Coaching

Here’s a taste of some of the feedback I’ve received from the correspondence students who have completed my one-on-one online coaching programmes, in editing, corporate writing, web copy and other areas:

ADVANCED EDITING

The course content was comprehensive, providing a basis for anyone who is in need of polishing up their own work, as well as the work of others. I personally know that I’ll now be able to produce high quality work I am confident about and can be proud of! I thought this would be an “easy on-line” course; one I would breeze through to get a quick certificate. I was wrong! It was challenging, and taught me to think carefully about the way I write – in correct and proper English. Couldn’t be happier! Whenever I had a query, it was responded to promptly, and often with extra information to help any problem areas I had…

Although the entire course was extremely beneficial, there are three learning outcomes that…have greatly improved my own written work, as well as when I edit the work of others (a task I undertake on a daily basis…) They are:

1. Redundancy:
I have found that, even in past reports, I used phrases that were redundant. This made my work “wordy” and often tedious to read. Now that I am able to notice this, I am able to write concise yet informative reports that go straight to the point, and are more enjoyable to the reader. This has been evident in the improved feedback I have received from clients.

2. Passive and Active Voice:
This is one section I struggled with in the course. Even though I think I need to work on it to perfect it, my work has improved and I find that I am writing less in the passive voice. My writing has become direct and less muddled.

3. Numbering:
Numbering within the text has always been an area that resulted in confusion for me and my colleagues. Everyone had his/her own way of numbering, which resulted in a lack of standardisation within our reports. Now that we are incorporating the correct way of numbering into our reports, I am more confident that we provide clients with a professional and publishable report.

Over and above these learning outcomes, I have a renewed enthusiasm for copy-editing and proof-reading. I find that it’s an area I would like to continue in, and I would like to expand my expertise and get more practice in this field…
- Sasha Frade-Bekker, correspondence student

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INTRO TO EDITING

Thanks for all you’ve done for Wired and the team; I’m so glad I found you!
– Karey Evett, Wired Communications

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INTRO TO EDITING

“The course content was comprehensive, providing a basis for anyone who is in need of polishing up their own work, as well as the work of others. I personally know that I’ll now be able to produce high-quality work that I am confident about and can be proud of! I thought this would be an “easy” online course, one that I would breeze through and get a quick certificate. I was wrong! It was challenging, and taught me to think carefully about the way I write – in correct and proper English. Whenever I had queries, they were responded to promptly, and often with extra information to help any problem areas that I had. Couldn’t be happier!”
- Sasha Frade-Bekker, correspondence student

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INTRO TO EDITING

“The theory and content was informative and practical… The exercises were concise, which made them easier to begin and complete. I liked the quick response time and helpful/professional comments to our exercises. The comments were clearly explained and I could make the connection to work-related writing.”
- Bavani Naidoo, correspondence student

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INTRO TO EDITING

The material was very user-friendly and easy to refer back to. I definitely learned more than expected. The exercises were not too easy, at least giving a challenge. The learning material did not spoonfeed, so by completing the exercises you gained a little bit more knowledge. Tiffany always gave positive feedback. She gave me enough information so that I understood the reason/s for re-submitting exercises and was able to complete the work. Thanks, Tiffany, for being so patient with me.
– Anja Justus, correspondence student

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INTRO TO EDITING; PRINT COPYWRITING

I certainly feel like one smart cookie! I must say that this course has really given me a lot of confidence in my writing and editing. Thanks a lot.
– Nomalizo Ngwenya, correspondence student

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INTRO TO EDITING; ADVANCED EDITING

All in all, I enjoyed working on the module. The module and amended exercises are proving such a good resource and I keep referring to them as I write. Thanks Tiffany!
- Nomsa Mwamuka, correspondence student

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WEB COPYWRITING

WOW! I am thrilled with my results – I found these exercises really challenging and had to take a step back to figure out how to handle them. Obviously it was worth it! I DID learn much from this course. Thank you, Tiffany. I’m sure that I will be doing more of your courses soon.
– Isabelle Lukeri, correspondence student

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PRINT COPYWRITING; WEB COPYWRITING

I want to compliment you. I couldn’t have asked for anyone better or more thorough. I’ve certainly learnt a great deal. And also enjoyed it very much! I am busy starting my own copywriting and web copywriting business.
– Jenny Kruger, correspondence student (now Chameleon Creative)

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INTRO TO EDITING

The exercises are ‘nicely challenging’ in that you think you know something till you interrogate it deeply and realise you have some learning to do – they are good for me and the venture I am to undertake. I am giving them my best. I found I read the module and then tackle one exercise, then I have to re-read that part of the module relevant to the exercise again, and so on. It’s an exciting venture for me… Thanks.
– Cathy, correspondence student

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INTRO TO EDITING; ADVANCED EDITING

Thanks very much, Tiffany. I enjoyed the editing modules and think they helped me become more confident in this field.
– Erin O’Brien, correspondence student

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FICTION & NON-FICTION COPY EDITING

Thanks, Tiffany – I really enjoyed it!
– Rana Eschur, correspondence student

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WEB COPYWRITING

Thanks. I enjoyed the course very much.
– Brenda Daniels, correspondence student

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For more information on the above training courses, or on any of my writing, editing or language programmes, please drop me a line on training@tiffanymarkman.co.za.