I manage text. Whether I’m writing a 12-page newsletter for a
small nonprofit or editing a 100-page annual report for a large
corporation, I ensure the manuscript I’m working on is
succinct, lucid, and clear. I guarantee that your publication
whether it’s virtual, print, or broadcast media will
successfully communicate its message to your audience. I accomplish
this by writing and editing an array of documents, including:

Advertising & Marketing Materials

Annual Reports

Articles

Donor Letters (Solicitation & Acknowledgment)

Grant Proposals

Manuals

Newsletters

Novels

Presentations

Short Fiction

Textbooks

Web Pages

WHAT I GOT

I’m an award-winning fiction writer with an MFA in Writing and
a BA in English. I have over ten years of experience in a broad
range of professional environments, from two-person firms to
international companies with thousands of employees. I’ve
received professional training in accounting; purchasing and materiel
management; payroll management; human resources (recruitment and
training); and grant writing. This means I’m fluent in the
dialect of business, in virtually any functional area. I’m
equally comfortable working on Macintosh and Windows platforms, and
am highly skilled in utilizing a variety of software applications,
from design programs (Illustrator, Freehand, Quark and InDesign) to
database systems (Excel, Access, FileMaker Pro and QuickBooks).

WHAT YOU GET

My combined academic credentials, employment experience and
professional training allow me to write and edit materials for your
organization with outstanding efficiency and expertise.

WHAT IT’S WORTH

I live in a small town in Northern California. My overhead is extremely
low, which means I can offer big-city moxie at small-town prices.
Typically, I work according to an established hourly rate. My hourly
rate depends on a number of factors, such as the complexity of the
document, its length, and the level of urgency required. For most jobs,
however, my rate will be significantly lower than national or state
averages for professional editing and writing services (if you’d like
to investigate rates for editing and writing, you can visit the U.S.
Dept. of Labor’s Occupational Outlook Handbook
site). In addition to charging by the hour, I’m also willing to arrange
alternate terms, including: fixed fee, combination (fixed fee and an
hourly rate), and working on a retainer.

WHAT
THEY SAY

Kind words about me and my work from satisfied clients…

“Kind words go here,” writes David Reid, Owner, Advanced
Business Automation, Chicago, Illinois.

“Kind words go here,” writes Quintan Ana Wikswo,
Marketing Director, Smuin Ballets, San Francisco, California.

“More kind words go here,” writes John Servilio, First
Resort for Well-Being, Arcata, California.

WHAT TO DO

1. Contact me (by phone or e-mail) to discuss the nature of the work,
the deadline you need to meet, the intended audience for the work,
and your in-house style.

2. I will provide you with a free estimate, which includes my hourly
rate and the amount of time I’ll need to complete the job.

3. If you’re satisfied with the estimate, I will then submit a
contract that details your expectations and my payment terms. After
we’ve both signed the contract, I get to work.

3. You can call me You can e-mail me by clicking
here.

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

People often ask me if John Austin is my real name.
This is usually followed up with a question about whether or not it’s
my stage name. Yes, John Austin is my real name. I
got off lucky. I have two sisters, whose first and middle names are,
respectively, Misty Dawn and Wendi Gayle. My mother has told me
that, if I’d turned out to be a girl, she might have named me
Dusty Rhodes or possibly Rainy Day. So you see, the All-American
quality of John Austin is AOK with me. (My apologies to all the
Dustys and Rainys out there.)