Your readers see three exclamation points in a row at the end of a sentence on your website. And...you’ve lost them. (!!!)
Your verb tenses don't match up. Is it the past, present or future? Your reader jumps into a time machine with the date-dial spinning out of control. He panics and dives out to safety, closing the tab on your paradigm-blasting think piece forever, dooming your genius revelations to an eternity of obscurity.
You’ve used the word “revolutionary” three too many times in your brilliant white paper. Eyes roll uncontrollably.
You find you’ve taken - I mean, take - three words to say what only requires one word in your press release. Eyes wander elsewhere.
Is your work suffering from Editor Deficiency Syndrome? You are not alone.
The London Times, describing Queen Victoria traversing the Menai Bridge, announced in this headline: “THE QUEEN HERSELF PISSED GRACIOUSLY OVER THE MAGNIFICENT EDIFICE.”
Jane Austen could write, but could she spell?
And to the whimsical delight of every 17th century philanderer was the Barker and Lucas Bible edition’s listing of the 10 Commandments that somehow left out the little word “not” in “Thou shalt commit adultery.”
Allow me to introduce myself. I consult, ghostwrite and edit for Harvard graduates, Carnegie Mellon alumni, UN delegates, MIT fellows, TEDx speakers and other smart people. From Los Angeles to Lithuania, San Francisco to South Africa, New York to New Zealand, they count on me to prevent historic catastrophes of apostrophes and other travesties. I go through copy with a fine-tooth comb. I catch every tiny error before it loses your audience or becomes cause for a beheading.
Yet I am not just a relentless grammar fiend, insisting on the proper use of a semi-colon. I’m your friend; I’m on your side. I want to see you and your project succeed. That way you can pay me for your next project! And the next. And thank me from the podium when Yale gives you that honorary doctorate.
I am a lover of words. But my love is not unconditional. Quite the contrary. My love demands order, continuity, power, precision and grace.
All words were not created equal. Some words are simply better than others; more concise, less cliche, more expressive, more persuasive. With all of the trillions of articles, websites, thought papers, manifestos and tweets bombarding readers every moment of their waking hours, vying for their attention, your grand manifesto/snarky tweet had better be its most savvy, sexy and scintillating. Or it’s just a quick and heartless click away from that virtual cloud trashcan in the endlessly interwebbed sky...
I make sure your sentences do not run on. That your prose is pithy. That your copy grabs the attention of your audience and holds them in your thrall until you choose to let them go.
When I write or edit a document, whether it’s a white paper for a blockchain project that will change the world or copy for the website of an insanely addictive new video game, I see every work in the context of its own unique audience. Every audience deserves to be spoken to in their own special language. I find the ideal resonant tone and make sure we are on pitch at all times.
You entertain great thoughts. You want your words to inspire, gather and lead readers to the wonder of your work. You need to share your message perfectly. With power and precision. Cleanly and elegantly. I can help.
I am your Secret Weapon.