Intro
Kevin Anderson is an accomplished entrepreneur; the founder of multiple 7- and 8-figure companies in the US, UK, and EU; a #1 national bestselling author; and an investor in residential and luxury real estate in the US and EU.
He is currently the CEO of KAA (Kevin Anderson & Associates), a book-writing and editorial service with an in-house staff of former Big-5 executive editors, literary agents, and bestselling writers. With offices in New York, Nashville, LA, and London, KAA works closely with writers, literary agents, publishers, and a long list of public figures and aspiring authors to help them write and launch their books.
He is a contributing author by invitation to Publishers Weekly’s Book Publishing Almanac 2022: A Master Class in the Art of Bringing Books to Readers and the author of the #2 Wall Street Journal, #1 Barnes & Noble, and #1 Amazon bestseller, PhDone: A Professional Dissertation Editor’s Guide to Writing Your Doctoral Thesis and Earning Your PhD.
As CEO and Editor-in-Chief, Kevin Anderson has grown his self-named Manhattan-based firm into an industry-leading ghostwriting, editing, and publishing services company with a long list of notable clients — including New York Times #1 bestselling authors, publishers, and agents. With a passion for literature, storytelling, and the pursuit and exchange of knowledge, Kevin’s most satisfying moments come when his clients’ voices are empowered through books. Gifted writers are rare, but many people have incredible stories and invaluable wisdom to share — giving his clients a powerful conduit through which to voice these stories and concepts is exactly why Kevin established his career in the publishing industry.
Kevin Anderson has been featured in major publications, highlighting his influence and achievements in publishing and entrepreneurship, including:
You can learn more about Kevin Anderson’s firm at www.kawriting.com.
EARLY LIFE
Kevin grew up on a small mixed-farm in a remote area of Northern Alberta, Canada. Homeschooled through most of grade school, he graduated with a class of three students at a small private high school in the town of Cold Lake, Alberta.
Growing up in a remote area offered a variety of unique employment opportunities, including tree planting via helidrop in the Alberta and British Columbia Rockies (Kevin has planted over 500,000 trees), lifeguarding, swim coaching, welder’s helper, running a fur trapping line, cleaning oil spills on the rigs in Alberta’s oil sands, teaching first grade and high school English, taught classical piano, developing high school English curriculum for homeschool students, bear and moose outfitting, working in a group home with high-risk youth with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, founding a soup kitchen for the homeless, and numerous stints as a farm hand.
Kevin graduated with a BA magna cum laude (majoring in history and philosophy) from the University of Lethbridge, where he developed an interest in literary theory and understanding both the power and limitation of the written word. In 2005, Kevin matriculated to Harvard University with the intention of completing his PhD and pursuing a career as a professor of literary criticism.
While completing his studies, Kevin worked for Harvard, teaching English and writing. During this time, he launched a private tutoring company (staffed with Harvard classmates) to serve the Boston area. Very early on, Kevin developed a virtual platform through which his team could assist clients throughout the United States and Canada.
KAA Story
Kevin Anderson & Associates began in 2007 in a stuffy, subterranean computer lab at Harvard University, where Kevin was studying literary theory and criticism.
While pursuing his graduate degree, intent on completing his PhD and becoming a professor, Kevin founded a freelance tutoring and thesis-advisory service. The business started as a solo-enterprise but quickly grew to include staff of fellow Harvard graduate students and alumni.
Then, in 2008, a small publishing house reached out to Kevin, looking for a more rigorous and dependable editorial service than what they had been getting from freelancers. This opportunity led Kevin to expand the business into the world of books, which saw several early successes, including Norman Ollestad’s 2009 New York Times-bestselling memoir, Crazy for the Storm.
In 2014, Kevin split the company into two separate entities. Dissertation Editor, LLC (which would become PhDAdvantage, LLC) led by CEO Dr. Allen Roda, retained its all-PhD staff to focus on editing, formatting, statistical analysis, and consulting for PhD students and scholars. Kevin Anderson & Associates, Inc., with Kevin at the helm, opened an office in Manhattan to focus entirely on editing and writing full-length trade books.
Kevin opened Kevin Anderson & Associates’ Manhattan office, originally in Soho, and transitioned the company to focus solely on writing and editing books. With a growing staff of former acquisitions editors and bestselling authors, KAA soon became one of the most well-respected ghostwriting, editing, and publishing services firms in the industry. Featured in The Washington Post and Inc. Magazine, Kevin’s contributions to the ghostwriting industry have been well documented. Utilizing a team approach to not only plan and outline clients’ books, but to also collaborate with them throughout the writing, editing, and publishing process, Kevin’s clients began to enjoy the success that such an approach can achieve. One-time aspiring authors, such as Norman Ollestad and Scott Cawthon, saw their books rise to the top of the New York Times bestseller list.
KAA opened their Nashville, LA, and London (UK) offices in late 2014, 2017, and 2023 respectively.
Utilizing a team approach to help authors develop their books and navigate the publishing industry, Kevin Anderson & Associates’ blend of collaboration and comprehensive service has elevated the firm to a unique position in the publishing industry.
From 2019 to 2021, the firm added 11 in-house editors who were formerly notable editorial directors, senior executive editors, and senior acquisitions editors at the Big-5 publishers. By 2025 the team has grown to over 35 in-house editors and 500 freelance writers.
KAA’s team approach to the writing and editorial process has led to the development of hundreds of national bestsellers and launched the careers of numerous successful authors.
Today, KAA works closely with literary agents, publishers, and authors on over 500 books annually. Kevin’s passion for knowledge, critical thinking, and sharing authors’ messages is very much at the core of everything KAA does. Though the firm’s services are wide ranging, they all serve the same purpose: making great books and getting them to readers. This is what KAA seeks to accomplish through book planning, book proposals, editing, ghostwriting, book coaching, beta testing, sensitivity reading, and comprehensive publishing industry navigation.