Hi there, and welcome to The Write Words. I’m so excited that you are here, and that this dream is finally a reality.
If you don’t already know me, my name is Jennifer. Some things I really love are books, coffee, dogs, and quirky movies. My love of books has spawned many dreams of writing my own book one day. One day being a key phrase here, as I never seem to be able to corral my thoughts enough to actually focus on writing one. I’ve got a lot of random musings and false starts under my belt, though. I journal extensively, and have at least 5 journals currently along with a blog I post to occasionally. For the time being, I’ve set aside my desire to write a book.
Instead, I’ve turned my focus in this direction! To you, dear writer. However, my dream was never “to be a proofreader.” It never even crossed my mind until this past year. How am I so excited and so sure about this, then? Because it’s still words, and I love words. Not just words, but right words. I’m always trying to expand my vocabulary with new and interesting words to better fit the situation. I read and collect books. My dream was to work with books, be it as a librarian, book store owner, book collector, something.
So I thought Why not proofreading? I may not have the focus for writing, but why not help other writers? Being a proofreader/editor allows me to do what I love (reading) and focus on what I’m good at (words). Those two things do not necessarily make me a good writer, but they most definitely make proofreading/editing a good fit! Writing is more than those things, but those things are something each written work needs! Appreciation for the work itself and a thorough eye to correct any errors. I want to be that person. I want to be involved in getting more words out there, and I want to help make sure they are the right words.
In addition to what I’ve learned through years of reading and absorbing new words, paying attention to things like writing styles and sentence structure, I’ve also taken a proofreading course taught by someone who’s been in the proofreading and editing industry for more than 16 years. I knew that if I wanted to actually be a help to other writers, I needed more than “I love to read, and I know when to use you’re or your.” I needed training, I needed to know what the industry was like. I needed to know that some rules are meant to be broken, that the writer’s voice is more important than what I learned in grade school.
One thing that has weighed heavily on my heart from the start of this idea was that I wanted to work with Christian content. I am not limiting myself to that, but that is very much my goal. Be it Christian blogs, ministries, communications, podcasts, or books, I want to work with people who point their readers to God through what they write. He is the One who deserves the credit for where I am today, so He is the One I want to glorify in the work I do. And this is true whether I am editing a Christian blog or one about coffee. I want to do good work no matter the content, being more than just someone who points out mistakes in the writing I proofread, but someone who cheers writers on, helping them get their work across the finish line.
thewritewords.xyz 