About me

My name is Martin Payne. I am an experienced proofreader and copy-editor with a wide knowledge across a range of subjects. After completing my degree and PGCE, I taught Maths and Physics to A level for six years before moving into IT, creating and delivering training courses for a large UK computer company. I wrote training manuals for all the courses I developed and provided the department's quality assurance function for courses produced by other instructors.

I moved to France in the 1990s and worked at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. I was responsible for managing the IT facilities and connectivity for the Council of Europe libraries that were introduced in the capitals of the former Eastern bloc countries. This involved producing and editing extensive documentation with an emphasis on English that was clear and easy to understand.

After returning to the UK, I continued to work in IT industries, initially in technical delivery roles, before moving into project management. I have delivered dozens of IT (and other) projects, all of which had a requirement for considerable documentation that needed to be accurate and clear. At one company, I had ultimate responsibility for document quality and was responsible for the final proofread of all documents before they could be issued to customers.

I still provide some IT project management, but have been transitioning over the last couple of years into freelance proofreading and editing, working with my wife at Elegant Words. In addition to a fascination for words, I have a strong interest in technology, science, maths, sport (most sports and in particular football, rugby union, cricket and motor racing), photography, finance and business.
I am a Professional Member of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP).