Endorsements
“Zack Wagman is a terrific editor -- he's smart, he's funny, he's incredibly supportive and encouraging, and he's extremely knowledgeable about how stories work and (especially) what readers want. Zack suggested many important improvements to my novels Hidden Pictures and The Last One at the Wedding, and I was always grateful to have him working beside me in the trenches. Any writer seeking a path to publication would benefit from his knowledge and experience.”
Jason Rekulak
New York Times Bestseller, Goodreads Award-winner
Steve Kornacki
NBC News Chief Data Analyst“Zack believed that I had a book in me and gave me the confidence to believe it too. With patience and savvy, he helped shape my very rough concept into a coherent narrative arc. What really impressed me, though, was what happened after I turned in my manuscript. As you might expect, I felt it was just about perfect and that every detail I’d included was vital to the plot. He sharpened, condensed and consolidated and returned a leaner and tighter version. At first, I was horrified. Then, I read it. Nothing felt missing and everything that remained seemed even clearer and flowed better. To me, that’s the mark of a talented book editor: He showed me how less can be more.”
Kevin Wilson
New York Times Bestseller, "Read with Jenna" selection“Zack Wagman was the editor for three of my books, a story collection and two novels, and I am deeply indebted to his editorial abilities and, perhaps just as importantly, his genuine kindness toward me as a person. When one of the novels required a massive overhaul and substantial edits, Zack always treated the text not as something broken to be salvaged but as an opportunity to find the real intent and heart of the book. He is calm and clear-eyed and patient, and he has a preternatural ability to know when to rein in things and when to let the story run wild. I owe so much to his editing and his love of storytelling.”
Abby Phillip
CNN Anchor“I absolutely loved working with Zack on my book A Dream Deferred. He’s a thoughtful, careful and speedy editor. But more importantly, as a writer, he’s a great companion in the creative process. He’s deeply interested in the subject matter (whatever it is) and committed to drawing out the best, most interesting parts of it.”
Steph Cha
Los Angeles Book Prize Winner“I met Zack over a decade ago, when I'd published three mystery novels that had found a dedicated but narrow audience. He took an interest in me as a writer, and was the only editor I submitted to for Your House Will Pay. He saw the potential in the unfinished book and gave me extremely valuable feedback. His insights made the book better in the most critical direction—they helped me bring it closer to the best version of itself, the one I envisioned from the beginning. I couldn't have asked for a better partner, and still look to him for friendship and advice all these years later.”
Gilbert King
Pulitzer Prize Winner"Working with Zack Wagman on Bone Valley was one of the great gifts of my writing life. He inherited an unwieldy manuscript, the inevitable overflow of years of research into a devastating wrongful conviction, and transformed it into a book. The scale of his editorial work was significant, and yet when I read his edit, I found myself unable to recall what was missing. That's not editing; that's alchemy. What struck me equally was how deeply Zack grasped the legal complexities at the center of the story, and how unfailingly he held the humanity of it. He never let the legal machinery eclipse the people. And through all of it, his enthusiasm was infectious. He brought a collaborative energy to the work that made even the hardest revision feel like something we were building together, not something being done to my book."
Lauren Nossett
International Thriller Writers Best First Novel Award-winner“My gratitude to Zack runs deep, spanning three books, one of them a complete revision. Zack delivered feedback with honesty, insight, and care, guiding me through the process until I fully realized my vision. My novels would not be the books they are without his encouragement, direction, and editorial instinct. Zack has a remarkable gift for identifying the heart of a work in progress and elevate every part of the story so the novel truly shines.”