I’m a writer. It’s always been my thing. Almost as soon as the Pen Fairy dropped off a parcel for me at primary school, I scrawled reams of fantastical stories onto any bit of paper I could find. As a teenager I meticulously logged my life in a diary, won awards for poetry, and proudly achieved an A for English at high school.
At university I typed up essays in the narrowest font I could find, so as to squeeze more words onto each page. I relished detailing my views of and challenging philosophical theories in written Philosophy assignments, and in my postgraduate Psychology course I produced a dissertation on Narrative Psychology because of my fascination with how people deal with life experiences through the telling of stories. My aptitude for my chosen subjects and ability to showcase this through written work meant I graduated into the real world with a couple of distinctions.
After doing so, I bid goodbye to my South African roots and made my way to the UK, where I enjoyed nearly a decade long career in marketing, with over 7 years specifically in the digital arena, in London. During this time I not only built up an invaluable working knowledge of digital marketing, but also a wealth of copywriting experience, which included writing website content, online articles, social media posts, direct mail copy, and a variety of presentations. My flair for writing and big picture commercial focus also meant I took on more operational planning and writing responsibilities, including detailing requirements for and project managing several website re-designs and launches; putting together investor presentations; and creating training presentations, customer service scripts, operational procedure documents, and job specifications.
Outside of the office I’ve always been the go-to person for family and friends to send various writing or editing requests to, from sales presentations, to advert copy, to CVs and covering letters. I get excited to be given a basic idea that I can grow, shape, and build upon to produce something special that perfectly hits the mark.
After the birth of my daughter I decided to dedicate my time to her and took some time out from my career to do so. As she approached two, our little family set off on an expedition in Southeast Asia, and I set up a personal travel blog www.veganfamilyventures.com to document and share our journey. This not only expanded my writing repertoire, but fuelled my hunger to write more.
So here I am, a versatile and commercially focused writer, eloquently able to adapt my writing style to suit purpose and audience, eager to take on your writing projects and make a difference to your brand.
Ashleigh Slade Solutions 