Keywords
Username: stormeagle
Minimum Hourly Rate: $40/hr
Location: Canada, Ontario, Toronto
Summary
My Elance focus is editing of documentation in English.
I am a native English speaker with certification in Technical Communication, and over 25 years in the IT industry (with a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Computer Science).
I can assess your written work as a technician, a trainer (trained to communicate information to an audience effectively), an English grammar junkie, and as a member of your target audience. As such I can significantly improve the impact and professionalism of your written products....the objective is to provide reader-oriented documentation. And I work quickly!
I can edit your documentation at many levels:
a) copy editing - grammar, spelling, typos, punctuation, numbering, references, etc.
b) style - formatting, "look and feel", spacing, indents, fonts, headers, footers, etc.
c) content - overall clarity, appropriate level of detail, organization, sequencing and logical flow, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, omissions, anything that sounds confusing, etc.
I am a native English speaker with certification in Technical Communication, and over 25 years in the IT industry (with a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Computer Science).
I can assess your written work as a technician, a trainer (trained to communicate information to an audience effectively), an English grammar junkie, and as a member of your target audience. As such I can significantly improve the impact and professionalism of your written products....the objective is to provide reader-oriented documentation. And I work quickly!
I can edit your documentation at many levels:
a) copy editing - grammar, spelling, typos, punctuation, numbering, references, etc.
b) style - formatting, "look and feel", spacing, indents, fonts, headers, footers, etc.
c) content - overall clarity, appropriate level of detail, organization, sequencing and logical flow, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, omissions, anything that sounds confusing, etc.
Experience
Employment
Ministry of Health
2008-Present - Senior Technical Writer
Documentation Specialist - creating and editing procurement documents (RFPs, RFQs, etc.), project charters, presentations, business cases, technical specifications, glossaries, integration plans, project artefacts, architectural artefacts, statements of work, orientation materials, etc.
2008-Present - Senior Technical Writer
Documentation Specialist - creating and editing procurement documents (RFPs, RFQs, etc.), project charters, presentations, business cases, technical specifications, glossaries, integration plans, project artefacts, architectural artefacts, statements of work, orientation materials, etc.
Smart Systems for Health Agency
2006-2008 - Senior Technical Writer
Creation/editing of many types of documentation, including business requirements, functional designs, technical designs, configuration diagrams, user deployment guides, business cases, risk profiles, product marketing collateral, user guides, reference guides, online help
Also served as QA resource, Business Analyst, training designer, and trainer for software rollout.
Was specifically requested by senior executives to assist on high-visibility committees
Assisted in definition and derivation of service delivery documentation (SLAs, service catalogues, service specifications)
Created software training simulations for time reporting software (e-learning)
Created MS Word templates, process charts, Excel spreadsheets, Infopath forms, etc.
2006-2008 - Senior Technical Writer
Creation/editing of many types of documentation, including business requirements, functional designs, technical designs, configuration diagrams, user deployment guides, business cases, risk profiles, product marketing collateral, user guides, reference guides, online help
Also served as QA resource, Business Analyst, training designer, and trainer for software rollout.
Was specifically requested by senior executives to assist on high-visibility committees
Assisted in definition and derivation of service delivery documentation (SLAs, service catalogues, service specifications)
Created software training simulations for time reporting software (e-learning)
Created MS Word templates, process charts, Excel spreadsheets, Infopath forms, etc.
Necho Systems Corp.
2005-2005 - Senior Technical Writers
Contract to create context-sensitive online help for a web-based suite of expense management software, incorporating content imported from Framemaker, and using conditional help for single sourcing.
Working remotely with developers and QA staff in another province. Conducted some QA testing of the product and the online help.
Delivered ahead of schedule.
2005-2005 - Senior Technical Writers
Contract to create context-sensitive online help for a web-based suite of expense management software, incorporating content imported from Framemaker, and using conditional help for single sourcing.
Working remotely with developers and QA staff in another province. Conducted some QA testing of the product and the online help.
