What I do
I proofread, I edit, and I re-write to make my client’s wording more readable. I do this with a fresh set of eyes and a long pedigree of professional writing.
My technology life
I am an all-round IT manager with over 20 years of experience on the business side of the profession.
- I have worked as a business analyst, project manager, enterprise architect, service delivery manager and management consultant.
- The projects I have worked on span from strategy and requirements gathering, to design and build, plus implementation and operational support.
- To round it off, I have worked in both small and large and in both the private and public sectors.
So, I’ve come across every type of technology document from business cases, through solution designs and test plans to 100-page vendor contracts covering MSA’s and multiple underpinning SOWs.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve had to fix the English in these documents to make them more readable let alone understandable.
I often strip them back to a plain English “elevator pitch” to distil their core essence before re-writing them to make them readable once again.
My writing pedigree
Before all this technology stuff, I worked as a professional journalist for 10 years. You won’t find my work on the internet because my first three years of writing were before the internet was common and I was working for a regional newspaper (Kalgoorlie Miner): a great start to journalism as my work was published on a daily basis, so I learnt to churn it out.
The next seven years were spent as a sub-editor in south-east Asia (Vietnam Economic Review and Bangkok Post) before moving to London and working on various news wires and trade papers (National News, Press Association, United Business Media).
Throughout this time, I learned to write in plain English (lowest common denominator), very accurately (lest we be sued for slander), and fast (there was always a deadline!)
My writing style
Plain English is best. I use common words as simply as I can to explain an idea. Why make it hard?
- No flowery language – Shakespeare is for the stage
- Remove excess words – people are time-poor, get to the point
- No complex terminology unless fully explained (spell out acronyms, etc)
- Every document is a narrative, it needs to tell a story.
- Have you brought your audience with you? Or are they still trying to decipher that second paragraph on page 4?
- No flowery language – Shakespeare is for the stage
- Remove excess words – people are time-poor, get to the point
- No complex terminology unless fully explained (spell out acronyms, etc)
- Every document is a narrative, it needs to tell a story.
- Have you brought your audience with you? Or are they still trying to decipher that second paragraph on page 4?
Service Catalogue
My services and fees are listed below from the simplest (proofreading) to the most complex (authoring).
Per-word rates reflect the effort required for proofreading or copy editing.
Authoring is time-based as it depends on what input is required (digesting supplied material, research, as well as writing and compiling copy from scratch.)
Proofreading
Review and edit publication-ready copy for spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
Includes:
- Correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc.
- Check for case consistency, acronyms, etc.
- Check layout and fonts
Copy Editing
Detailed editing and re-writing to ensure comprehension, document structure and overall expression are as clear and concise as possible.
Includes proofreading, plus:
- Ensure readability of content. (Does it make sense?)
- Check for narrative continuity. (Does it flow? Is there a storyline?)
- Check logical and factual accuracy. (Do the facts support the content?)
- Technology sense-check
Authoring
Composing material from scratch to ready-for-publication standard.
Components can include:
- Elementary research to gather facts and collateral
- Based on available data (internet search), qualified information (published sources), or interviews
- Rates will vary depending on the audience, the channel of delivery, and the length
Training & Coaching
I work with your teams to help them write better, simpler technology documents.
- Group work to teach your teams how to edit their own documents
- Classroom-based or via TEAMS
- Rates by negotiation