Portfolio - Writing Talent

Editorial Advice – Children’s Book

I was approached by Dr Helen Bailey to help with an exciting children’s book for The Leatherback Trust.

The aim of the project was to create an engaging, educational story book for children. The hope was that through this accessible medium, children would learn about the lives of turtles and how to help protect them.

Dr Bailey had written the story; a tale of two baby turtles trying to find their way back home, and required editorial advice.

I proofread and offered light advice on structure and content, ultimately suggesting a few minor alterations.

Dr Bailey was grateful for my help and production of the book went ahead.

My role in this project was small, but I am extremely excited to see the final copy in print. I hope that the book will be a huge success and encourage the next generation to learn about these fascinating sea creatures.

Bailey, Helen and Shillinger, George L., The Grande Turtle Adventure, The Leatherback Trust
With beautiful illustrations by Tracy Dorsey
Editorial Content – ‘Capsule Painting’ Art Book

Luke Gilliam is a talented artist based near Bristol. His work has featured in galleries and exhibitions in the UK, France, USA and Canada.

Luke contacted me some time ago with the idea of creating a book. The aim of the book was to showcase a selection of his art in a format that could be easily taken into galleries. Luke had chosen the paintings he wanted to include and he needed a writer to help with a biography and introduction to give context to the pieces. Needless to say, I was delighted to be involved.

It was immediately apparent during our first phone conversation that Luke is wholeheartedly passionate about his work. It is always a pleasure to work with clients like this. He had already put together some content and I set about editing, writing and rearranging.

Throughout the project Luke and I remained in close contact, ensuring that he was happy at every stage. I really enjoyed the whole process; learning about Luke, his work and the wider world of art.

Luke is delighted with the end result and is confident that the book will be an asset to his career. We remain in contact and I look forward to working with him again in the future.

View ‘Capsule Painting’ in full using this link:
Magazine Editorial – Cliveden House Wedding Magazine

Cliveden House is the sister hotel to Chewton Glen, catering to the high end of luxury living.

Cliveden’s events team wanted to emulate the success of Chewton Glen’s wedding brochure by creating their own version. Similar to other wedding magazine projects I have assisted with, the brochure was intended to promote the venue as a premier wedding location while offering advice and suggestions for the big day.

I was asked by the publishing company to write the content for Cliveden’s brochure. Editorial features covered topics such as the house’s history, ceremony location options, the spa and information about trusted partners.

I really enjoyed acting as editor for this brochure. Cliveden House makes a stunning wedding venue and so describing the house and grounds was a genuine pleasure. The publisher and client were both very pleased with the writing I produced.

The finished brochure is a fantastic marketing tool for the hotel and is handed out to prospective couples as they dream of their big day at Cliveden.
Marketing Copy – Kibblewhite Gardens Advert

Kibblewhite Gardens are a garden design and landscaping company covering Kent and East Sussex. I was approached to take care of the content for their latest advert, briefed to write a short amount of body text and a headline.

The client asked me to ensure the content reflected a few key criteria i.e. their personal service, attention to detail and the geographical region they cover.

I sent back the content along with a few options for a headline, allowing them to choose the one they felt best suited their brand and the specific advert. All of the wording was then used by the design team to create the finished advert.

The client is pleased with the end result and I have to agree that it looks fantastic. It was a real pleasure to be involved with this company and help with their advert. I wish Kibblewhite Gardens every success with their latest marketing programme.
Marketing Copy – Aquarius Silk Packaging

Aquarius Trading design and make clothing for the outdoors. Earlier this year they decided to revamp the packaging for some of their products and I was asked by the director to write the copy.

The same sleeve-style packaging was going to be used for three different silk products; gloves, socks and balaclavas. The copy I produced needed to market silk itself as a fantastic material for outdoor clothing, briefly explaining some of its valuable properties and promoting it as a natural product. The same content could then be used on the reverse side of the sleeve for all the different items.

Aquarius’ director was very pleased with what I came up with and the content was added to the packaging design. The silk products, along with their new sleeves and content, are being sold in shops across the country now.
Website Content – SEO Project for Ecommerce

I was recently asked by Adido, a digital marketing agency, to help with the content for one of their major projects. Their client was Key; an ecommerce company who sell office supplies.

I was initially tasked to write introductory content for category pages with the aim of boosting key word content. This was part of the agency’s wider plan to help Key show up as well as possible in Google searches.

