Lori Jo Oswald

PO Box 4083 Palmer, AK 99645 907-745-5674 loswald@wordsworthwriting.net

EDUCATION

WRITING AND EDITING WORK EXPERIENCE

1/94-present             Technical Editor and Marketing, Proposal, and Business Writer                         
Wordsworth Writing, Editing, and Researching Services
As sole proprietor of Wordsworth, duties include writer, editor, proposal editor and writer, technical editor, and marketing writer. Clients include or included Terra Surveys, Hoefler Consulting, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, VECO Alaska, Bristol Environmental and Engineering, Montgomery Watson Harza (MWH Americans, Inc.), Oil Spill Consultants, EMCON Alaska, Woodward-Clyde, LCMF, CH2M Hill, URS, Alaska Business Monthly, Cox Communications, Bay Area Bride and Groom, Chabot Credit Union, Green River Community College, Kuskokwim Architects and Engineers, the OUR System, Akeela House, the Washington Geographic Alliance, Lazy Mountain Research, and more.

5/04-present             Primary Owner & Forms Designer                                           Forms in Word, LLC
Design, create, edit, and sell thousands of government forms in Microsoft Word.  Clients include federal and state agency personnel as well as the general public.  Designed, wrote, and update Web site: www.formsinword.com and handle all record-keeping.

12/01-4/03                Technical Editor and Document Designer                      ENSR Alaska (Anchorage)
Handled editing and document processing and formatting of all documents using Microsoft Word and Excel for this environmental firm.  Designed newsletters and advertisements using PageMaker.  During the first 3 months, handled over 150 documents, many with major editing and document formatting needs.  Set up production schedules and document tracking system sheets.  Set up publications file on server containing various company logos and designed templates in Word and PageMaker.  Designed and printed CD labels and covers and created CDs for delivery to the clients.  Arranged color printing services for special projects and created PDF files.  Trained others on document formatting and proofreading topics, both individually and in a classroom situation.  Edited and formatted numerous proposals and created marketing materials.

12/01-present            Marketing and Technical Writer                            Terra Surveys, LLC (Palmer, AK)
As an on-call contractor, wrote and designed all marketing materials, including Statement of Qualifications, brochures, Web site text, resumes, and project descriptions.  Rewrote and edited 244-255 forms and other proposals.  Wrote company style guide.  Created Publications folder and all subfolders on server and organized hundreds of documents, photographs, logos, and other graphics into an easily retrievable file system.  Created a document review process.

9/85-present             Newsletter Designer and Writer                                                          Wordsworth
Using PageMaker and Microsoft Word and Publisher, have designed and/or written newsletters for such clients as Alaska Pet News (also served as publisher), Landscape Supply, Chugiak Children’s Services, the Alaska State Fair, ENSR Alaska, CRW Engineering, the University of Oregon Alumni Association, the Musk Ox Cooperative, the Cottage Grove Humane Society, and STOP the Overpopulation of Pets.  Also designed and edited many U.S. military newsletters, including Restoration Advisory Board newsletters, as a subcontractor for various clients.

7/02-11/02                Technical Editor                               Minerals Management Service (Anchorage, AK)
Edited a 1,500-page Environmental Impact Statement for the Mineral Management Service.  Editing tasks involved collecting document files from various writers and editing them for mechanics, style, plain English, and logic.  Also handled all document formatting tasks, saving the agency a great deal of money in having to hire someone to format the document.  Short-term contract position.

5/03-present             Web Site Writer and Designer                                                            Wordsworth
Sample Web sites designed, written, and edited by Wordsworth include Alaska Irish Music Festival, Kikiktagruk Inupiat Corporation, Transformations Design, STOP the Overpopulation of Pets, Inc., Alaska Medical Clinics, LLC, Wordsworth Writing, Editing, & Researching Services; and Weight Loss Alaska. 

1/00-12/01                Copy Editor and Writer                                   Alaska Newspapers (Anchorage, AK)
Writer for the Oil and Gas Reporter and special publications, Alaska Journal of Commerce.  Previous work included copy editor, writer, and columnist for Business News Alaska. Copy editor and writer for Petroleum News Alaska. Wrote special ARCO history for Petroleum News Alaska.  For the summer of 2000, online copy editor for the Kodiak Daily Mirror newspaper.  Edited all reporters’ stories for AP style, grammar, and punctuation, and taught them, via e-mail, how to improve their stories.  Familiar with many styles: AP, Chicago, MLA, APA, and in-house styles.

11/94-1/96                Report Writer                                                             Oregon School Study Council
Researched, conducted interviews, and wrote reports on educational topics.  Also wrote book chapters, articles, and summaries for ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Management. Published reports: School-Based Management: Rationale and Implementation Guidelines, Priority on Learning: How School Districts Are Concentrating Their Scarce Resources on Academics, and Quality Work Teams.  Published two chapters in School Leadership as well.  Many of the shorter documents are available online.

1/93-5/94                  Associate Editor                                                                             CPM Magazine
Edited and wrote copy, conducted interviews, planned articles, researched, and contributed design suggestions for this group of agricultural magazines.  Hired freelancers, set up editorial and photo libraries.  Chief editor of Mexican and Canadian editions.  Wrote the CPM Editorial Department Style Guide and the Safety Duck Training Manual.

5/91-11/93                Editorial Assistant                                                                         Aster Publishing
Proofread scientific and technical articles for many magazines, including BioPharm, GPS World, GIS, CADalyst, Spectroscopy, Managed Health Care News, Pharmaceutical Technology, and Pharmaceutical Executive.  Wrote style and proofreading manual for all magazines.

1982-1994                Owner                                                                         Wordsworth Writing Services
Wrote and designed articles, brochures, newsletters, and reports for magazines, newspapers, businesses, and organizations.  Edited and evaluated novels, articles, and manuals for companies and individuals.  Wrote and designed public relations materials.

1/2001-12/04             Adjunct Professor                           English Department, Matanuska-Susitna College
Taught composition and technical writing courses at Matanuska-Susitna College, an extension of the University of Alaska Anchorage, including computer lab training on Microsoft Word and Internet research.  Created web site for technical writing students: www.wordsworthwriting.net/~words.

9/96-6/98                  Full-Time English Instructor           English Division, Green River Community College
Courses taught: technical and business writing, composition, practical writing, grammar and punctuation, and creative writing.  Served on English Division, In-Service, and Grading Committees.  Volunteered as a tutor at the Reading and Writing Center.  Specialized in teaching trades majors who needed to learn English and computer skills; developed and taught courses designed for these students, as well as regular academic courses.

8/94-5/95 & 1/97-5/97 Adjunct Professor                     English Department, University of Alaska Anchorage
Taught technical writing, literature, and composition courses at the Main Campus and the Chugiak-Eagle River Center.  

1/88-12/93                English Instructor                               English Department, Lane Community College
Taught composition courses (Writing 120, 121, 122, 123) at the Main Campus (1992-93) and composition, creative writing, business communications, study skills, and adult education courses at the Cottage Grove Campus (1988-1991).  Part-time: taught 2-4 courses per term.

1/89-3/91                  English Instructor                    Humanities Department, Umpqua Community College
Taught composition courses (Writing 115, 121, 122, 123).  Taught students how to use computers for composition, wrote questionnaire for all composition students evaluating computer laboratory success, and participated in department planning and reviews. Part-time: taught 2-4 courses/term.

9/86-12/93                Graduate Teaching Fellow                       English Department, University of Oregon
Taught courses in composition, scientific and technical writing, drama, fiction, and poetry.  Graded papers in many literature courses (including Fiction, Poetry, Drama, Shakespeare, World Literature, American Literature, American Literary Realism) and was a teaching assistant in Survey of American Literature and Fiction.

10/85-3/89                Academic Tutor                          Educational Support Program, University of Oregon
Tutored college athletes in writing, literature, American studies, history, physics, journalism, sociology, speech, and general study skills.  Created and ran the writing tutoring laboratory.

COMMUNITY SERVICE

• Founder and Director/President: STOP the Overpopulation of Pets, Inc., Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Alaska (founded and run this organization, which pays for spaying and neutering of pets and provides educational materials and programs to pet owners); wrote numerous successful grant proposals), 2000-present.
• Member: UAA Chugiak-Eagle River Campus At-Risk Program Development Team, (helped research and plan grant proposal as part of a three-person team), 1994.
• Member: Lane Community College-Cottage Grove Center Comprehensive Program Review Committee, 1990-91.
• Cofounder: Cottage Grove Community Center, 1990 (community campaign that led to a community center focused on helping Cottage Grove youth have a drug-free, safe environment for recreational and educational activities).
• Volunteer, Newsletter Writer and Designer, and Interim President, Cottage Grove Humane Society, 1989-92.
• Member: Anchorage Community Concert Band Board of Directors, 1982-84.
• Cofounder and President/Director: Alaska Humane Society (started and ran this organization for 3 years; it still is active in Anchorage, Alaska), 1979-82.
• Treasurer: CARE Alaska (Citizens for Animal Responsibility and Education), 1980-82.
• Member: Mayor's Advisory Board on Animal Control, Anchorage, Alaska, 1981-82.
• Volunteer: Pets & Pals, Sacramento, California, 1978.
  Founder and Volunteer: Anchorage Spay Clinic Drive (organized a campaign for a spay clinic in Anchorage while I was still in high school; campaign led to the Alaska SPCA’s spay/neuter clinic in Anchorage), 1977-78.

