Professional Editors

Jeanmarie holds a PhD and MS in Conflict Resolution, as well as a BA in Jurisprudence from Nova Southeastern University and the University of Baltimore, respectively. Since 1998, she has taught, edited and provided coaching for both undergraduate and graduate students in a variety of subject areas. Jeanmarie has extensive experience in working with students from a number of countries who require assistance in dealing with the nuances of American English. She enjoys applying her editing skills to different types of written works and assisting students, faculty and others in achieving their goals.

Adam has a BA (Hons, 1st Class) in Communications. Time spent freelance editing means that he comes to us with skills in a wide range of areas, including author manuscripts, ESL and corporate writing. Through previous work as a website designer, online content manager and publisher rights researcher, he has developed a strong awareness of new media requirements, while also having widely studied philosophy, social theory, arts, sciences and narrative communication in a traditional academic context. Adam is a candidate for postgraduate research, which explores narrative and language in the perception of music, the culmination of five years experience producing for radio. He has a keen interest in a broad range of research and enjoys working with writers to ensure clarity of ideas and engaging, well structured documents.

Ralph holds a BSc in Mathematical Sciences (University of Adelaide, Australia). He later worked for twelve years in IT as a mainframe systems programmer, eventually heading up the operating systems section of a major Australian public utility company. By 1990 study pangs urged him to quit IT and he completed a four year Bachelor of Theology at Luther Seminary. Ralph subsequently resumed working in IT along with theological lecturing and tutoring English as a Second Language (ESL). At the end of 2009 Ralph will complete his Master of Theology, the final task of which will be a 50,000 word thesis. Ralph reads as much theology as possible and intends to write. He has a passion for languages — he taught himself French; studied German, and has mastered biblical Hebrew, NT Greek and Latin. Ralph has wide experience in editing and proofreading; he is proficient with the major citation styles, and has worked on doctorate papers, manuscripts (all genres), including novels, screenplay, poetry and biography — and a train history book. His hobbies include church activities, reading (English & Russian literature), and walking.

Ruth’s fascination with the English language led her into publishing and she has been involved in it for the past 12 years in a number of roles including the management of an international magazine for which she also contributed a regular column. Ruth has also worked for a medical publisher as an editor and has edited academic theses and manuscripts in all genres, including non-fiction, short stories, children’s books and numerous types of novels, as well as Web sites. Ruth has written, edited and proofread business articles, promotional material and newsletters, and published a fictional short story. Proficient in editing to both American and British styles of English, Ruth gains enormous satisfaction from helping authors improve their writing skills and ensuring their projects become the best they can possibly be.

A very versatile editor, Richard has degrees in political science from George Washington University in Washington D.C. and the University of Waikato in New Zealand. He has been a Hollywood publicist, an advertising copywriter, a freelance writer and journalist, a reporter for a daily newspaper, a journalism teacher, a lecturer in politics, management, and international business, an ESOL tutor and a magazine editor. Richard is a thespian of some local note, and has written a play that has been produced on stage, and three novels. He is currently preparing a collection of short biographies for publication.

Hannah holds a master's degree in English literature and modern history from the University of Oxford. Since graduating she has gained more than 12 years of publishing experience working as an editor on a variety of business and academic publications, both in print and online. Hannah is familiar with all aspects of publishing, including production, marketing, internal communications and copy-writing. She is a qualified TEFL teacher and lived for five years in Barcelona, where she taught business English and worked for an international finance consultancy as their website and publications editor. She also has extensive experience editing fiction and children's fiction, which she really enjoys.

A German native speaker, Yvonne holds an MA in English from Georgia State University. Her thesis discussed Virginia Woolf's critical essays. Graduate work provided Yvonne with the opportunity to gain extensive research experience, and she has been one of two staff members publishing a well-recognized literary journal for the past four years. She has edited numerous (APA style) dissertations in many fields, a few non-fiction books, and also edits German documents and texts. With great enthusiasm, Yvonne designed and taught basic English composition and business writing courses at a US university. Yvonne enjoys the interaction involved in teaching and learning. She therefore invests a good bit of thought in her editing commentary in order to teach while she edits. Yvonne has a number of interests including foreign languages, translation, history, and politics.

Jonathan is a writer, editor, and educator. He holds a B.A. and an M.A. in English and is currently completing a Ph.D. in English at the University of Florida. In addition to consulting with students on their writing assignments, offering style and content advice, Jonathan has considerable experience as an editor, writing consultant, writing instructor (English literature, world literature, composition, technical writing) and proofreader. He has published a number of scholarly articles, poetry, fiction, and music journalism. Jonathan has also presented papers at national and international conferences on diverse topics such as the Darfur crisis, post-9/11 poetry, Virginia Woolf, Franz Kafka, and representations of political conflict in Rwanda and Haiti.