Delivered ahead of schedule.
Blockade Systems Corp.
2001-2005 - Senior Technical Writer (sole writer)
Designed, wrote, and maintained a documentation suite for a multi-platform security software application, including online web-based help (Robohelp), and a set of user/admin/config Word/Acrobat guides for each platform (UNIX, AIX, Solaris, z/OS, Windows NT/ADS, Novell, etc.).
Evolved and expanded the suite through multiple releases - dozens of manuals.
This company has since been bought out and no longer exists as such.
2001-2005 - Senior Technical Writer (sole writer)
Designed, wrote, and maintained a documentation suite for a multi-platform security software application, including online web-based help (Robohelp), and a set of user/admin/config Word/Acrobat guides for each platform (UNIX, AIX, Solaris, z/OS, Windows NT/ADS, Novell, etc.).
Evolved and expanded the suite through multiple releases - dozens of manuals.
This company has since been bought out and no longer exists as such.
About Me
Profile Type: Individual
Number of Employees: 1
I am a technical communicator and documentation specialist, living in Toronto, Canada. I am a native English speaker and have an excellent grasp of English grammar, spelling, and word use.
I have been in the IT industry for over 25 years, and have worked as a computer technician, a trainer, a facilitator of group work, a manager, and a technical writer. I have a B.Sc. and M.Sc. from the University of Toronto in Computer Science, as well as certificates in both Adult Education and Technical Communication from George Brown College.
My focus for Elance is editing of documentation in English, as I will be completing assignments on my own time (evenings and weekends).
I can assess your written work as a technician, a professional trainer, an English grammarian, and/or as a member of your target audience. As such I can significantly improve the impact and professionalism of your written products....and I work quickly!
I can edit your documentation at many levels:
a) copy editing - grammar, spelling, typos, punctuation, numbering, cross references, etc.
b) style - formatting, "look and feel", spacing, indents, fonts, headers, footers, copyrights, etc.
c) content - overall clarity, appropriate level of detail, organization, sequencing and logical flow, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, omissions, anything that sounds confusing, etc.
I can send any prospective client a short MS Word document that gives examples of what I can do, if desired. I have taken some of the skill tests offered through Elance, to give you a feeling for my command of English and editing, in both US and UK English.
I have been in the IT industry for over 25 years, and have worked as a computer technician, a trainer, a facilitator of group work, a manager, and a technical writer. I have a B.Sc. and M.Sc. from the University of Toronto in Computer Science, as well as certificates in both Adult Education and Technical Communication from George Brown College.
My focus for Elance is editing of documentation in English, as I will be completing assignments on my own time (evenings and weekends).
I can assess your written work as a technician, a professional trainer, an English grammarian, and/or as a member of your target audience. As such I can significantly improve the impact and professionalism of your written products....and I work quickly!
I can edit your documentation at many levels:
a) copy editing - grammar, spelling, typos, punctuation, numbering, cross references, etc.
b) style - formatting, "look and feel", spacing, indents, fonts, headers, footers, copyrights, etc.
c) content - overall clarity, appropriate level of detail, organization, sequencing and logical flow, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, omissions, anything that sounds confusing, etc.
I can send any prospective client a short MS Word document that gives examples of what I can do, if desired. I have taken some of the skill tests offered through Elance, to give you a feeling for my command of English and editing, in both US and UK English.
Payment Terms
As many editing jobs are short by nature, I would expect the norm would be to be paid as follows:
a) for short assignments - 50 pages or less - once at the end of the assignment, or
b) for longer assignments - payment milestones at approximately every 50 pages.
My turnaround time will of course be dependent on the actual assignment, taking into account things like the subject matter, level of detail, quality of the initial writing, etc.
I am known to work quickly and have often received compliments for my fast turnaround. I hesitate to quote a generic rate (# of pages per week) because each case may vary. It is probably wise to discuss this at the start of each assignment.
