Tom Bentley
Accomplishments
Writing: Professional writer for many years, with comprehensive experience in business, magazine and newspaper writing for Web and print. Author of hundreds of freelance articles, from essays to travel to journalism. Author of several books, both nonfiction and fiction, including a how-to writing book, a short-story collection published by a small press and a self-published coming-of-age tale novel, as well as Aftershock, set in San Francisco just after the 1989 earthquake. My latest novel is a collaborative work set in Prohibition-era Boston, Swirled All the Way to the Shrub.
Broad experience with publication planning/management and large document organization. Fast content production, content problem-solver, and deadline-deliverer.
Editing: Editor of 100+ nonfiction books, both technical and consumer. Editor of broad range of marketing and technical communications. Edited newsletter for local branch of National Writers Union. Experienced in copyediting, substantive content editing and proofreading.
Publishing: Good understanding of GUI-based HTML editing, minor coding and “quick and dirty” desktop publishing. Author of online help for several software products.
SKILLS
Excellent writing and copyediting skills
Project planning, management and large document organization
Windows and Macintosh technical documentation
Online documentation
“Quick and dirty” desktop publishing
Work Experience
Owner, Copyediting & Copywriting Services (dba The Write Word) 8/96 to present
Writing and editing marketing and technical documents for high-tech, new media and enterprise businesses. Projects include writing/editing Web content, press releases, ads, direct response/targeted mail, case studies, user documentation, brochures, white papers, and many types of marketing collateral. Author of Safe Computing (UnTechnical Press, 2000), consumer book on safe computing practices.
Senior Copywriter, Earth, Sea & Sky Vacations, Watsonville, CA 7/06 to 8/08
Writing and editing Web content, feature articles, marketing copy and extensive property listings for travel consolidator focused on Los Cabos. Writing/editing tasks included substantive work on multiple publications, including 186-page vacation guide, 56-page Insider’s Guide, print ads, podcasts and multiple company websites with broad writing/editing needs. Managing outside writers.
Writing, editing and layout work on three monthly and quarterly company newsletters, making newsletters more informative, readable and relevant. Wrote/produced measurably effective, high-conversion rate email campaigns (implemented through Constant Contact system).
8/04–8/05 Instructor, College of Micronesia, Kosrae, Federated States of Micronesia
Taught a range of English department courses to non-native speakers at two-year college. Courses included Expository Writing I and II, Advanced Writing and Advanced Reading (essentially a literature survey course). Position encompassed preparing lesson plans, incorporating outside texts to augment assigned texts, exam preparation and grading, and final evaluations.
3/91–8/96 Senior Copywriter, Maxis, Walnut Creek, CA
Wrote documentation for entertainment and educational software, helping to define user-manual templates and scope. Major player in establishing high writing standards for Maxis products across the board. Researched and wrote notable supplemental texts for manuals. Wrote and produced online documentation and in-game text and dialog. Edited ads and marketing collateral. Wrote company style guide. Supervised junior writers.
Education
Master of Arts in English (Creative Writing), 4.0 GPA
San Francisco State University
Bachelor of Arts in English, Honors
Awarded Departmental Distinction in English
Sonoma State University
Software Proficiency
| Microsoft Word | Adobe Dreamweaver | Adobe Photoshop |
| Microsoft Excel | Adobe InDesign | Adobe InCopy |
| Macintosh and Windows OS | Adobe Framemaker | Adobe Acrobat |
| Google Drive/Docs | Dropbox, Perforce (digital asset management) | Wiki markup, Knowledge Bases, Virtual Machines (Windows) |
References, publications list and writing samples available upon request.