When I was s child, I got in trouble for writing on magazines in stores, on my mom’s shopping list and anything else I could find.
So a career as a journalist and writer was a natural fit.
Born, bred and buttered in England, I moved to the U.S. in 1996. I faxed more than 70 cover letters and resumes to editors in New York and as luck would have it, one of them hired me, once he’d met me in person. It must have been the flashy mint green suit.
I worked on staff at various B2B magazines in New York City, and prior to that, for a trade magazine and a photo-journalism agency in London, UK.
In 2011 I helped launch a restaurant magazine (now FSR magazine) where I worked as an editor for 18 months. I know what it’s like to be on both sides of the editor-writer relationship and one of my chief goals is making editors’ lives easier.
In my 20+ year career, I’ve written about everything from dog flatulence to diabetes but now I focus on food/beverage/restaurants/bars and retail, as well as everywhere they connect. I cover operations, marketing, development, employee retention and hiring, food and what inspires people.
Today, from my home base in the soggy Pacific Northwest, I write around 150 articles a year.
When I’m not working I’m reading, or baking, or running, or biking, or tending my little vegetable garden. And if there’s extra time on top of that I’ll do some more reading. I spend a lot of time with my daughter and my pilot husband on the weeks he’s home. The three of us play a ridiculous amount of board games and spend a lot of time laughing at our cat. I’m passionate about sustainability and reducing the amount of plastic waste in the world.
Q & A with me
01
Why hire me to write for you?
- You’ll receive accurate copy that needs minimal editing.
- I never miss deadlines.
- My stories are filled with facts, with some color thrown in.
- After more than two decades, I know what I’m writing about.
- I have an overstuffed virtual rolodex of sources, from chefs to CEOs to PRs.
02
What don’t I do?
- I don’t use words like “utilize” when “use” will do.
- I don’t pad my stories; if they’re running short, I’ll tell the editor.
- I don’t provide stories any more than 10% over the assigned story count, though often it takes a lot of cutting to get there.
03
Why do editors like me?
- I make your lives easier.
- I keep you informed if a story’s having problems or ask questions if I need to.
- I do my own fact checking.
- I provide artwork with my stories.
- There’s no need to stress when you hire me. I’ll provide everything you need from sidebars to graphs, pull quotes and contact information for sources.
- I pitch, providing ideas for future stories.
04
How much do I charge?
It varies on the story, so it never hurts to ask, but my rates are in line with the going rates for high-quality B2B journalism work.
05
What’s the strangest place I’ve ever done an interview?
In a laundromat in New York.
At least it was warm.
06
What’s my favorite story?
That’s a hard one, but I think it’s this story about the future of packaging. Reducing plastic waste is something I have strong opinions about. I learned a lot and felt hopeful while researching this piece.
But I have a deep love for this essay/reported article, too, on a hotel restaurant in Oregon.