The Scarlet Pen

I'm not a professional writer but I hope to be someday. Meanwhile, I belong to an online writing group, and today I got this message from someone in the group who is a published author. It was regarding an excerpt from a book of memoirs I'm writing called "Mama, Can I Hit Susan if It's Not in the Face?": Audrey, What a coincidence that I chose today to read the original "Can I Hit Susan . . ." only to find the polished version in my inbox. I would implore everyone to go back and read the first, like I just did, and then read this version; it is a perfect example of what careful rewrites, and a good editor, can do for your work. Great Job. Good luck. [End of message.] This person was referring to a second draft I had done with the help of Megan at thescarletpen.com, an online proofreading web site. I don't know if I'll ever be published, but I think I can fairly say that I most definitely would NOT be published without the help of The Scarlet Pen. If you're looking for an editor, I urge you to write for a free editing sample. more

When I saw this post, I definitely had doubts... And I haven't used Megan's services, yet... *http://thescarletpen.com/ "the Scarlet Pen" sounded like another one of those unscrupulous sites that help students to cheat *http://www.virtualsalt.com/antiplag.htm on their papers. But when I went to the site, it showed examples of the "proofreading" and "editing" services, a clear description of rates and expectations. More importantly, I no sign of being like those who say that they "assist customers by developing essays, term papers, theses, and dissertations that meet customers' unique needs. Projects requiring original field research and qualitative studies are also accommodated." *http://academia-research.com/ And equally important, she will do custom samples for clients so that they may see if her work suits their specific needs. I wonder what she would have done with this paragraph. more

Though eyebrows will raise at my giving five stars to a business whose sole proprietor is Megan McInnis, I’ve raved about her editing since before she became my wife. While studying musical composition at the University of California, Berkeley, I was assigned difficult papers for nearly every class—and struggled for C's, though my writing had won me honors in high school. When a friend with a similar problem started getting A’s, I asked about the proofreader he had hired for help with his papers. He enthusiastically gave me Megan’s number (she had not yet established The Scarlet Pen but was a full-time freelance editor). Megan’s edits helped me tremendously, showing me how to express myself more clearly and poignantly. More than improving each of my papers, Megan taught me about my particular style of writing and I was able to further improve it on my own. Megan is not only an editor, but a writing coach. more