Our Story

Who are we?

We believe that the only people who 'get' writers are writers. As a result all of our editors are also published writers, with a track record of traditionally published books in their genre of choice. Only by understanding the real life publishing world can they offer the kind of advice you need to make your book a success.

What we do?

At first we just provided editing and guidance on the best way to prepare a book proposal. These two services remain a part of our business, but the publishing world has changed greatly over the years, and in response to our clients, we have expanded and now also offer proofreading and cover design.

Why choose us?

BubbleCow is a family run business. Since 2007 we have edited more than 500 books in a wide range of fiction and non-fiction genres. Perhaps the best reason to pick BubbleCow is that we will go that extra mile. We can become very attached to the books we edit, and like are children, we will fight to seem them succeed.

Caroline Smailes -- Founder and Editor

With a post graduate degree in Creative Writing, Caroline has gained a wealth of experience within the publishing and literary community. She has participated in literary festivals and given workshops across the country focusing on the building of author web presence and the craft of writing. As well as writing literary fiction and blogging, she has worked as an editor and as a reader for several publishers. Caroline mentored for Tonto Books in their Arts Council-supported project to discover, develop and publish talented new writers and also judged in the New Novelist competition. Her decision to found and develop BubbleCow grew from an understanding that modern writers require fast, efficient and affordable services that can be tailored to meet personal needs. Caroline’s novels are published by HarperCollins.

Gary Smailes -- Founder and Editor

Gary Smailes has a wide experience of the publishing industry and, over the years, has worked as a freelance writer, historian and researcher. He has an eclectic educational background with a first degree in Biology and a post graduate degree in Military History. Gary has written a number of history books for children, including the Brave Scot series, the Modern Hero series and the BattleBooks series. To date he has more than twenty titles in print with a number of publishers. He also worked closely for many years with the successful author Terry Deary as the researcher for the ever popular Horrible Histories books and TV series. He continues to write for children and has a number of books due for publication this year. He is represented by literary agent Andrew Lownie.