Nancy Flight is one of Canada’s most respected and influential nonfiction editors, with more than 45 years of experience in both in-house and freelance editing in Canada and the United States. Her contributions have earned her numerous honours, including the Tom Fairley Award for Editorial Excellence, the inaugural Karen Virag Award for raising the profile of editors and editing, and recognition as an Honorary Lifetime Member of Editors Canada in 2017.
In 2026, Flight gave a generous and important gift by making a $483,000 commitment in the form of the Nancy Flight Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction Editing. Valued at $25,000 and awarded annually until 2033, the prize celebrates the craft of nonfiction editing and ensures lasting recognition for the editorial professionals who help Canadian books reach their fullest potential.
Flight is editor emerita at Greystone Books, where she worked for twenty-four years, first as editorial director and later as associate publisher. Over the decades, she has worked with an extraordinary range of writers, including David Suzuki, Evelyn Lau, Wade Davis, Candace Savage, Brian Brett, Wayne Grady, and Charlotte Gill, among many others.
In addition to her editorial work, Flight has played a significant role in mentoring the next generation of publishing professionals. She has taught at the Banff Book Editing Workshop, Simon Fraser University’s Writing and Publishing Program, and the SFU Master of Publishing Program, among others, and has held leadership roles across Canada’s publishing sector.