Why employ a proofreader/editor?

Many people think 'surely a word processor like Microsoft Word can pick up spelling and grammar errors? Plus, I'll give it a look over before I'm finished with it...'

There are two reasons why this strategy won't give you the best result:

• Word processors will pick up obvious spelling errors like 'wrting', but won't pick up homophones like 'their', 'they're' and 'there'.
  

• Proofreading your own work is nigh on impossible. I'm a proofreader by trade, but sometimes miss my own errors. A writer is too close to their writing to notice spelling mistakes - your brain is designed to take shortcuts (called schemas). These shortcuts lead you to miss certain things because you've already seen something and processed it - you don't always see something how it actually is; your brain does a lot of guesswork. It's a bit like how a website 'caches' information - it only reloads something when it's new or the original information has been deleted. That's why you press F5 to get a website to reload when something's been changed on a page. I often wish I could 'F5' my own brain after a late night!

Quickly glance at this picture: Notice anything strange? Until you find it, you won't see what the point of the picture is.

Once you've worked it out, you'll know what I mean about the difficulty of proofreading when your brain is tricking you with schemas!

If you're looking for a fast and accurate proofreader/editor, then please contact me via my website for more information.

What/who is Cam Poetic License?

Hello, and welcome to the blog of Cam Poetic License, a new proofreading, editing and writing* service for businesses and students.

I offer the following services:

• Articles and features
• Proofreading
• Copyediting
• Descriptions for products and services
• Website content creation

Why choose Cam Poetic License for your proofreading, editing and copywriting needs?

I have been proofreading, editing and writing for about six years. I have just made the leap into the world of freelancing.

As a freelancer, I can provide less expensive services than large proofreading and editing companies.

From May 2007 to September 2008 I worked for a leading UK games company in Cambridge, providing them with proofreading services (amongst other duties). This experience of reading and proofreading at the same time really honed my skills and means that I am extremely fast and accurate. In my time in this role I never missed a typo, grammar error or language inconsistency.

In this role I also provided informative, engaging and interesting writing for employees. My biggest project was re-writing 20 A4 pages of guidelines. I managed to restructure and condense these guidelines into 3 pages, making the guidelines concise, educational and user-friendly. I also regularly proofread customer service responses on the company forums and tickets to players, providing feedback to the online moderators.

Another big part of my role was educating staff on grammar, punctuation and written communication skills. Other writing-related jobs I have had included editing legal documents, creating Intranet sites and report writing for Lombard North Central.

I have also proofread several students' theses and dissertations, teach English to foreign students and currently have an ongoing contract with Elekta, a medical company in Crawley, West Sussex.

For testimonials on my services, please visit my testimonials page

Cam Poetic License: a work in progress

After four years living in Cambridge, in September 2008 I moved back to Surrey, where I grew up. This move prompted me to re-evaluate what my career goals and aspirations were and I decided that I would like to go freelance. Now, after a few 'normal' jobs, I am launching Cam Poetic License.

I've been doing a lot of research on setting up a home business, marketing, advertising and other important things like Search Engine Optimisation. I will be writing about my experiences setting up a new business on this blog as well as writing articles, stories and (possibly) poetry.

If you'd like more information on Cam Poetic License's services, then please visit my website.

*please note that I do not provide writing services for students; only proofreading and editing.