John has a strong background in ESL, having lived, taught and studied in Taiwan for almost 10 years. This inspired him to study for firstly an undergraduate diploma, and then an MA in Chinese from New Zealand's University of Waikato. His original undergraduate degree was in history. Since then he has worked for one of Taiwan's leading translation companies, editing everything from TV subtitles, academic essays and company SOPs to instruction manuals and business letters. He edits and writes to either British or American English as required. During his employment with an overseas study center, John edited, proofed and sometimes translated from the Chinese various documents necessary for university applications around the English-speaking world.

Sarah holds a BA in English with emphases in literature and creative writing, in addition to an AS in Japanese language and culture. She has 10 years of experience in editing screenplays, scripts, short and long fiction, poetry, critical and opinion essays, research papers and verbal presentations. Sarah’s poems, essays and short stories have been published in a variety of online and local sources, and she has worked for the past year as a member of the editorial staff of her local newspaper. Proficient with MLA and AP citation styles, Sarah is particularly fond of science fiction and Japanese literature.

Gary’s degree is in English Communication from Oregon St. University (1972) and his experience in the writing and editing field is extensive and varied. As a writer, Gary has published four books and more than 1,000 articles. He has ghostwritten thirty books, written for several newspapers and magazines (including writing a humor/inspiration column for Iowa’s largest rural monthly since 1996, reaching 167,000 readers). One of his newspaper pieces was voted “Best Personality Feature of 1999” by the Iowa Newspaper Association. Gary has edited more than 300 full-length books, ranging from self-help and historical nonfiction to humor and romantic fiction, and completed in excess of 1,000 manuscript analyses. His strong command of American English, ESL skills, and ability to help other writers craft their words have earned him a respected international reputation. Gary’s love for his work and his compassion for fellow writers shows in everything he does.

Ashley holds a master’s degree in English language and literature and an MPhil in the fiction of Henry James, both from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. In addition to her love of all things literary, she has a strong interest in history, politics, art and philosophy. After gaining valuable experience as an in-house editor in the UK, she has returned to the US where she grew up to continue her career as a freelance editor and proofreader. In addition to her professional work, Ashley has been writing her own stories and essays since childhood, and has also contributed book reviews to a student newspaper.

Steve holds a BA in Journalism from the University of North Texas, where he graduated with honors, and a BA in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin. A published author, Steve is an experienced writer and copywriter in a diverse range of applications and has edited a variety of documents, including articles, newsletters, business plans, Web advertising copy and magazines. As a freelance writer he also writes about travel and the outdoors. Steve has a strong interest in history, religion and art, and looks forward to working with you and helping you achieve your writing goals.

Maria holds a BA (German, summa cum laude), an MA (German Literature) from the University of California, and an MA (Teaching English as a second language) from the University of Illinois. A WordsRU editor during 2006 – 2007 and now returned from leave, Maria has edited and proofread a variety of academic, creative, and business documents. She has many years of experience in academic editing, and is proficient with several citation and referencing styles, including APA, MLA and Chicago. Maria is a specialist technical writer (electrical and computer engineering), and has conducted technical writing workshops. She continues to teach English as a second language.

Paul is a retired English teacher, having spent most of his career at a small college in Washington State. He holds MA degrees in English and art/photography. During his career, he taught a wide range of courses, including language, writing, literature, general humanities, and photography. In 1989/90, Paul was appointed Foreign Expert at a university in Nanjing, China. With his wife he has co-authored a college English text. Since retiring he has published two nonfiction books for young adults and has worked as a freelance copyeditor and proofreader for a variety of documents—academic, business, and personal.

Michael holds an M.A. in Language Teaching from the University of Auckland, where he graduated with Second Class First Division Honors, and a B.A. in Health and Exercise Science from Furman University. As a writer (poetry, short stories), musician, and university-level EFL/EAP instructor, Michael’s attentiveness in various fields has made him a stand out editor. His editorial career was launched in 2005 as a research assistant in a well-recognized mechanical engineering laboratory, a position that he still holds. At this post, Michael developed and polished his high caliber research within very tight time constraints and has been recognized in numerous academic journal articles around the world. He eagerly joins the WordsRU team and greatly looks forward to working with you and helping you accomplish your writing goals.

