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Profile
I am an experienced news and features writer, sub-editor and proofreader able to work across a variety of publications, from consumer to trade. For the past 11 years I have worked in London and Sydney on specialist magazines in the areas of human resources; building and construction; advertising, marketing and media. I am the editor of several books on topics as diverse as sex and gender identity, hypnosis and self-help.
Skills Summary
News
and feature writing across a wide range of publications, from consumer
to corporate and trade.
Interviewing a wide variety of people, including experts, ministers, celebrities
and people living outside the mainstream.
Sub-editing and proofreading copy.
Excellent knowledge of grammar and punctuation.
Able to work efficiently in a team and independently.
Able to write quality copy to deadline.
Overseeing production of publications through to print.
Proficient in Adobe InDesign and Photoshop, QuarkXpress, Word, Outlook,
Dreamweaver and in-house web content management systems.
Work Background
February
2001 to date
Freelance
features writer in Sydney. Credits include The
Sydney Morning Herald, The
Age, CLEO,
YEN, Slimming
& Health, LOTL,
Diva (UK)
Curve (US);
SX, B&T,
Building Products News; Environ.
February
2009 to date:
Freelance
writer and sub-editor at MiNDFOOD.
November 2008 to February 2009
Freelance
writer and sub-editor at the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union
(LHMU).
Key
Responsibilites:
Writing, sub-editing and proofreading text for printed campaign material
and copy for the web.
Layout of Member Updates using Adobe InDesign.
Uploading news stories to website using in-house content management system.
Fact checking.
August
2007 to October 2008
Editor of CHERRIE,
a monthly free-to-street magazine for lesbian and bisexual women featuring
fashion, entertainment, arts, pop culture, technology, political and social
issues, aimed at the 18-39-year-old market.
February 2006 to October 2008
Writer and sub-editor at Evolution
Publishing, the largest publisher of gay and lesbian magazine
titles in Australia.
Key
Responsibilities:
Writing news, features and a weekly column for SX.
Writing news and features, sub-editing and proofreading text for the company's
weekly and monthly titles including SX, MCV,
Queensland
Pride and CHERRIE.
Commissioning articles and managing a team of freelancers.
Writing headlines, intros and captions.
Sourcing images.
Key
Achievements:
Producing accurate copy while adhering to tight deadlines.
Writing and commissioning interesting and challenging articles previously
unseen in mainstream gay and lesbian media.
July
2008
Co-editor of an anthology called Trans People in Love, a collection
of real-life stories by sex and gender diverse people and their experiences
of being in love. Published in the US by Routledge, a division of Taylor
& Francis and distributed worldwide.
Key
Responsibilities:
Editing a collection of stories written by people from around the world:
checking grammar, spelling, punctuation, sense and applying publisher's
house style.
Proofreading printed pages after layout.
Suggesting and approving book cover design.
February
2001 to February 2006
Freelance news and features writer for Building Products News
and its sister publication Environ (published by Reed Business
Information).
Key
Responsibilities:
Writing news and feature articles each week to brief provided by the editor.
Interviewing architects, building designers and other professionals working
in the building industry.
Key
Achievements:
I quickly developed a thorough knowledge of this broad field, covering
topics such as fire safety, high-tech sealants, eco-friendly paints, the
latest trends in glass and the use of nanotechnology in the building industry.
I wrote articles that were accessible to all in the building industry
by ensuring technical information and language were converted into plain
English.
August
2004 to January 2006
Sub-editor at B&T.
Key
Responsibilities:
Sub-editing text on screen in Word.
Writing headlines, intros and captions in QuarkXpress.
Proofreading printed pages after layout.
Making changes and copyfitting in QuarkXpress.
Fact checking.
March 2002 to October 2003
Conducted interviews for the University of Sydney's Understanding
Pornography research project.
Key Responsibilities:
Interviewing photographers, filmmakers, models and website owners working
in the adult industry.
Key
Achievements:
I was part of the largest ever academic study into the adult industry
ever undertaken in Australia. The research was turned into a book, The
Porn Report, by Alan McKee, Kath Albury and Catharine Lumby (Melbourne
University Publishing, 2008).
