Meet Alice

Hi! I’m Alice Douthwaite, a writer, life-long student, and professional freelance editor. I have a B.A. in English (Comparative Literature) from Santa Clara University and an MBA from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. My goal is to collaborate with you to smooth the rough edges of your writing while preserving your unique writing style (or "voice").

Currently, I’m a member of the Editorial Freelancers Association (EFA). Instead of relying on intuitive editing, I've taken a variety of classes and webinars through the EFA, including:

- "Proofreading and Copyediting with the Chicago Manual of Style," so my editing is based on established guidelines.

- "Copyediting Fiction" which helped me curb my natural tendency to re-write and instead directed me to write a side-bar query to the author.

- "Listen to the Music: An Introduction to Line Editing."

- "A Primer on Academic Editing."

- "Challenges and Joys in Working with First-Time Authors."

From April, 2016 until August, 2019 I edited the Midwest Muse, the monthly newsletter for the Midwest Fiction Writers, a Minnesota-based writers group. Producing a newsletter for authors requires acute attention to details because they notice even the tiniest glitch.

I’m a big believer in the messy first draft, in getting the story—or article or blog post or whatever—written and then revising it later. Some writers get discouraged when their first draft isn’t ready to be published right away, or when the revision process turns out to be more difficult than they expected. That’s not a reflection of their talent or skill but a completely normal part of the process for nearly all authors.

I have a profound respect for writers. Together, we'll polish your words so your message is clear and your presentation is correct. If there’s an awkward sentence, I may make a suggestion for re-arranging the words or splitting it into two. Among other things, I'll make sure your formatting is standardized across your document, your acronyms are explained, and your capitalization and hyphenation are consistent. I specialize in proper punctuation and word usage. (It’s versus its? If you’re not sure which to use, you can benefit from my expertise.)

As an avid writer and passionate reader, I’m able to relate to both sides and can help you develop an idea into an engaging and meaningful statement. Please email Alice@Paper-freeEditing.com to discuss your project, schedule with me, or inquire about my services. I look forward to working with you!