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The proof of the pudding is in the editing
Introducing the business
The Write Touch –
your passage to publishing.
Specialising in memoirs and fiction from first-time and established authors.
Poetry and children’s books.
Academic and research material.
All genres welcome.
Introducing the owner
Over the course of her career working in the literary space, Marie Pietersz has acquired an amazing insight into writing and its impact on readers. She has an eagle eye for content and sound judgement on the criteria necessary to make a book entertaining, enlightening and educational, enhancing the sensory process of the reader.
Marie started discovering her love for writing as a speech writer in the public service and as an English tutor. She used her high exposure to responsibility for speeches by senior government officials, publications and website creation to understand what good writing really does to the reader.
She started her freelance literary career in 1996 working as a manuscript assessor and editor with well-known Australian book publisher Sid Harta Publishers and Prints, a publishing house in Melbourne giving first-time and established authors leadership and guidance to get their manuscripts assessed, polished and published. She rose to be Managing Editor, training and developing the publisher’s team to provide a standard of service in a niche book market, making it easy for writers to choose this publisher over others in the same market. During this time, she has helped hundreds of authors to polish their manuscripts and get them ready for publication by giving them the write touch.
By establishing The Write Touch, she hopes to be able to help new and returning authors with the mentoring and guidance they need from the time they hand over their precious manuscript to the time when they become published authors. With her team of professional and caring manuscript assessors, editors, proofreaders, to talented book cover designer and typesetter, to printer and public relations experts, she wants writers to use the team’s creative skills and experience in their literary journey to authorship.
The Write Touch provides new writers with an avenue to becoming a published author, a new voice on the literary block. Writers are sometimes overwhelmed with going through an unknown process alone, but The Write Touch provides a mentoring service, giving confidence to anxious new writers to take their first steps. From paperback novels and old-fashioned hardbacks, to e-books and family memoirs, her keen guidance and strong encouragement to writers to turn their writing dreams into print has not only benefited authors looking for the next step in their writing careers but also those who return over and over again once they have experienced this promise.
Marie looks forward to working with both new voices and published authors. She will craft your content, collaborate with experts and help with getting your unique writing style and perspective to reach a public audience, making it recognisable. So, if you’re in need of literary services or publishing mentorship, get in touch below.
Introducing the team
(our editorial team is based interstate and internationally)
Barbara has worked for 15 years working in the publishing industry and has cultivated an invaluable skillset in publishing, writing and editing. She worked at a literary agency at the start of her career and then moved on to establishing New Author Literary Services. She provides authors with manuscript assessments, mentoring, copy-editing and proofreading. She works with both publishers and individual clients and has helped hundreds of authors polish their manuscripts to get them ready for publication. Her areas of expertise include literary fiction, crime and thrillers, romance, historical fiction, poetry, memoir and autobiography.
Bronwin has been editing in various roles for more than twenty years and freelancing since 2019. She is an IPEd accredited editor since 2024 and continues to engage in professional development. As a published author, Bronwin understands the nuances of the publishing process and the needs of clients. She edits a broad range of written material, from narrative to technical documents. She has particular interest in fiction and scientific texts.
Gail has a PhD in higher education and a Graduate Certificate of Editing and Electronic Publishing. She is a Professional Member of the Institute of Professional Editors (IPED) and an Adjunct Associate Professor at Southern Cross University. She specialises in academic editing, memoir, and fiction (particularly historical fiction) and is interested in manuscripts that are biographical and autobiographical. Her editing skills include manuscript assessment, copyediting, developmental editing, and structural editing. She has been both editor and senior editor for two higher education teaching and learning journals, and has been an assessor for Australian national teaching awards in higher education for many years.
Dr Jane is an experienced academic editor with a further history of 25 years’ experience as an academic researcher, writer and lecturer and supervisor in higher education. She has extensive experience in editing and proofreading multiple forms of academic texts, including research dissertations (particularly PhDs), journal articles, book chapters and book manuscripts, research reports for internal and external stakeholders, and program accreditation documents. She loves proofreading non-fiction. This experience and her own research background in philosophy make her a thorough proofreader with an eye for detail and clarity. Jane is an associate member of IPEd, the Institute of Professional Editors.
