👋 Start Here (Welcome!) Hello and welcome! I’m Teresa — Irish, living in Spain — and I’m a writer, editor, and English tutor. This is a calm, encouraging studio to help you draft, revise, and polish your writing (ESL writers very welcome). ✅ Do these 3 things first 1️⃣Introduce yourself below using this template: What I’m writing: Genre/goal: Writing in English as: native / ESL Biggest challenge right now: One thing I’d love help with: 2️⃣Post your goal for this month (even one sentence is perfect). 3️⃣Ask a question or jump into the Prompt of the Week. 🗂️ Where to post what 🔸Questions: anything craft, editing, structure, ESL clarity, submissions, etc. 🔸Feedback Requests: please include what kind of feedback you want (big picture / line-level / ESL clarity). 🔸Prompts & Practice: short exercises + sharing. 🤝 How feedback works here (keep it cosy) 🔸Feedback is consent-based: only give critique when someone asks for it. 🔸For public feedback, please share up to 300 words (or one short paragraph). 🔸I’ll usually reply with 1–3 practical suggestions you can try straight away. 🗓️ Weekly rhythm (simple + steady) 🔸Mon: Weekly focus + goals 🔸Wed: Prompt + share thread 🔸Fri: Office hours + wins 🔗 Handy links 🔸Community Guidelines: [LINK] 🔸Studio Bookshelf Index: 🔗 🔸Monthly 'Now Reading' thread: [LINK] 🔸Prompt of the Week: [LINK]

Hello everyone, and a warm welcome to our new members 💛 I thought I’d share a small idea from the course today. When we edit our own writing, it’s easy to jump straight to spelling, punctuation, and small corrections. This can mean we spend a lot of time polishing writing that may not have a place in the final piece. Good editing often starts much earlier than that. Before polishing a sentence, it can help to ask four simple questions: 🔸Is the meaning clear? 🔸Is this in the right place? 🔸Does the tone sound like me? 🔸Is there anything here that the reader does not need? Only after that do we need to worry about grammar, punctuation, and final proofreading. So, here’s a gentle writing/editing prompt for today: Choose one paragraph, post, email, scene, article, or piece of writing you are working on, and ask yourself: What does this piece really need from me today — clarity, structure, voice, or polish? You don’t need to share the writing itself unless you want to. But I’d love to know: ➡️Which of those four areas do you usually struggle with most?

Hello everyone, and a very warm welcome to our new members 💛 I know I’ve been a little quiet in here recently, but I’m very happy to see the community growing, and I’m glad you’re here. This week, I’m spending a lot of time writing content for my new website and finishing up some editing projects that are currently on my desk. I’m hoping to get them finished by the weekend, as I’ll be travelling next week. So, let’s have a gentle check-in: What are you working on this week? It could be a writing project, an editing task, a course, a book, a creative idea, or simply trying to get back into a rhythm. Share as much or as little as you like below. I’d love to hear what everyone is doing. #WritingCommunity #EditingLife #WritersCommunity #CreativePractice #AmWriting #SelfEditing #WritingAndEditingStudio

1. Know what service you need. Editing and proofreading are not the same thing. Editing looks more deeply at clarity, structure, wording, and consistency. Proofreading is the final check before publication. 2. Send the cleanest version you can. Do not send a messy first draft unless you are asking for developmental help. Fix obvious mistakes, remove notes to yourself, and make the manuscript as complete as possible. 3. Be honest about your budget and deadline. Good editing takes time. A rushed job may cost more, and a low budget may limit what can realistically be done. 4. Choose the right professional. Look for someone with suitable experience, training, or subject knowledge. Once you choose them, trust their expertise. 5. Give a clear brief. Explain what kind of help you want. Do you want a light polish, detailed copyediting, proofreading, formatting checks, or feedback on structure and flow? 6. Send all the necessary files.Include the manuscript, style sheet if you have one, brief, deadline, publishing plans, and any specific instructions. 7. Mention your preferences. Tell the editor about spelling choices, tone, audience, formatting requirements, or words and phrases you want to keep. 8. Be available for questions.Your editor may need to query unclear wording, missing information, or inconsistencies. Try to respond in good time. 9. Do not create artificial urgency. Editors and proofreaders usually have other projects booked. Give as much notice as possible and avoid last-minute deadlines unless absolutely necessary. 10. Respect the professional relationship. Treat your editor or proofreader as part of the team helping you make the book better, not as someone simply “fixing mistakes”. 11. Be open to feedback.Comments and tracked changes are not personal criticism. They are there to help the work become clearer, stronger, and more professional. 12. Understand that not every suggestion is compulsory. You remain the author. But if your editor raises the same issue several times, it is worth taking seriously.

A quick community update: I’ve now completed the full 14-module self-editing course, and I’m currently working through the final edit of the accompanying workbook. This course is designed to help writers edit their own work with more clarity, confidence, and purpose. It gives a practical overview of the self-editing process, helps demystify editing, and shows writers how to strengthen a draft before submission or before working with an editor. The workbook is being designed as a practical companion, with exercises and prompts to help you apply what you learn to your own writing. I’m really excited about this and looking forward to sharing more soon. What part of self-editing do you find most difficult: