Can't take the journalist out of the girl

I’m an established copy editor and copywriter with the heart and tenacity of a journalist — perhaps because that’s where my roots lie.

I earned my journalism degree during the transition from paper to web, when the old-school journos were wary of the future and us newbies were excited for what lay ahead.

To me, it was important to know both sides intimately. For the first few years of my career, I took what I learned from the smoky old journos and my digital pioneer peers and applied it as a rookie reporter at a small Midwest paper. 

A year in, my writing and reporting skills flourished, but my editing skills were unmatched. It helped that my editor “volun-told” me to assume a second role as in-house copy editor: “You’re just naturally good at it, and we don’t have the money to hire anyone else.” (I’d been an editor for my entire school paper career.) So when given, I took the responsibility seriously, and a passion was born from it.

Later, I broke into the world of freelance — reporting and copywriting for various publications and agencies — but was able to once again flex my editing muscle as a full-time editor at a fledgling content marketing agency. For five years, I edited client articles, preparing them for publications like Forbes, Entrepreneur, and Fast Company.

In March 2020, I was laid off in the wake of COVID. But I was hired quickly as a copywriter for a large education company, where crafting email, web, and print copy became my new normal. I coveted the chance to write creatively, though all the while, editing kept calling. To tame it, I sought contract opportunities as a copy editor on the side.

But the call grew louder, and I left the education company for a role as digital content editor at Hyatt Hotels Corporation. Now, my days are once again filled with meticulous line edits, in-house style guidelines, and the wild and wonderful nuances of AP style.

It seems, no matter where my career takes me, I always find my way back to editing. I think it’s because editing requires an attention to detail that, these days, seems irrelevant or overlooked; I want to change that narrative. Because in a time where few things are credible, it feels good to know I’m contributing the sharpest tool in my box — clean, credible copy.

Note: Many of my projects in this portfolio list my maiden name, "Keefe."