The Turners started correcting papers back in 1950 when the matriarch began teaching in the public school system. Since then, various members have branched out into writing and editing, both fiction and non-fiction.
Jeannie
Jeannie (the matriarch) has taught in the public school system for many years, starting off with elementary classes in Nebraska and southern California, then branching out to seminary classes in central California, and finally teaching English 1A at California State University, Sacramento. She raised her children to be inquisitive—always having a dictionary, thesaurus, and encyclopaedia within reach at the dining room table where conversations roamed from the subtle to the sublime. She loves playing with words and writing poetry for every occasion. A voracious and speedy reader, she admires the power of punctuation—occasionally seen to get emotional over a comma. She is available to give feedback on just about any topic related to Grammar.
Westley
Westley (the instigator) eschewed any of the creative arts in his youth, preferring the hard sciences and maths. Later in life, as he was raising his own children, he realised that the bedtime stories he invented on the fly were worthy of saving so started writing them down, developing a release for his creativity. Finding other writers in the area, he discovered that his ingrained knowledge (garnered around that dining room table) served him well in helping other writers achieve publication. His first foray into editing took place when he rescued a writer who had been abandoned by his current editor. Not necessarily interested in the topic of the book, he looked upon it as a challenge—gladly taking it on. It seems his customer focus (developed over the twenty years he worked for a large computer company) worked well to calm the troubled author, and a new interest began.
Dan and Rebecca
Dan and Rebecca (the school teachers) are a team. He teaches history, and she elementary school, but both enjoy recreating history by relaxing in different time periods. Dan’s expertise is in historical accuracy—especially of artefacts and clothing. If you have historical details in your story, he will verify that they are correct for the referenced era. He is a great resource for those writing fiction—helping prevent writers from making fools of themselves when a knowledgeable reader comes across a chronological gaffe. In spite of having to cut some of his creative writing assignments (to allow more focus on maths and English), Dan still manages to instil enthusiasm in his students, who look forward to the times he comes in to class in full historical regalia.
Rebecca, on the other hand, prefers to help students get, and stay, focused on writing assignments. She has over 20 years of experience teaching writing, showing how to organise essays, and revealing how Greek & Latin roots still exist in vocabulary today. She helps young writers establish strong habits, including daily editing…of their own work as well as that of fellow students. She feels that peer reviewing and editing prepare her students for a life of creativity. (Fellow teachers have called on her to review and edit their work as well.) Her strengths include encouraging others to release their inhibitions and perceived weaknesses and just get their thoughts down on paper.
Aaron
Aaron (the technical writer) has made a career of documenting software, and he currently works for a software development firm. His many years of experience writing technical documentation includes developing testing plans, creating customer-facing user guides, and finalising proposal documents. His proficiency with imaging software allows him to provide explanatory images in his manuals. He regularly works with Google documents, such as Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Forms, often linking Forms with Sheets, allowing formulas, graphs, and charts to automatically update as users enter information into the Form. His expertise covers the Microsoft Office suite of tools—he easily transfers documents between Google and Microsoft formats. When not busy writing, he enjoys reading sci-fi and fantasy novels and shorts, as well as poems of any genre.