Our Story.
Editing isn’t just about grammar. It’s about protecting your voice, your story, and the way it connects with readers. This is how Bespoken Word came to life.
My journey into editing
Our story begins back in 2010. I had just started a Bachelor of Arts at La Trobe University, majoring in Art History and English.
It was my final semester completing my BA. I had all my Art History credits to graduate, I just needed the two remaining English ones, and from there my trajectory changed.
I had always loved reading. In Year 12, my mother decided to ban me from reading anything other than the English books I needed for VCE, as I would just spend the whole night reading and be exhausted come morning when I needed to get up for school.
So, it didn’t come as a surprise that completing a semester of only English literature put me on the path to become an editor.
It made sense to me. We all want to do what we love in life, so why not aim for a career where you get to read all day?
From art to editing
So, with that, I completed my BA and was accepted into the Master’s of Publishing and Editing program at Monash University.
This is where I learnt all the tools of the trade, for lack of a better phrase. And it was eye opening.
I think a lot of people go into editing thinking just because they love reading and understand grammar, that that’s all they need.
Far from it.
What it really means to be an editor
There are so many different skills you must learn and then apply at the same time.
You’re not simply reading and making sure it sounds “good” or “right”. You need to make sure the style guide is being applied, that there’s consistency throughout the text - no new names or places have popped up out of nowhere and anything that needs fact checking is being ticked off.
There are a myriad of things you need to look out for while also making sure it reads well and is an engaging story that will remain with readers. The point is, I learnt a lot about the editing process and what it took to become a good editor throughout my Master’s. Completing a thesis helped me understand both the writer’s side and the editor's.
Real-world experience
So, in 2015 I graduate with my Master’s and set out on the job hunt. The job market was tough. I was helping edit my friends’ uni assignments and their work, but in the actual market I was struggling.
This is when I first thought about starting up my own editing business. However, the lack of real-world experience held me back. I had never actually worked in editing, only studied it, and as much as that helps with having the knowledge to back you, I also wanted the experience. Finally, in 2017 I landed the role of copy editor for a publisher based here in Melbourne.
And wasn’t that eye opening. I’m lucky I knew a lot before heading in, because otherwise I'd be like everyone else, thinking it’s only grammar, language and sentence structure that makes a good editor, when it’s not. I learnt so much there and I’m so grateful for the more than seven years I spent there because it allowed me to hone my skills and now use them to help shape other stories.
The idea behind Bespoken Word
Now, just to back-pedal a bit before we hit 2025, go back to 2022.
In 2022 when I (Alana) reimagined the idea of an editing business, we had just come through the other side of the pandemic and life was beginning to get back to normal.
I had just spent the last two years in lockdown (Melbourne — where I live — copped the brunt of it and we’d been in and out of lockdown for 2020 and 2021), working from home and editing online and print publications for the publications I looked after. I worked for an online publisher that would sometimes print paperbacks, but mainly it was online publications and eBooks.
In the midst of this, I thought to myself, why couldn’t I do this for all kinds of publications and books, why not interact with current and future authors and try and help them make the best possible story?
So at dinner that night with my parents and sister, I brought my idea up to them. They’ve always been supportive, so they were all for it.
The only problem? I didn’t have a name… Why not use my own name? I wanted something creative and for the name to be a message to future clients as well. What that was? I had no idea…
And then my dad came up with it, and I knew it was perfect…
…BESPOKEN WORD…
It encompasses everything I wanted to say. The service is tailored to each author, and your words are bespoke.
Why now
So that was 2022, but I can hear your mind ticking… “what happened”? It’s now 2025… and look, you could be reading this in 2026 and beyond, but back to 2025.
Well, 2022 turned into a big year. I bought my first house, then went overseas in 2023. I can barely remember what happened in 2024, it all just seems like a blur and then three years pass and you realise you haven’t even started.
So, I decided to get serious about my passion, because that’s what this is. And it’s something I look forward to doing every day.
My approach to your work
And here we are, Bespoken Word is now available to help authors find their voice and their voice only.
It’s imperative for me to understand the story from the author’s perspective so that no other influences are impacting their story.
Many don’t mean to, but some try and add in their own style and their own words believing they’re helping writers when they're doing the opposite. Deviating away from the writer’s voice causes confusion and a lack of cohesion in any story.
My aim is to help authors of any kind, from books to web copy to whatever you may need, develop their best story, one that will resonate with readers for a while.
I’m not a writer, I don’t want to be a writer, my only goal is to serve your work and make it the best it can be, with no influence over the story.
So, welcome to Bespoken Word, I can’t wait to dive into your words,
Alana
