Terry Dunkle

Editorial Consultant

Terry Dunkle, working at three monitors in his home office
I work mostly in my home office in the Georgia mountains. It’s equipped with a fireplace and lots of memorabilia, including (way off the right side of this picture) a Roy Rogers & Dale Evans lunchbox from my one-room grade school, an American-Indian stone axe, a Brownie box camera (my first journalistic aid), a county spelling-bee trophy, diplomas and certificates from Penn State and Cornell and Brown, a green eyeshade from my newspaper days, and a rattle from a rattlesnake roundup. Near those artifacts sit a Korg electronic piano and a bookshelf bearing The Reader’s Digest Bible and every issue of Reader’s Digest I produced. Above my desk hangs my 1986 Bianchi road bike, now retired. At far-left, my great-grandfather poses with his New York Central locomotive and crew. My screens show I’m a multitasker: music on the left, gardens on the right, your masterpiece in the middle.

It’s not enough to know your stuff. You must also know your readers.

Powerful writing never insists; it quietly deploys facts that bring readers to the same conclusion.

Every word in a story exists for the sake of its last line.

—Terry Dunkle

What I Do

I help experts create almost anything they need to write, say, or show—whether business, technical, scientific, or popular.

  • Written: books, articles, memoirs, essays, reviews, op-eds, proposals, white papers, corporate histories, policy memos, newspaper and magazine ads, webpages…
  • Spoken: speeches, presentations, TV and radio spots…
  • Visual: photographs, charts, illustrations…
  • Combined: user interfaces, instruction manuals…

…and, on request, the occasional limerick or jingle.

How I Work

We start with a conversation about your project. From there I can brainstorm, outline, research, draft, edit, revise, fact-check, proofread, or rehearse: whatever it takes to reach your goal.

Fees

By the hour or project, estimated in advance. The first talk is free.

Confidentiality

Your name goes on the work, not mine. I’m glad to sign an NDA.

Ready to start?

Phone or email me. You’ll reach yours truly, not an assistant.