Stephanie has a Ph.D and M.A in English Literature, and a B.A. (Hons) Specialist in English Literature. She is the distinguished recipient of several grants and awards, and has a diverse list of publications including both fiction and non-fiction, most recently The Hero in Contemporary American Literature: The works of Saul Bellow and Don DeLillo (2007); scholarly articles, and conference papers. Stephanie’s extensive experience includes editing short and long narrative fiction, screenplays and treatments, as well as writing and editing for academic and business audiences including university admission essays, critical reviews, opinion pieces, Web sites, and press releases. She has years of experience as an ESL teacher and editor, and has helped several of her students find places at top-tier universities.

Koskie graduated with merit from Purdue University, Indiana, USA, with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in creative writing with minors in anthropology and Spanish. He then graduated with distinction from the University of Sydney, Australia, and holds a Master of Media Practice degree. He has been an English teacher for more than five years, and has edited a variety of documents from manuscripts (all genres), student papers and university applications, to business documents, articles, Web content and news stories. Koskie has worked in publishing and has professional experience proofreading, editing and formatting books and manuals for publication. He is a lover of English, writing and languages and holds to the unrealistic belief that nothing in the world is more interesting than language and linguistics.

Matt holds a PhD in historical theology from the London School of Theology and an MA in modern history from Oxford University. He has taught many different age groups and nationalities in Belarus, Austria and England. During his studies he read extensively in Latin, French and German. Matt has written, produced and directed a musical, as well as a play, both of which were performed by students in Belarus. Matt is currently writing articles arising from his studies, as well as editing and lecturing in London. He has substantial experience with ESL students in both teaching and editing roles.

Sunanda has over 10 years of editing and writing experience in an academic setting. Her career has included teaching college-level English and writing engineering news articles, research summaries, press releases, etc. at Iowa State University. During the past 4 years she worked at Arizona State University’s Engineering School as an editor of research proposals and publications, editing engineering grant proposals, journal papers, and technical reports and publications. Her most recent project was providing substantive editing for a technology textbook published by Elsevier in 2009. She has two Master\'s degrees (Teaching of English as a Second Language and English Literature) and is comfortable editing both British and American English.

Brian has a BA in English-mass communications from Bloomfield College in Bloomfield, NJ and a postgraduate diploma in legal studies (business and finance-honors) from New York University. He has been a technical writer and technical editor for the past 20 years, writing and editing a variety of business and technical materials. Brian has worked for major Wall Street investment banks and software companies. His work has been published in such computer trade magazines and daily newspapers as InformationWeek, CommunicationsWeek, and the Newark Star-Ledger. In addition to editing and writing, Brian is an experienced Web database developer. He enjoys programming in ASP.NET, PHP, SQL and XHTML and is adept in technology and software matters.

With a Master’s degree in Education from DePaul University and Bachelor’s degree in English from Boston College, Elizabeth is an award-winning editor whose work has been recognized by the ALA, Foreword Magazine, Booklist, and the NWABP for excellence in editing and literature. She has extensive experience editing a wide range of titles, including Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki's Why We Want You to be Rich and Jordan Sonnenblick's Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie. Prior to becoming an independent editor, Elizabeth was the co-founder and Editorial Director of San Francisco-based DayBue Publishing. In addition to evaluating thousands of submissions, she was responsible for guiding manuscripts through all the editing and publication stages. Before entering the publishing field, she was selected by and served in Teach for America.

Joseph has a PhD in Genetics and a BA Hons in Natural Sciences from Cambridge University. He has three years of experience in proofreading and copyediting in a variety of fields, including science (especially biological), architecture, theology and environmental issues. Joe has authored and edited science papers for peer reviewed journals, is sub-editor of a magazine, runs a small publishing house and is experienced in Web design, with a good understanding of design, search engine optimization and Web copy writing. As if this wasn't enough, he loves learning new things and enjoys a challenge!

Jennifer is a published author and has extensive experience working with other writers. She has been editing, mentoring and tutoring writing for nearly fifteen years with graduate students, scholars and authors in various genres. Jennifer has taught at all university levels and served as a member of an institutional research review board. She earned her Ph.D. in Environmental Studies and an M.A. in Adult Education, and has conducted social/environmental research projects abroad. Jennifer recently founded a ‘storylistening’ endeavor that seeks to help people articulate their significant life experiences. Her own writing focuses on the interconnection between humans and nature. Jennifer is a hospice volunteer; she enjoys being in nature, making visual art, and traveling.