"What Exactly Do You Do as a Writer and Editor?"

By Lois Tuffin

After 15 years of being in a high-profile job with a clear title, I often get this question when I tell people what I do now. Even when I explain my new title as a professional freelance writer and editor, they still look baffled.

I get it.

Freelance writing and editing could cover anything. And most weeks, it is a dizzying combination of tasks for a range of clients.

Every professional writer has a different answer

Generally, I help people get words out of their heads and onto a page in a way that makes them proud of what they have accomplished. This could be a written page or a digital one. Either way, I make you look like a rock star as I stay behind the curtain.

To clarify as much as I can, here are some of the things I do (and have done):

1. Communications strategy to enhance your ov

erall profile and brand

1. Communications advice for dicey situations

2. Editing books

3. Proofreading documents so they are polished

4. Preparing book proposals to publishers

5. Writing press releases and business articles

6. Hosting press conferences that reporters will want to attend (and will write what you want them to say)

7. Drafting advocacy letters to get the action you need

8. Crafting fundraising letters for maximum impact

9. Rewriting website content to make it more SEO friendly (yet still catchy and readable)

10. Create profiles to highlight amazing people in an organization (even shy or humble ones)

11. Developing valuable, downloadable content to enhance new clients

12. Preparing articles on mental health and how to care for yourself in an empathetic way

13. Thanking donors or regular clients beyond the norm

14. Writing introductions to books on puzzles, cooking, and much more

15. Repurposing information and assembling it into lessons with textbooks

16. Generating emails that catch

your eye and get you to click through on a link

1. Turning business notes into a narrative storyline (really, it’s true)

2. Pumping out social-media posts to build your brand (and mine!)

3. Coming up with blog ideas then making them sing on your website

4. Researching and writing cases for investment for your charity or development

5. Social media campaigns with eye-popping images

6. Newsletters that enhance your rapport with key stakeholders

7. Interviewing people to draw out the information they are too shy to write down

8. Pitching to and producing magazine articles for a niche clientele

9. Turning transcripts into articles for those who learn by reading, not listening

10. Coaching first-time authors on structuring their books and marketing plans

11. Taking lists of Q&As and organizing them into chapters with introductions that tie them together

Does that answer your question?