As the project developed, I wrote monthly blogs covering topics such as ‘How to Choose the Best Locker for Your Business’ and product spotlights including ‘The Mighty Multi Use Truck’. Again, the aim was to boost SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) through key word content, as well as writing fun advisory pieces to convert sales.

‘Content is king’, as the saying goes, and alongside the blogs I went on to write longer buyers’ guides to sit at the bottom of category pages. This added yet more key words while helping customers to choose the right products from the shop’s selection.

I really enjoyed this ongoing project with Adido and Key. I really like Key’s tone of voice and ethos of making the purchase of office supplies as much fun as possible. Let’s face it, topics such as which type of storage box to choose are not the most scintillating and I enjoyed the challenge of making the content light-hearted.

The support I received from Adido was fantastic and I worked closely with them throughout in order to target the most effective key words and keep the content on track. Ultimately, both the Key and Adido were very pleased with the content I produced for them and I’m confident my work will contribute to an improved ranking in Google searches. I look forward to more projects like this in the future.
Website Copy – Enhanced IT Solutions

In August 2014 I was approached by a digital marketing agency to assist with a project that was already underway. Their client was Enhanced, who provide IT services such as payroll software, storage and security to a huge range of businesses. Enhanced had commissioned a new website and the project required a copywriter to supply the content.

This was a very fast paced project with strict deadlines. I wrote for a total of 46 pages across the site, including highly technical product descriptions as well as straplines and content about the company itself.

I was very fortunate that both Enhanced and the digital marketing agency were extremely supportive. Because the content was so complex, I spent most of my writing time at Enhanced’s offices, where I could ask questions and check information. This proved to be the most efficient way of working, particularly as I tackled explaining the most complex IT products.

This web project remains my most challenging to date. It is also probably my most rewarding. Not only was the content difficult to digest and then re-explain simply for Enhanced’s customers, there was also a large amount of writing to complete in a short timeframe. Other people were relying on me to deliver on time in order to complete design work and ultimately launch the site.

I am very pleased with the end result, which is now live, and have received fantastic feedback for my contribution. I look forward to similar projects in the future.
Website Copy – Hunter Boots Comparison

With winter and the wet weather well and truly here, OutdoorGear have been selling a lot of Hunter wellington boots.

Customers have been finding that their classic Hunter boots have not been lasting as well as they hoped. In response to this, the famous welly company have brought out a new design – the Field Norris boots.

OutdoorGear have begun stocking these new boots and wanted a review of both designs to help their customers to choose between them. Aesthetically, the boots are very similar, but the newer model is built to be harder wearing. The piece is outwardly designed to be informative, while simultaneously marketing the wellies and boosting SEO (search engine optimisation) for the term ‘Hunter’.

The comparison that I wrote for OutdoorGear covers all aspects of the boots, from sole through to adjustable strap and concludes that the Field Norris wellies are the logical purchase choice.

OutdoorGear are very pleased with the comparison and are confident that it will not only drive traffic to the site, but help their customers to make informed decisions.

Have a look at the live review:
Website Copy – Paddleboard Product Review

This latest project for OutdoorGear saw me out and about on a sunny Saturday morning, product testing paddle boards.

Paddleboarding is an increasingly popular sport in Britain and OutdoorGear stocked two inflatable boards this summer. They wanted to help customers decide which board to purchase by offering a clear comparison report to feature on the website. The review was also intended to help SEO.

After setting up and trying out both boards with Chris Bailey, Marketing Manager of OutdoorGear, I wrote a review covering the key pros and cons of both boards. I included set up time, extra items and performance, then evaluated each in terms of which I would choose to buy.

The feedback from this project has been great. OutdoorGear have been in touch to say that several paddleboard sales have been closed as a direct result of customers finding and using the review.
Magazine Editorial – Luxury Wedding Magazines

I have been closely involved with writing and editing a library of luxury wedding magazines over the past few years.

Each magazine has featured a particular wedding venue, with the aim of promoting the location itself as well as associated suppliers.

I edited the first magazine in collaboration with the venue’s marketing team, who originally wrote most of the content. I have since been asked to write the full content for a further three magazines for different venues.

From the initial planning stages of editorial pitches and discussing ideas, I liaise closely with the venue and publishing team. I then conduct interviews and write content to be read by the client, followed by any amendments requested.

As the magazine takes shape and reaches a full draft, I conduct a proofread and iron out any details. The final product is always beautiful and a great marketing tool for the venue.
Editing – Short Stories Anthology

Last year, I worked as part of an editorial team of three to edit and format short stories for the anthology, Chasing Our Tales. This was an ongoing, very involved project.