ADDITIONAL WRITING CREDITS

Articles and Editorials: 

• Children’s Literature in Education, Teaching English in the Two-Year College, Women’s World Weekly, Woman’s World, Petroleum News Alaska, The Frontiersman, Victimology, Grit, Bikecentennial, Woodwind Brass & Percussion, Selmer Flute World, The Instrumentalist, All Cats (columnist), Cat Fancy, Dog Fancy, Community Animal Control (4 issues), American Features Syndicate, Alaska Women (columnist), Animals, Anchorage Daily News (numerous issues), Roseburg News-Review, Alaska Business Monthly (numerous issues), Alaska Parenting News, Bay Area Bride and Groom, Business News Alaska (numerous issues), Pet Life, and many more.

Newsletters:

• Wrote and designed Alaska Pet News, Landscape Supply’s The Grower Gazette, Chugiak Children’s Services Newsletter, Alaska State Fair Newsletter, CRW Engineering News, Alaska Humane Society News, US. Air Force and U.S. Army Newsletters (subcontractor), Armstrong's Music Notes, Bingo Bugle, University of Oregon Alumni Association News, Animal Lovers Care Unit News, and Cottage Grove Elks Club News.  Edited Washington Geographic Alliance newsletter. 

Magazines and Newspapers (Writer or Editor):
Writer, Alaska Journal of Commerce Special Publications and Oil and Gas Reporter (2001-2002).
Writer and Copy Editor, Business News Alaska (2000-2001).
Writer, Alaska Business Monthly (1994-2000).
Copy Editor and Writer, Petroleum News Alaska (2000-2001).
Copy Editor, Kodiak Daily Mirror (newspaper) (2000).
Writer, Alaska Parenting News (1994-95).
Writer, Special Pet Sections, The Frontiersman (newspaper) (2001 and 2002).
Writer, Designer, and Publisher, Alaska Pet News (1998-2003).
Associate Editor, CPM Magazine (six monthly issues plus 26 newsletters) (1993-1994).
Proofreader, GIS, GPS World, BioPharm, Pharmaceutical Technology, Pharmaceutical Executive, Managed Health Care News, and CADalyst magazines (1991-1993).

Books and Reports:

• Chapter in Chicken Soup for the Dog and Cat Lovers Soul, published December 1999.
• Two chapters in School Leadership School Leadership: Handbook for Excellence, 3rd Edition, published by ERIC Clearinghouse
• on Educational Management.
• School-Based Management: Rationale and Implementation Guidelines published by Oregon School Study Council (OSSC).
• Priority on Learning: How School Districts Are Concentrating Their Scarce Resources on Academics, OSSC.
• Quality Work Teams, OSSC.
• EMCON Alaska's Statement of Qualifications (December 1994).
• Aster Publishing's Manual for Technical Proofreaders.
• CPM Magazine's Editorial Department Style and Proofreading Guide.
• Montgomery Watson’s Document Style Guide.
• Terra Surveys, LLC’s Report Writing and Style Guide.
• Children's Realistic Animal Fiction under consideration.
• Edited Wesley Earl Dunkle: Alaska's Flying Miner (Mining the American West) by Charles Caldwell Hawley, which was published in 2003 by the University Press of Colorado
• Edited hundreds of reports and other documents for various companies.

Literature Review: TNT, RDX, and Heavy Metals Disposition in Soils and Plants, April 2001.  Prepared for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory for a client.  Researched, wrote, and designed this 150-page document.
Solar Panel Remediation System: Operations And Maintenance Manual, June 2001.  Prepared for National Park Service for a client.  Researched, wrote, and designed.
Final Underground Storage Tank And Pipeline Monitoring Report, King Salmon Airport, King Salmon, Alaska, April 2001, prepared for United States Air Force for a client.  Rewrote and completely redesigned and added text and tables.
Edited hundreds of reports and other documents for various companies and books for individuals. 

Proposals:
Edited, wrote, or rewrote dozens of successful proposals for environmental and engineering firms, including proposals for (often multimillion-dollar) contracts awarded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Federal Aviation Administration, the State of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, and the Municipality of Anchorage.
Since July 2002, wrote and co-wrote grant proposals for STOP the Overpopulation of Pets, a nonprofit organization devoted to paying full cost for spaying and neutering of dogs and cats.  Over $35,000 in grants have been awarded to date.
Have edited and written numerous SF254/255 and SF330 proposals.
Designed SF330 Form in Word and sold through my own Web site (www.wordsworthwriting.net) to hundreds of architectural and engineering clients all over the United States.
Designed and sold numerous government forms in Word through www.formsinword.com.
Have written proposals for medical clinics.