Proofreading and conference organizing journal

Talk on proofreading

2010-07-14T09:29:00.004+01:00

I gave my first talk on proofreading yesterday. It was to a local women's networking group in Eastwood. It lasted 20 minutes and I involved all those there so that they felt part of the talk. They were still interested enough at the end to ask some questions; and I got some feedback that they had found it very interesting.

The one point I asked them to take home with them is: when writing anything, ensure you're consistent throughout. (It looks decidedly ragged to have a word/term hyphenated on one page and not on another, for instance, as found recently on a Council newsletter!)

Anyway, I enjoyed giving the talk. I'm hoping to give another one on organising a conference in the not too distant future.

2010-06-28T15:39:00.002+01:00

I've been published! As you're probably aware, as a proofreader I would normally pick holes in other people's writing. But, on this occasion, I hope there are no holes for others to pick out! I was asked by Jon Barrett, Editor of 'Magazine', to write an article about the value of using a proofreader. The result has just come through my letter box: see http://mag.digitalpc.co.uk/fvx/imp/1005-06/ (pp.8-9) - great publicity for me!

2010-06-13T09:59:00.002+01:00

I attended a journal meeting in London on Friday and took the opportunity to visit the V&A to see an exhibition on Grace Kelly - style icon. The journal committee meets every quarter, so it's an ideal chance for me to go and see something I otherwise wouldn't go to.

Business Link

2010-05-14T11:37:00.003+01:00

I've just had a meeting with a Business Link adviser during which we discussed possible directions for my business. It was quite useful and he had some really good ideas. It's given me lots to think about, e.g. whether to make an initial investment before going forward; and doing lots of research. I think I'm going to be busy. Whether I'll be earning is another matter.

Holiday and illness

2010-05-14T11:29:00.003+01:00

Just back from a holiday in Florida visiting friends. Whilst there, however, I was laid low with laryngitis and a hacking cough, from which I am only just recovering - hence the absence. I'm hoping to be back in the swing of things very shortly. Watch this space ...

Social Media

2010-03-29T16:29:00.002+01:00

I attended the MediaCamp gathering on Saturday in Nottingham. I thought I'd better keep myself up to date by learning what was going on 'out there'. It was a good day, albeit quite draining. There were plenty of talks to interest most people and I've been encouraged to give Twitter another go - perhaps to use it in different ways. Watch this space is all I can say.

Singing

2010-03-16T10:01:00.003Z

One of my hobbies in these last few years has been to take up singing. I first went for lessons a couple of years ago. Although I did learn quite a lot, I always felt a bit dejected when I left. You see, I went in thinking that I could sing anything but, by the time the teacher had made suggestions on how I could improve it, I felt that my abilities weren't as great as I had thought!

So, instead, I began attending a 'Singing for fun' class one morning a week and it's been a great inspiration. We all do indeed have fun and our 'leader' sets the tone. We attend for three 10-week terms in the year and the final morning of each term is given over to a concert provided free to supportive family and friends. We don't profess to be slick, nor do we profess to be a choir, but we do entertain!

A couple of weeks ago I went with a friend to an all-day event that was being held for charity. It was run by two people who lead a local choir and two people from Sing-Live! It cost us £10 each, but did we work. We began at 9.30am and we had hourly sessions, during which we learned something different from each one. The first was a warm-up. Then we had a talk on how to make sounds without singing. The gents went off to a different room to learn a song and the ladies sat in their relevant singing areas (first soprano, second soprano, first alto, second alto - if you didn't know what you were you shuffled around until you felt comfortable!), and we began to learn "Blue Skies" with variations. We took our own lunch, during which a short film was shown about the charity - sending a cow to Africa - one reason why the day was called "Mooo'd Music"! In the afternoon, the choir lady taught us a song that her husband had written, called "The Workshop Blues" - very apt. We had another session with the Sing Live chap, during which we created "The Journey", making sounds to illustrate leaving a house for a drive to the seaside, which was inspired by the Honda advert. We then learned "Love can build a bridge" and had a brush-up session on "Blue Skies" before we all came together and put on a concert for those who had come to collect us. Some of the day was quite hard work and for those who hadn't sung before, it was a bit bemusing. On the whole, though, we really enjoyed it and I would certainly consider going again. Our husbands thought the resulting concert sounded very professional. Not bad for one day's rehearsal.

