WRITINGMelissa is a published author and prolific freelance writer, journalist and poet. She is a regular contributing writer for Shattered Magazine and Community Journal. Her blog: “A Slice of Life: Observations from the Periphery” challenges readers in a poignant, honest, sometimes quirkily humorous manner, to embrace life’s little moments with an eye toward discovering (or re-discovering) hope.
WRITING SAMPLES |
EDITINGMelissa offers professional editorial and proofreading services for website content, digital and print publications, marketing and advertising copy as well as technical and scientific research papers. Her clients benefit from her editorial experience as founding editor of the University of Alabama in Huntsville’s award-winning alumni magazine and as a copy editor for local lifestyle and business magazines.
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PUBLIC RELATIONSMelissa is full-time publicist for “Ricky j Taylor & the Live Roots Ensemble,” a bluegrass-inspired folk band. She also offers public relations services to local entrepreneurs and non-profits on a short-term, freelance basis.
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POETRYBefore she moved into fiction and journalism, Melissa was a poet. She frequently returns to this genre, which has led to songwriting opportunities and collaborations with several musicians to adapt some of her more recent poetry to song lyrics. To sum up what editors, publishers, musicians and readers say: “Melissa has a way of bringing honest emotions to her work that’s never sappy or over the top . . . her imagery is always beautiful, intricate and powerful.”
POETRY SAMPLES |
“Melissa can eloquently express through words the deepest of feelings. That is a true gift.”
-Sharon Smith Gartrell, Writer, Spanish Tutor, reader
“I first learned of Melissa’s talent for writing when she submitted a story to us for consideration in Shattered magazine. Just reading the first few paragraphs, I could see I would be a fool not to meet with her and ask (beg) her to join our Shattered writing team. Melissa tells her own stories with an honesty that keeps the reader captivated until the very end. But for me, her greatest contribution to our team is her ability to take someone else’s story and write it so compellingly you’d believe she walked through the story herself."
-Laurie Pallotta, Editor-in-Chief of Shattered Magazine
“Throughout my career, I’ve worked with a number of Press Agents, including those from Nashville. I have never encountered anyone who possessed Melissa’s wonderful blend of creativity and professionalism. She’s also an efficient organizer and communicator and a pure joy to work with.”
- Ricky j Taylor, Singer, Songwriter, “Ricky j Taylor & the Live Roots Ensemble"
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