Jenn is a passionate fiction editor, writer and bookkeeper with 10+ years of experience. Working predominately with Australian-based indie authors, she specialises in fantasy, cosy mystery and romance fiction. With a lifelong love of stories and storytelling, Jenn has been writing since childhood. Her editing philosophy is one of nurture and encouragement that sees writers learn and grow in their craft and unlock their potential. Editing is a collaboration between editor and author, where the editor’s role is not just to polish a manuscript, but to offer a fresh perspective that enhances and complements the author’s skill and storytelling. She has a background in archaeology and history of ancient civilisations and so enjoys worldbuilding and getting into the finer details of the plot, characters and setting, making sure all of the pieces work together and offering creative insights when needed. Jenn is a professional member of IPEd (Institute of Professional Editing), and is on the Victorian branch committee.
Peter is a graduate of Melbourne, Monash and RMIT universities and been a freelance editor since 2013. He has edited PhDs, self-help books, history, fiction, among many other texts. He has also published short stories and history, and has worked as an editorial advisor on many projects. Peter has many written testimonials to his credit.
Dr Sally is an international educator, editor and academic with over 50 published articles, book chapters, reviews and conference proceedings. She is a Senior Editor for Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice and a member of the Institute of Professional Editors. One of her hobbies is growing and judging orchids.
Susan remembers the thrill of holding her first published book in her hand. That’s why she likes working with first-time authors to realise their dream. She has recorded and written people’s memoirs and edited everything from business books to self-help manuals. She particularly likes to work with fiction, history and biography/memoir. She can also provide an index at the back of the book that allows readers to find information quickly. She is an Accredited Editor with the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) and sits on the Council of the Australia and New Zealand Society of Indexers (ANZSI). Susan has many written testimonials to her credit.
Tony offers a very broad editing experience based on a lifetime spent totally immersed in and around the many divisions of writing, editing and publishing. This includes newspapers, magazines, journals and full-length books – fiction and non-fiction.
Deborah has been a proofreader for over 12 years, and has worked on both fiction and non-fiction books and magazines during that time. Her main areas of interest are biography and autobiography, religion and murder/mystery. However, she also enjoys working in other genres as well.
Kevin is a former newspaper journalist, editing copy and designing pages for major titles including The Australian, the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph. He also has edited, proofread and designed books. He has prepared books for print and online distribution. Apart from proofreading for Sid Harta, in the past few years he has been one of the editors on Grantlee Kieza’s best-selling books on famous figures in Australia’s history. He is experienced in typesetting.
Luke has worked on cover design and book layout for many years. He works with both independent authors, organisations and publishers. He particularly enjoys collaborating with authors to help convey the spirit of their work, and to give them a marketable, professional finished product. Extensive author testimonials may be found at on his website. He uses Adobe InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop to create his designs, and also assists authors with e-book conversion and a variety of promotional material. He has excellent links with illustrators, printers and other related service providers. Luke posts often to his blog, focusing on helpful resources and hints for author clients. Luke specialises in cover design, text design, e-book formatting, author websites, print-on-demand, print management, illustrations and maps, advertising and PR.
Andrew’s printing company has been responsible for printing a wide range of books from the family story through to coffee table books for art galleries. It has a well-established reputation with a variety of publishers and can provide a wide range of print and binding services. It offers a personal and discreet service to all of its customers and ensures a prompt and efficient quality service that meets customer expectations. Having been in the trade for over 45 years it offers good advice on the type of printing and binding that would best provide authors with value for money.
Mal has been operating his printing business for over 16 years producing an unlimited range of print and marketing items for a wide range of clients in Australia. The staff have been involved in printing for over a collective 140 years. Much of this experience has been with the production of book manufacturing. An area of particular expertise is in book production with a strength in short run book printing from as little as 20–50 copies and up to 2000+ books and delivering these Australia wide (and overseas where necessary). Books such as paperback novels, (fiction and non-fiction), children’s books, illustrated books, poetry books, anthologies, magazines, biographies, histories, memoirs, gift/specialities, and also hardcover and soft cover works. He also produces anything that can be printed such as business cards, banners, flyers, folders, slipcases, marketing cards, reports, and much, much more. If You Can Imagine it, he can print it! Quotes can be provided within 24–48 hours and book production within 5–8 days, (except hardcover, usually within 3–4 weeks).
Melissa is a freelance journalist, PR and communications specialist based in Sydney. Her public relations and communications skills have seen her work for large- and small-scale businesses as well as individuals across a range of industries from property to publishing. Her articles have been published across local and national publications, and she loves a good yarn. When she’s not at her desk, Melissa teaches Pilates to people from all walks of life.
