Overview
I have currently two openings for coaching clients and am accepting one new ghostwriting or developmental editing client for September 2024.
I am a seasoned developmental editor, ghostwriter, and published author with 33 years of experience. I have helped hundreds produce their best work and become better writers. I would like to do so for you, too. My interdisciplinary Ivy League Ph.D. allows me to move seamlessly across multiple areas of nonfiction. Because I have decades of experience as an editor and formal writing instructor, I work effectively with writers of varied experience and ability.
My book coaching process focuses on demystifying the drafting process by meeting clients exactly where they are. I excel at helping writers establish a strong structure for their memoirs and self-help books. This ensures that their manuscript will be clear, coherent, and well-received. By incorporating a systematic and positive approach, I guide writers to set and achieve realistic goals. Clients report that this makes the process of completing a draft manageable, fulfilling, and even fun!
I have developed a unique developmental editing process that includes a detailed report that addresses the "big picture" while also providing detailed, chapter-level feedback. From there, I use a customized color-coded and symbol-coded checklist system that breaks down every element of the revision and guides the author through each step of that process. Finally, I include with every developmental edit a follow-up coaching session to aid authors in the revision process.
For clients not yet ready for a full developmental edit, I offer an editorial assessment that uses the same unique color-coded and symbol-coded report and checklist system to identify the manuscript’s strengths and areas for improvement, along with actionable next steps for revision. This process ensures solid foundation for further development and also includes a free follow-up coaching session.
You may be looking at my picture and asking yourself, "What's that on her head?" It is a Quaker bonnet that forms a part of my religious observance. While I keep my work and religious lives separate, the values of Quakerism, such as integrity, social equity, and clarity, guide my approach to working with authors. Together, they also inform my underlying work philosophy: that each piece of writing is a form of storytelling and that each writer has a unique voice and truth to share through their narrative.
My experience in numbers:
33 years of editing
28 years of professional writing experience
14 years of teaching college writing
4 years of academic editing
7 years of freelance editing
4 years of book coaching
1 Ph.D. from Brown University
11 academic articles published
2 #1 Amazon new releases authored
2 #1 Amazon bestsellers authored
Services
Non-Fiction
Languages
Awards
- Bayard Rustin Center Angelic Troublemaker Award, Guilford College
- Best Organizational Advisor, Guilford College
- Faculty Hearts and Hands Award, Guilford College
Work experience
Self-employed
Self-employed
• Clients include Cactus Communications, academics, artists, and self-help authors.
• Maintained 100% deadline conformance across hundreds of manuscripts.
• Provided proofreading, copy editing, and structural editing of abstracts, research proposals, journal articles, book chapters, edited volumes, and book-length manuscripts.
• In November 2017 received a commendation in an internal newsletter from Cactus Communications as a “Positive Participator,” with the following note: “Martha’s relatively new to our systems and processes but has grasped our service scopes well and is quick to clarify any potential issues. She’s maintained a high QI [internal quality index rating] and has steadily increased her productivity on CACTUS assignments.”
• In December 2017, January 2018, February 2018, and March 2018 was among the 10 editors with highest combined productivity and internal quality index ratings for my division at Cactus Communications.
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• Served as a peer reviewer for the International Journal of Health Policy and Management, the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Sociological Compass, and Women’s Health Issues.
• Reviewed introductory sociology textbooks for McGraw-Hill, Oxford, SAGE Pine Forge, and Thomson Wadsworth.
Brown University, Tufts University, Guilford College, UTEP, Smith College, and Providence College
• Served at Providence College, Smith College, University of Texas at El Paso, Guilford College, Tufts University, and Brown University.
• Developed and taught courses in sociology, environmental studies, history, and women’s studies, including general education courses in which formal writing instruction was a primary component.
• Developed effective classroom and online pedagogies for teaching writing to students from a variety of backgrounds including first-generation college students, second language learners, and adult students.
• Served as an advisor for honors theses and capstone projects, mentoring student through the processes of development, research, drafting, revision, and defense.
• Provided for colleagues copy editing and substantive editing of grant proposals, articles, book chapters, and book manuscripts.
Indiana Family and Social Services Administration
• Tracked and measured over a three-year period the effectiveness of a voluntary home visitation program for a cohort of approximately 2300 families living in poverty.
• Collaborated closely with supervisor, stakeholders, and research associates in the research process and dissemination of findings.
Portfolio
Martha E has 46 reviews
Professionalism
Quality
Value
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Diamond K.
Jun, 2024
Larry C.
Jan, 2024
Eric D.
Dec, 2023
Jill K.
Nov, 2023
Karie Ann N.
Jul, 2023
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