Depending on the nature of the assignment, I (or the client) may suggest that a milestone be set for a portion of the document to be edited and sent back to the client, so that the client can be comfortable with what I am doing (or indicate what he/she would like instead).
a) for short assignments - 50 pages or less - once at the end of the assignment, or
b) for longer assignments - payment milestones at approximately every 50 pages.
My turnaround time will of course be dependent on the actual assignment, taking into account things like the subject matter, level of detail, quality of the initial writing, etc.
I am known to work quickly and have often received compliments for my fast turnaround. I hesitate to quote a generic rate (# of pages per week) because each case may vary. It is probably wise to discuss this at the start of each assignment.
Depending on the nature of the assignment, I (or the client) may suggest that a milestone be set for a portion of the document to be edited and sent back to the client, so that the client can be comfortable with what I am doing (or indicate what he/she would like instead).
Detailed Service Description
My Elance focus is editing of documentation in English.
I am a native English speaker with certification in Technical Communication, and over 25 years in the IT industry (with a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Computer Science).
I can assess your written work as a technician, a trainer (trained to communicate information to an audience effectively), an English grammar junkie, and as a member of your target audience. As such I can significantly improve the impact and professionalism of your written products....the objective is to provide reader-oriented documentation. And I work quickly!
I can edit your documentation at many levels:
a) copy editing - grammar, spelling, typos, punctuation, numbering, references, etc.
b) style - formatting, "look and feel", spacing, indents, fonts, headers, footers, etc.
c) content - overall clarity, appropriate level of detail, organization, sequencing and logical flow, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, omissions, anything that sounds confusing, etc.
I can provide, upon request, a short MS Word document that describes this in more detail and provides some examples for the copyediting level.
I am a native English speaker with certification in Technical Communication, and over 25 years in the IT industry (with a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Computer Science).
I can assess your written work as a technician, a trainer (trained to communicate information to an audience effectively), an English grammar junkie, and as a member of your target audience. As such I can significantly improve the impact and professionalism of your written products....the objective is to provide reader-oriented documentation. And I work quickly!
I can edit your documentation at many levels:
a) copy editing - grammar, spelling, typos, punctuation, numbering, references, etc.
b) style - formatting, "look and feel", spacing, indents, fonts, headers, footers, etc.
c) content - overall clarity, appropriate level of detail, organization, sequencing and logical flow, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, omissions, anything that sounds confusing, etc.
I can provide, upon request, a short MS Word document that describes this in more detail and provides some examples for the copyediting level.
Credentials
Certifications
George Brown College, Certificate in Adult Instruction (training)
Awarded: 2006
Awarded: 2006
George Brown College, Certificate in Technical Communication
Awarded: 2004
Awarded: 2004
References
Mary DiLallo - Personal Reference - 2006
Smart Systems for Health Agency, Senior Project Manager
Implementation of software to broadcast public health notices to selected health care audiences. I developed training material, did quality assurance testing (and found lots of bugs), delivered training, created user documentation, created quick reference guides. Also assisted in writing the initial RFP and in the evaluation thereof.
Smart Systems for Health Agency, Senior Project Manager
Implementation of software to broadcast public health notices to selected health care audiences. I developed training material, did quality assurance testing (and found lots of bugs), delivered training, created user documentation, created quick reference guides. Also assisted in writing the initial RFP and in the evaluation thereof.
Susanna Nesbitt - Personal Reference - 2001
Blockade Systems Corp., Technical Writing Lead
Refer to my employment history - Susanna was my Lead for the first half of my time at Blockade Systems Corp., working on a large documentation suite of documentation for a multi-platform set of security software products.
Blockade Systems Corp., Technical Writing Lead
Refer to my employment history - Susanna was my Lead for the first half of my time at Blockade Systems Corp., working on a large documentation suite of documentation for a multi-platform set of security software products.
Education
University of Toronto, Master of Science, Computer Science
1977 - 1979
1977 - 1979
University of Toronto, Bachelor of Science, Computer Science
1973 - 1977
1973 - 1977
