Enthusiasm

Everyone loves a good story, but not everyone loves to analyze one. I do. I also love thinking about words and sentences and paragraphs and arguments — in short, linguistic structures of all types. My passion for language means that I’m always interested in both what you want to say and how you want to say it. And my training means that I can match the what with the how.

Training

Like any specialist, I benefit from training that enhances my perception. When a molecular biologist considers a cell, she harnesses bodies of knowledge only vaguely on my radar. Similarly, when I look at a piece of language, I bring to bear knowledge of things like semantics, rhetoric, poetics, aesthetics, and theories and practices of composition and reception that enable me to pick up on things that others miss. For example, I’ll notice your effective use of or over-reliance on figures from anaphora to zeugma (with or without the terminology!). I might shed light on your story through examples of other variations, for instance how both Disney’s Aladdin and Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park use a Cinderella plot. I’ll help you create and strengthen the voice and mood of a piece by looking at semantic fields, imagery, and point-of-view. Whether or not you’re interested in technical terms or the history of writing conventions, my training in the workings of language can help you see how your writing is and isn’t doing what you want it to do as well as other choices you have.

Compassionate Critique

I have a sharp eye and a well-trained critical faculty. I use them with compassion and curiosity. My goal is to understand your project and bring out its best. I will always explain my assessments and suggestions in terms of specific textual elements and their potential effects, and I will never forget that your vision is what we’re working towards.

Perspective

The most worked-over draft and the most agonized-over blank page have one thing in common: they both benefit from a fresh perspective. Offering such a perspective is my specialty, whether it’s needed to help you start putting words on the page, to take a partial draft to completion, or to bring out the best in your final draft.