Hello, I’m Tess Marie, freelance proofreader of clean romances
At a young age, my love of reading led to a love of writing, and I knew the only job for me was one that involved working with words. Growing up, I enjoyed novels by Phyllis A. Whitney, Victoria Holt, Dorothy Eden, and countless other romance authors. These memorable stories warm a special place in my heart. I’ve since published six novels of my own—five of them romances—all highly rated. I live with my husband and five children in the Midwest, which has provided rich inspiration for my novels’ settings.
Through the years, I’ve honed my natural proofreading skills with plenty of study and experience. After working as an associate editor on a university literary magazine, I proofread listings for a local volunteer center, then moved on to proofing assorted website content, articles, nonfiction, and fiction. But clean romance remains one of my favorite genres. I’m a full member of the American Copy Editor’s Society (ACES) as well as a graduate of the College of Media and Publishing.
Be sure to view author testimonials of my work through my proofreading site ChristianProofreaders.com. (Yes, I’m a Christian and adhere to an ethical and moral code of conduct, but I do proofread nonreligious romances—I merely ask that they be fairly clean.) You can also view additional novels I’ve proofread through NovelProofreader.com.
My Credentials
College of Media and Publishing
• Proofreading and Editing course (level 4 diploma), with distinction
– CPD, EIDL, & IADL accredited
Edit Republic
• High-Level Proofreading and Copyediting Pro course
Editorial Freelancers Association
• Copyediting Fiction course
• Proofreading and Copyediting with The Chicago Manual of Style
The Publishing Training Centre
• Editing Fiction course
American Copy Editors Society
• Poynter ACES Certificate in Editing
• ACES Academy Webcast: Grammar Arcana
• ACES Academy Webcast: Small Changes, Big Difference
Proofreading Academy
• Becoming A Proofreader course, with distinction
Training courses by recognized editors
• Editing Fiction at Sentence Level – Louise Harnby
• The Keys to Effective Editing – Jacquelyn Landis
• Copyediting and Line Editing for Fiction – Jennifer Lawler
The PEN Institute
• Editing Romance Novels 201 Lesson Pack
• Copyediting Fiction 101 Lesson Pack
• Proofreading 101 Lesson Pack
American Christian Fiction Writers
• Virtual workshop presented by Tessa Afshar
– The Essentials of Editing
University of Wisconsin-Waukesha
• AAS Degree, with focus on English and writing
– 4.0 GPA
– Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society
– English department honor award
– Associate editor of the Windy Hill Review literary magazine