Networking

2010-02-25T14:14:00.003Z

Gosh, these networking days are coming fast and furious. I attended two last week and one this week. They were all completely different.

The first one was at Eastwood Hall and had two seminars and 40 exhibition stands. I was very pleased with myself for making the first move and talking to lots of people - something which doesn't come naturally. The talk I attended was given by Rob Brown and entitled 'The 10 worst things you can do or say at a networking event' - very apt, and very helpful. I was very glad to discover that I do not commit the worst two mistakes, which are (a) to try and be something you're not and (b) not to follow through after the meeting. I always write to anyone whom I think might be a good business contact and I never put on airs and graces, so people know whom they're dealing with. But I did take note of a couple of other points Rob made, one of which is when people ask what you do, don't tell them the company name or your job title - tell them what you DO, i.e. break it down so that it's more understandable. At that event I made the acquaintance of Jason Smith who in turn introduced me to Rob Brown (which just goes to show that it's not what you know, but whom you know). Jason is an area contact for BNI and reminded me that my local group were meeting the following lunchtime, which leads me onto the next meeting.

At the women's networking meeting last week, Kim Kimberly had invited me along to BNI at Junction 25, which is a lunchtime meeting, as opposed to many of the other BNI meetings that are held at breakfast time. After I talked with Jason, I thought I'd go along and find out if it would be suitable for me. I emailed Kim and she phoned me with details. Along I went and paid my £10 to cover the room cost and the meal. A BNI meeting is a very structured affair. They tend to restrict membership to one representative from each work area - so I'd be OK as there aren't that many proofreaders around wanting to joing these things. However, at a cost of £400 per year plus £100 down payment, I felt that it was too costly for my small enterprise. They are very good, though, at making referrals.

Yesterday's meeting was more of a tutorial. It was run by Business Link and labelled a masterclass and restricted to 25 attendees (some of whom didn't manage to get there). Our speaker was Jonathan Nunn, who was very good. The subject of the class came under the umbrella title 'Build a Better Business' and addressed the generation of new sales and customer retention. I suppose I learned something, but I felt that it was for larger businesses than mine. However, I took the opportunity to approach the conference office to make them aware of my presence and to ask for information about the hotel as a venue.

My intention is to create a directory about local conference facilities as there doesn't seem to be one at the moment. Watch this space ...

Women in networking

2010-02-16T09:39:00.004Z

I was advised by a Business Link contact that women in business are good for each other - good at referring at least. So last week, when I came across (on the SmartWomen newsletter) a lunchtime networking meeting in Eastwood that I didn't know about, I thought - why not? There were about 15 of us and it was held at MS Accountants. We each introduced ourselves and a free lunch was provided. At least two referrals happened whilst we were talking and I've made a few contacts, too. I think every one of us exchanged business cards. Well, you never know ...

Enquiries

2010-02-09T10:24:00.002Z

I've had two enquiries recently from international PhD students. I tend to offer a reduced rate because an ordinary hourly rate can mount up. Even if the student has sponsorship, I'm sure they have to bear some of the cost. The other thing I have to consider is the time to allow in order to read it. Some students want me to read each chapter as it is written, but others get the whole thesis prepared and then expect it to be read immediately. Of course, reading 60,000-90,000 words can take some time, particularly if I have other work ongoing at the same time. So, for that amount of reading I would allow 2-3 weeks.

Doing someone else's work?

2010-02-01T17:08:00.002Z

I had an enquiry via my web site the other day from an international student asking if I would write their thesis. I'm not sure if this person was being naive, but I had to explain that it was normally expected that students write their own thesis (isn't that the idea of doing the study in the first place?). I'm happy to check through it once it is written - that is what a proofreader does. I'm not holding my breath for that work to come back to me, though!

Inspiration Day for Women Entrepreneurs

2010-01-28T17:20:00.003Z

I attended the afternoon of this event yesterday, primarily to hear a speaker from the Sunday Times. She was indeed inspirational to listen to. There were about 50 women attending, so businesses are still thriving and there was a lot of positive thinking. These events are a great way to network and I always follow through by looking down the delegate list. I send an email to those whom I think might find my proofreading and/or conference assistance useful. You never know, something might come of it. Also, because I work alone, it's great to find other women in similiar situations and compare notes.

Response to letter of enquiry

2010-01-26T16:11:00.003Z

Yesterday I sent out a number of letters by second-class mail to departments at the local university. Today I received a response by email from one of the departments to say that they would keep my details on file. Result!
It's so nice to know that someone in a busy department had time to read my blurb and had the courtesy to respond swiftly - favourably, too. It restores one's faith in human nature. So often people procrastinate and then nothing gets done. What do they say? If you want something doing, ask a busy person.

Out of practice

2010-01-25T17:35:00.004Z

I've been rather silent recently and I've come to the realisation that I'll never be a writer, as such. I'd rather pick holes in what someone else has written, which is why I'm a good proofreader. It gives me such great satisfaction to put something right that is so obviously wrong. I guess my new year's resolution is to be more proactive.

Inconsistency

2009-08-25T11:21:00.006+01:00

Just finished reading a 50,000 word thesis. The main problem I found was inconsistency, which - to my mind - seems untidy. However, there may be some 'method in the madness' as it can also keep the reader on his/her toes. So, as always, I keep an open mind to others' preferences. If I'm asked to do certain things with a dissertation, then I will of course do that; but if it's just something I've noticed and feel ought to be changed then I feel compelled to check with the client before altering anything.

Sub-editing journal

2009-07-29T12:40:00.005+01:00

I'm occupied at present by proofreading the journal http://www.caworthington.co.uk/case1.php4, which is about the only work coming in just now.

I have also done a bit of medicolegal work this week for which I am having to investigate encryption and password-protecting of any documents that are sent electronically. I do like to keep learning - keeps the old grey matter going strong.

Facebook, Web 2.0 etc

2009-07-23T18:15:00.007+01:00

Still trying to get my head round this Web 2.0 stuff. It seems that, on Facebook and the like, you can only have one Profile (as a person). So, I wanted to make a separate entry for business - the answer is to make a Page. Done that. Now I need Fans - please! Ideally, these should be business contacts, but I'm not fussed at this stage - particularly as quite a lot of my work comes from students. I'll have to create a postscript to any business emails when I return work, asking if they'll become Fans! I've got one already, so that's good.

Riding out the recession workshop

2009-07-15T10:24:00.005+01:00

I attended a free seminar held at a local hotel yesterday morning entitled "Riding out the recession". It was run by Business Link and the local council. There were about half a dozen talks on various topics, some not relevant to me as a sole trader but nevertheless quite interesting. Of course there were exhibitors, each vying to get our custom, and I came home with an armful of literature. There was time to network both before the workshop began and again during coffee, but when I looked down the list of attendees there was only one potential business contact (a publisher) and it's a bit bizarre just walking up to someone you don't know and starting to talk to them about potential work. I keep trying these things - hey, if they're free it's no great loss: only time; but I'm not entirely sure if they're going to work. I've come to the conclusion that you have to keep at this networking in the long term: you get your face and name bandied about and people get to know YOU.

Advertising for new work

2009-07-10T19:18:00.000+01:00

In order to try and get some new contacts, I've been down to the University of Nottingham today and put up some notices about proofreading. It's worked in previous years and, although it's a quiet time (the UK students having gone home), the international students are still around and it's those who I want. Studying at a university where English is not your first language poses all sorts of problems and those students are glad to have a native English speaker look over their work before submitting it.

My flyers also stated that I do conference organizing, which should appeal to academics in their quiet summer time. If they're thinking of working on a book, too, this might be the best time to catch them. It will be interesting to see if it works.

Hello world!

2009-07-10T18:41:00.000+01:00

Well, it's taken me a while, but I'm now getting the hang of this blogging business!