June
2003
Co-editor of Finding the Real Me: True Tales of Sex & Gender Diversity,
an anthology of real-life stories by people who are sex- and gender-diverse.
Published internationally by Jossey Bass, a division of John Wiley &
Co in the US.
September
2000
Editor of Self-Hypnosis for Life: Mind, Body & Spiritual Excellence,
a non-fiction book on how to use self-hypnosis for wellbeing. Published
by Extraordinary People Press in the UK.
Key
Responsibilities:
Sub-editing text.
Fact checking.
Proofreading printed copy after layout.
Checking index to ensure page numbers were listed correctly.
September
to October 1999
Freelance writer and sub-editor in London. Publications included Personnel
Today, Contract
Journal (both Reed Business Information publications), Diva,
Nexus
and Local Transport Today.
October
1999 to February 2001
Senior reporter and features writer on Inside
Housing, the weekly national magazine for social housing professionals
in the UK.
Key
Responsibilities:
Writing news and features.
Interviewing a range of key social housing professionals as well as relevant
government ministers and the newly appointed 'homelessness czar'.
Creating and maintaining a solid list of contacts to source regular industry
news.
Sourcing exclusive stories.
Key
Achievements:
I quickly developed an understanding of the key issues facing social housing
professionals.
I cultivated key contacts in both government and the social housing sector
and elicited exclusive news stories and access to major reports.
September
1999
Editor of Sex, Gender and Sexuality: 21st Century Transformations,
a non-fiction book looking at people with varying sexualities and genders,
as well as transgenderism and intersex conditions. Published by Extraordinary
People Press in the UK.
March
to September 1999
Co-editor of Reach for the Sky (London), a website providing careers information
and inspiration to teenagers. The site was part of Sky TV's national programme
for the millennium.
Key
Responsibilities:
Researching and writing profiles of people in various careers.
Overseeing the site for content and clarity.
Uploading text and images using in-house content management system.
February
1998 to February 1999
Reporter/sub-editor at Personnel Today, a fortnightly news-led
magazine circulated to human resources directors and personnel departments
of large companies across the UK, and its sister publications Employers'
Law, Training and Occupational Health.
Key
Responsibilities:
Writing news and features.
Interviewing a range of key human resources professionals working in the
corporate and government sectors, as well as relevant government ministers.
Creating a solid list of contacts to source regular industry news.
Sub-editing text on screen in Word.
Writing headlines, intros and captions in QuarkXpress.
Proofreading printed pages after layout.
Making changes and copyfitting in QuarkXpress.
Fact checking.
Key
Achievements:
I became renowned for my articles on equal opportunities in the workplace
that led to exclusive interviews with the then ministers for equality
and employment.
After reading my articles on issues facing minority groups in the workplace,
many human resources professionals contacted education and campaign groups
to request in-house training for their staff.
March
1998
Editor of Investigating Stage Hypnosis, a non-fiction book about
the side effects and dangers of stage hypnosis. Published by Extraordinary
People Press in the UK.
July
1997 to February 1998
Freelance writer in London. Writing credits include Time Out, London
Cyclist, Diva and The Stage (weekly newspaper for the
entertainment industry).
February
to November 1996
Co-author of Trans-X-U-All: The Naked Difference, a non-fiction
book on transsexualism. Published by Extraordinary People Press in the
UK.
Key
Responsibilities:
Researching and writing sections of this book that aimed to give information
to clinicians, transsexual people and their friends and family.
Interviewing specialists and trans people.
Key
Achievements:
I helped to demystify the phenomenon of transsexualism by providing the
lay reader and professional alike with easy-to-read information.
My co-author and I still get emails today from trans people or their families
telling us how the book literally saved their lives.
Qualifcations
BA
in Performance Art (Middlesex University, UK).
NVQ Level 4 Foundation Skills Certificate in Journalism from the Journalism
Training Centre (UK).
Other Work History
July
1990-January 1997: Acting and performance work in London.