The initial stage was contacting authors for short story submissions and, after the deadline, the lengthy task of proofreading and editing began. It was important to be in regular contact with the co-editors to compare formatting decisions and double-proofread the stories.

Each story was sent back to the author for final sign-off and we determined the best order and layout for the book.

This was a fun project with a real variety of content. It was time consuming, but rewarding and the finished book was very popular.
Marketing Copy – Media Pack

Ahead of the first edition of the magazine itself, the publishing company behind Weddings in The South needed to attract suppliers to purchase advertorial pages.

I was asked to create the content for a media pack, both selling the magazine as an excellent platform to market business and informing the potential client of advertisement options.

This comparatively short copywriting commission needed to convey the opulence of the wedding venue and associated magazine in a limited word count. It was handed out at a supplier event and successfully attracted advertisers to purchase page-space in the magazine.
Corporate Correspondence – Letter of Recommendation

Mr Bailey is the head of marketing at Oswald Bailey. A particular member of his team was working towards a marketing certificate in 2013. In order to qualify, she required an official letter confirming that she had met certain criteria.

Mr Bailey contacted me to write this letter. I was able to save him time, while ensuring that the letter was both grammatically correct and suitably formal.

He supplied me with a bullet-point list of tasks she had completed and I matched this to the requirements of the certificate. In this way, the letter proved each criteria was met and the member of staff received her award.
Corporate Correspondence – Letter of Congratulations

Many companies use competitions as marketing tools. A particular competition in 2013, run by Oswald Bailey, was a draw to win a holiday to Scotland and a pair of high-end walking boots. I was asked to pen a short letter of congratulations to accompany the boots when they were delivered.

The winner had already been informed by telephone and the letter I wrote adopted a friendly, personal tone.

It is projects such as this that really free up time for my clients. By handing over small copywriting tasks, their working day is not interrupted and they are confident that I will complete the task quickly and professionally.
Corporate Correspondence – Responding to Complaints

It is an unfortunate fact that businesses will receive letters of complaint from time-to-time. Often, staff are too busy running the company to respond to these letters and I am asked to step in.

Whenever I represent a company, it is my role as a copywriter to adopt an appropriate tone and style, clearly and concisely conveying information on behalf of the client. Responses to complaints require a delicate touch, ensuring that the customer feels they have been listened to and their views appreciated.

I always view these commissions as an opportunity to change the customer’s opinion – to leave them feeling appreciated and, most importantly, likely to use the business again.

Clients comment that handing the task of replying to letters over to me frees them to concentrate on their work. They are always confident that I will tailor the reply sensitively and professionally.
Magazine Editorial – BSO, The Sound of Music

I really enjoy collaborating with a publishing team on magazines. In August 2012 I wrote a feature-length editorial about the world-renowned Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO) for the luxury magazine New Forest Exclusive.

After interviewing Dougie Scarfe, CEO of The BSO, I crafted an editorial that would both entertain the reader and promote the orchestra.

The piece illustrates the orchestra’s international presence as well its dedication to reaching out to the local community. It was clear when interviewing Mr Scarfe, that he is passionate about the latter as much as the former and I made sure this was highlighted in the editorial.
Website Copy – Handwarmer Product Review

A recent project was to write a report on a product test for OutdoorGear, an online camping and outdoors store. I was supplied data on the performance of two different disposable hand warmers and asked to present the findings to the customer. The intention was to inform as well as advertise the handwarmers, while boosting online content for SEO.

The data was raw, so I had to consider the best methods of displaying it logically to the consumer. I liaised closely with the marketing team at OutdoorGear to make sure I highlighted important details and they were really pleased with the end result.

The report is still live. Why not have a look?

Editorial Advice – Children’s Book

Editorial Content – ‘Capsule Painting’ Art Book

Magazine Editorial – Cliveden House Wedding Magazine

Marketing Copy – Kibblewhite Gardens Advert

Marketing Copy – Aquarius Silk Packaging

Website Content – SEO Project for Ecommerce

Website Copy – Enhanced IT Solutions

Website Copy – Hunter Boots Comparison

Website Copy – Paddleboard Product Review

Magazine Editorial – Luxury Wedding Magazines

Editing – Short Stories Anthology

Marketing Copy – Media Pack

Corporate Correspondence – Letter of Recommendation

Corporate Correspondence – Letter of Congratulations

Corporate Correspondence – Responding to Complaints

Magazine Editorial – BSO, The Sound of Music

Website Copy – Handwarmer Product Review