Amy J. Boyer Writing • Editing • Editorial Systems Getting the word out for the earth and its people

Great communications help great organizations do their job even better. I offer a suite of skills that can help you broaden your reach, bring complex projects to completion, or increase your efficiency.

• Writing: Everything from short, sweet press releases to complex, heavily researched documents.
• Editing: Tidying commas, enforcing consistency, bringing clarity.
• Design and Layout Lite: Creating style templates, laying out newsletters, basic typesetting. Why lite? If you want clarity and readability, I can provide it. If you need something to look fabulous, I will happily work with your designer.
• Project coordination: Pulling together contributions from multiple authors, arranging review by experts, synthesizing feedback, making a whole out of diverse parts.
• Editorial systems: Making Microsoft Word work for you efficiently by creating templates, designing workflows, customizing tools, programming new functions or making existing ones more powerful.

I’m flexible and willing to take on small projects as well as large. I enjoy working for non-profits and am happy to work with you so you get the maximum benefit for your budget.

Sample Projects

Putah Creek: Flowing Through Our Communities and Our Lives

Who I worked with: EDAW and Putah Creek Council (2008)

Summary: Worked with a team of environmental professionals to produce a lively, fact-filled, beautiful book (105 pages) on the ecology of Lower Putah Creek.

What they needed: A writer with a lively style and a commitment to facts who could unify diverse voices.

What I did

• Set initial project milestones in consultation with the project designer.
• With the project manager, facilitated meetings.
• Researched and wrote the chapter “Constant Changes: An Ecological History of Putah Creek.”
• Coordinated expert review of book sections.
• With the rest of the team, assembled photos and provided feedback on drawings.
• Synthesized edits from the team and comments from outside reviewers to ensure accuracy of fact and unity of style.

The Berryessa Snow Mountain Region: The Undiscovered Landscape

A Status Review and Management Recommendations for a National Conservation Area (Working Draft)

Who I worked with: Tuleyome (2008)

Summary: Working closely with Tuleyome’s president, created an 81-page report for legislators and potential supporters that presented the argument for creating a nearly 500,000-acre National Conservation Area (NCA) in the California Coast Ranges.

What they needed: A writer who knew the natural history of the area and could drive the project to completion.

What I did

• Researched and wrote sections on cultural history, conservation biology, and public lands within the NCA.
• Integrated sections from other writers.
• Coordinated review by local experts and Tuleyome board members.
• Coordinated copyediting with an outside editor.
• Designed an attractive layout, flowed text into the layout, and contributed photographs.

To see the report, click here.

Putah Creek News: The newsletter of the Putah Creek Council

Who I worked with: Putah Creek Council (2004-2008)

Summary: Took the semiannual newsletter from concept to print-ready output.

What they needed: A writer and editor who could also do layout at a reasonable cost.

What I did

• Decided newsletter content in consultation with the executive director.
• Wrote two or more articles per newsletter on Putah Creek natural history and Putah Creek Council volunteers and restoration sites.
• Assembled and prepped photos.
• Edited articles from the executive director and other staff and volunteers.
• Did the newsletter layout and transmitted it to the printer.

To see sample newsletters (volumes 15-19), click here.

A Unicode Workflow for Classical Greek

Who I worked with: American School of Classsical Studies at Athens (2006)

Summary: Helped ASCSA move from a Xywrite-based workflow to an efficient Unicode-savvy workflow based on Microsoft Word and Adobe InDesign.

What they needed: Someone who could apply an understanding of editorial procedures and Visual Basic for Applications in Microsoft Word to the quirks of word processing classical Greek.

What I did

• Designed a workflow that efficiently prepared authors’ files in Microsoft Word for smooth flow into Adobe InDesign typesetting templates.
• Wrote Visual Basic for Applications procedures, which could run on all files in a directory or a single file at a time, that automatically standardized file formatting and improved typography.
• Created Microsoft Word style templates and customized toolbars for quickly assigning design elements in manuscript files.

How to Start Working with Me

We start with a no-cost, no-obligation, no-pressure consultation, discussing your needs and how best to fill them. Once we’ve decided on the work to be done, I send you a bid letter, outlining the work agreed on, its timeframe, and its estimated cost. For large jobs, I request a deposit of half the fee, or negotiate a fee structure that allows for regular payment. Once I have your signature, deposit, and any supporting materials, I get rolling!

To Get in Touch

Call me at (530) 204-8314
or send email to ajboyer at gmail dot com.