This month’s issue includes tips for reducing edits that waste time and details on the debate of over vs. more than. How Do You Decide When NOT To Make an Edit? I was once asked this question during an interview with a new client. It’s an excellent question. Because when you’re editing, you can make crucial edits, and you can make changes just for the sake of change. How to know the difference between the two? Sometimes people have editing pet peeves — like the VP I worked with once who...
29 days ago • 3 min read
This month’s issue includes signs to watch for when interviewing prospective freelancers and a helpful article on AI search optimization. Red Flags to Watch for When Looking for a Freelance Writer If you’re preparing to work with a freelancer, you likely are looking for someone to make your life easier. You’ve got too much work and not enough time to fit it in. A freelancer writer or editor should know their craft well and be able to learn your business quickly, so they can deliver what you...
2 months ago • 3 min read
This month’s issue includes book recs — a bunch of them. The Latest From My To-Read List I recently picked up a copy of this book: Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English, by Valerie Fridland. It came recommended from one of my favorite industry podcasters, Mignon Fogarty of the Grammar Girl podcast. I’m looking forward to digging in and learning about speech habits within the English language, how they’ve changed over the years, and why and how they continue to evolve. In...
3 months ago • 2 min read
This month’s issue includes tips for finding the right freelancer and an upcoming industry conference. Make Sure You Hire the Right Freelancer I’ve been helping my youngest daughter recently as she works on her first high school English paper of substance. Two-and-a-half pages about Romeo and Juliet. Some observations: No Fear Shakespeare is a lifesaver and I wish it existed when I was in school! If you’re not familiar, these versions of Shakespeare’s work feature the Shakespearian English on...
4 months ago • 2 min read
This month’s issue includes ways to make reading easier for your reader and a helpful PDF converter tool. Codex, gesso, quires: Cut Out Confusion I was reading a book recently and it started to annoy me. The author failed several times to define terms that were unknown to me, and I presume, unknown to many readers. For example: codex gesso quires If you know what all of those mean, then I suppose you can just stop reading right now. I enjoy learning new vocab while I'm reading books. But if I...
5 months ago • 2 min read
This month’s issue includes errors unique to healthcare content and helpful reminders about writing with numbers. Catching Errors Unique to Healthcare Content Every industry has terms specific to it, and it’s no different in health care* where I do much of my work. Below are some edits unique to healthcare content that I’ve made recently or that I see often. Misspellings: opthamology > ophthalmology tempterature > temperature cryoblation > cryoablation gynocology > gynecology Style...
6 months ago • 1 min read
This month’s issue includes a review of last year’s work and an idea-generating resource. 2025 Year in Review A recap of my 2025 work shows the following: The bulk of my work came from major academic medical centers. I proofread more than 2,300 documents. Healthcare topics I wrote about ranged from poor posture in teens, to social media and youth mental health, to puberty in boys (and more!). I started a new project copyediting cardiology web content for a total revamp of a hospital website....
7 months ago • 1 min read
This month’s issue includes seasonal examples of poetic license and a sustainable apparel source. Taking Poetic License in Writing Poetic license refers to straying from the conventional rules of language to create an effect when speaking or writing. And in today’s case, we’re talking about writing. In professional writing, we can take poetic license from time to time. It can be effective as a way of changing the mood of a phrase, creating humor, or breaking a grammar rule for the sake of a...
8 months ago • 3 min read
This month’s issue includes teasers for your own at-work gratitude list and a resource to help with headlines. My At-Work Gratitude List In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’ve been thinking about what I’m thankful for related to my work life. For me, that means the fields of writing, editing, proofreading, marketing and communications, and health care. It also means not only freelancing, but working in corporate America, which I did for years before I started to freelance. Here’s what I came up...
9 months ago • 2 min read