COPYWRITING

What do you need?

Effective advertising copy?  Snappy crackly popping social media or blog posts? What about 'nailed it' web content?   A direct response e-mailer? Media or press release? Facebook, Linked In and business profiles? A speech dressed to impress? 

I write copy for print ads, presentations, brochures, blogs, social media, websites, radio ads, video, training videos, cover notes for CDs, etc, etc. Do you need some olde worlde rhymes for a card or a message for a special occasion ? Funny dialogue for your audio/video/ film? Corporate video script? Love letter? A wet-your-pants funny sketch? What about a structural edit before you submit your work? Or a copy edit to make sure it's perfect? 

How much will it cost?

For copywriting, it will depend on the job, how much research is involved and, if the writing is for the web, whether SEO is a factor. I can quote you an hourly rate or an amount for a package. For example, you might need a linked-in profile, a chunk of copy for your landing page and a direct response e-mailer. So we'd bundle those all up, take into consideration the word count and what the web copy might need over and above words.  

Your copywriting requirements will probably be varied; everyone's needs are different. We'll have to talk. 

Copyediting is a simpler matter, same with proofreading: $50 per 500 words.

What do people take from what they read? 
Easy. How it made them feel. Whether what they read answered their questions or provided a solution to a problem. You want a copy writer who gets this, a writer with understanding, sensitivity, humour and a wide, wide experience of life. A writer who knows your audience.
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Why get a former journalist to write your copy?
Because journalists know story. Drama, stakes, hopes, failures, loves and hooks: these things are our tools. We know where to start (with the hook) and where to lead the reader (towards vital content worth reading).

Journalists know how to tell a story quickly, using words that are in the right place at the right time.

Why get a former playwright to write your copy?
Cos playwrights really knows story, story and drama, how to raise those stakes and plant those hooks so you're desperate to know what happens next.  A playwright has the facility with language to capture your imagination,  to get you dreaming and hoping, to get you engaged, attached, involved... To the point where you're so invested in the story  it feels like it's yours; a sense of ownership, in other words. Which is what you want your readers to experience when they read about you.

We're all selling something. It's not enough to tell the world how great you are; everyone does that. Think of  the best ad you've seen: there's a progression, a build-up of character or narrative, something to care about, damn it, no matter how small. With all the best stories there's good reason to invest your time and attention to begin with (and  your time and money later). 

Years of freelance journalism (in the arts) plus training in professional writing and editing (I hold a Diploma in Professional Writing and Editing from Melbourne's RMIT) have given me skills and experience in working swiftly, meeting deadlines, thorough research and, most importantly, producing immaculate copy promptly. 

I've also taught creative writing, written plays, studied screenwriting  (with The Australian Writers Guild), written reviews,  written comedy for performance,  short stories, articles,  on toilet walls and a whole pile of other stuff...

Throw me a challenge. I won't  reinvent the word but I'll find you the right ones. 

Beautiful copy

It isn't just about words, it's about the right words. You want words that can launch ships or set a paper boat floating gently across a pond, words that throb, words that can cure hangovers, words that will make you swoon or stop dead.

Copy for Rotary club of Melbourne foundation brochure

Page one
Rotary is a worldwide organization of business professionals providing humanitarian services, encouraging high professional ethics and working to build goodwill and peace on a global level. Rotary is a non-political and non-sectarian organization.
Since its beginnings in the North American city of Chicago in 1905 Rotary has continued to grow, and we now proudly boast 1.2 million members in 166 different countries around the world.

Our humanitarian, educational and cultural programs create enormous opportunities for us to do the good work of building a better and more peaceful world.
The Rotary Club of Melbourne was Australia’s first Rotary Club, formed in 1921. Since then we’ve notched up an outstanding record of philanthropic and charitable work across a widely diverse cross-section of the community.

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