Why me?

I help clients to get their message across loud and clear
while making them look like top professionals. Whether translating, writing new
content or editing text, Language Finesse adds authority to client
communications.

Services offered in both English and Afrikaans

Ø  Editing – correcting text in any format,
attending to inconsistencies, structural problems, omissions, tone, register,
language usage, conciseness, functionality and general suitability for the
specific readers

Ø  Writing and content creation –
researching and writing corporate material, website copy, educational and other
texts, promotional material, blogs and online content on various subjects;
compiling reports or other texts from rough data or drafts provided; developing
tables and graphics to simplify and illustrate content

Ø  Rewriting or overwriting – ensuring
that texts meet specific criteria, for example simplicity based on plain
language principles; clear, concise business communication; English for second-language
readers; curriculum compliance; submission requirements for academic journals

Ø  Proofreading – ensuring that text and
graphics to be published or printed perfectly reflect the original and the desired
layout, and are free of errors

Ø  Indexing – back-of-book, ebooks,
periodicals and document collections

Ø  Copywriting – for advertising or
promotion

Ø  Website content writing – with SEO
optimisation

Ø  Translation – from Afrikaans into
English or English into Afrikaans; also localisation

Ø  Project management – especially of
publications to be translated into all official South African languages
simultaneously

Ø  Training – conducting workshops on
editing, plain language writing, writing to meet curriculum requirements,
implementing house styles

Qualifications

Ø  BA,
University of Pretoria, 1976. Majors: English, Latin, Philosophy

Ø  BA
Hons Latin, University of Pretoria, 1977

Ø  Accreditation
by the South African Translators’ Institute (SATI), having passed examinations
for editing and translating, 1999

Ø  Stellenbosch
University course in Technical Translation and Editing, and Translation Theory
(Basic and Advanced), 2005

Track record

Self-employed since founding Pearson Editorial cc in 1989,
now trading as Language Finesse. Past and present clients have included
numerous South African book publishers and international publishers (e.g. Pearson
Education, Heinemann, Oxford University Press), corporates (e.g. Discovery
Group, Standard Bank, Universities South Africa), educational institutions
(e.g. READ Educational Trust, Vaal University of Technology, North-West
University) and government departments and parastatals (e.g. Pan South African
Language Board, National Language Service, Department of Science and Technology).

Over the years I have edited, written, translated, indexed
or commissioned well over 100 books in print, covering everything from business
communications to general non-fiction and technical material, as well as every
level of educational and academic books.

I have authored or co-authored six textbooks still in use at
educational institutions, starting with Science
of Tourism for Pearson Education,
published in 2007. The most recent was Viva
Life Orientation Grade 12, published by Vivlia in 2013. Its sister volume, Viva Life Orientation Grade 10 (2008), has
sold over 160 000 copies so far. My latest book is Love Being You – Resource and Workbook to Become All You Want to Be, Motivational
Press, Melbourne, Florida, USA, 2014.

I have translated several books and numerous smaller
documents, and was responsible for managing the translation and publication of
four multilingual series of books for the Foundation Phase.

Having compiled indices for several major books, I received
the Association of Southern African Indexers and Bibliographers (ASAIB) Award
for Best Index 2004-2005 for my back-of-book index of the three-volume title Infectious Diseases of Livestock (2 159
pages) published by Oxford University Press.

I present training courses for authors and clients on
writing plain English, publishing curriculum-compliant material and editing. My
most recent workshop presentations, in September 2017, were on General Principles of Editing and Specific Issues in English Editing for
the Free State chapter of SATI.

I have served on the SATI mentorship programme to guide inexperienced
translators and editors, and have marked the papers of candidates for the SATI
translation and editing accreditation examinations.

I was a member of the Executive Committee of the South
African Freelancers’ Association (SAFREA) in 2012-2013 and held the office of
Oversight Committee Convener of SAFREA in 2016-2017.

For a number of years I served as a language reviewer for
the University of Phoenix, Arizona.

Earlier experience

Ø  1987-89
– copywriter and producer for Ideas Advertising Agency

Ø  1985-87
– publishing services manager for Southern Book Publishers, overseeing various
freelance editors, proofreaders, designers, artists and translators.
Responsible for ensuring quality and consistency across all books, with proper
adherence to house style, manuscript requirements and schedules

Ø  1980-85
– commissioning and in-house editor for Macmillan South Africa, later Southern
Book Publishers. Responsibilities included every aspect of editorial work in
general non-fiction and business publishing, plus educational books from
primary to tertiary level as well as technical. Also author liaison and
guidance, developing house style documents, budgeting and scheduling

Ø  1978-80
– Academic commissioning and in-house editor for McGraw-Hill

Membership of professional associations

Ø  South
African Translators’ Institute (SATI) www.translators.org.za Accreditations:
Editing English and Afrikaans, Translation Afrikaans-English and
English-Afrikaans

Ø  South
African Freelancers’ Association (SAFREA) www.safrea.co.za Formerly Oversight
Convener; Chair: Gauteng South; National Exco Member: Professional Development