’ grants and submissions to academic presses.In recent years, I have branched out into the popular publishing world. My study of literature has helped me develop a keen eye for detail, plot and character inconsistencies, stylistic weaknesses, and of course, grammatical errors.When I am not writing or editing, I enjoy world travel (especially Italy), walking beaches, reading (of course!), playing piano, and all the arts.

• EXPLORE SERVICES

Editing Services

Teamwork over telling

My approach to editing is collaborative. Apart from grammar corrections, I never tell writers what to do. Rather, I listen to them, respect their goals and voices, and offer suggestions for improving their manuscripts. For developmental and line editing, I approach a text using an awareness of reader psychology that maximizes the work’s readability.LINE
Focuses on the sentence and paragraph level, refining style, tone, word choice, and flow to enhance readability.DEVELOPMENTAL
Focuses on the big picture, including plot, pacing, character arcs, scene organization, and overall themes.COPY
• Fixes technical errors, checking grammar, spelling, punctuation, and consistency while following a style guide.

• PORTFOLIO

Portfolio

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• ENDORSEMENTS

Endorsements

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• WORK WITH BBVA

Content

Content

Content