Who Is That Masked Super-Proofreader/Copyeditor???

How to begin… I suppose an introduction is in order. I am Laura, simple enough, right? I am a proofreader and copyeditor by day. Of course, I am also a mom, teacher, wife, and just a (ahem) young-at-heart woman by day as well. I like to think of myself as a modern-day Wonder Woman!!! ;)

I am not going to bore you with the details of my education here, you can find all of that information at my copyeditor and proofreader service website, www.LaurasProofs.com, besides, that's not what makes up the "meat" of who I am. I grew up in a family of very creative, artistic people, many of whom were writers. My grandmother was an English teacher who seemed to gain an obscene amount of amusement from torturing me and my two brothers by saying ridiculous things like "That is not the proper way to hold a pencil!" and "The correct word is MAY not CAN!!" She was scary! I lived for my father's bedtime stories in which he would explain things such as the difference between "to," "two," and "too." And my mother taught us to be creative in our writing—she was the artist. Little did they know back then (nor did I) they were building the foundation that would become my passion as an adult.

My husband and I now proudly torture our own children, Colton, Justin, and Matthew, with the same stories. We live in a small southern Texas town with our cat Chloe and dog Gracie—who could easily double as a small horse! My family will always be my first love. I strive each day to pass down my love of learning and reading to my children—hoping to build the same foundation for them that my family set for me so many years ago.

As much as I love it, sometimes being a proofreader/copyeditor can also be extremely frustrating! Many people believe anyone can do this job based on the simple fact that they speak the language and/or took English classes in college, or worse, high school. People compete against me, willing to do the work for pennies on the dollar, because all they plan to do is run spell check on your texts. While spell check may catch some things, it absolutely will NOT catch everything. It all boils down to that old saying, "You get what you pay for."

I chose a career in copyediting and proofreading because I have the education for it and I enjoy taking a rough text and turning it into something beautiful. It makes me feel great to create something, or to help others feel good about what they have created. But this job does NOT come without hard work and a lot of dedication. =)

What can you hope to learn from me here? I will bring you tips on making the most of your writing. I will point out those embarrassing examples of people who chose NOT to use proofreaders and copyeditors (or chose the cheap ones)! I will let you know about anything I think is of importance in the wonderful world of words! And I hope to learn more about you and from you along the way. So, here's to the beginning of a beautiful friendship! =)

Laura