Shelrock Enterprises, Inc.
Regardless of your business sector, identifying the need and contracting for writing/editing services can be scary. To the uninitiated or the once-bitten, it is a fuzzy realm, a murky universe mirroring some of the traits that prompted former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s quote about pornography: “I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material, …, but I know it when I see it.”
Hopefully, you will “see it” (the Biz-Tech Writing Services genre, that is) more clearly after visiting this web site and discovering how Shelrock can help you look your best in print. Click on the subjects of interest below or just snoop around. Either way, Enjoy!
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Shelrock 101
Shelrock Enterprises, Inc., is a MD-based corporation that offers writing, editing, research, and marketing strategy services to the technical and general business communities. Founded in 1990, Shelrock has provided consulting services to help companies grow and promote new products, unstop bottlenecks, unblock writers, improve or create research tools, establish or enhance reputations, and write or improve the quality of written deliverables. Clients include public utilities, engineering and environmental services consultants, documentation and business development consultants, a miscellany of start-up and build-up entities, and imaginative people with fabulous concepts and no clue as to where or how to get started.
How the Work Gets Done
I am Shelley Owrutsky. I have 30 years of experience as a Technical Writer, Editor, Researcher, Document Production Coordinator, Cheese Server (for all of those Whiners), Coach, Blankie, …, basically filling cracks that others either won’t or can’t fill. As president and sole employee of Shelrock, I am responsible for all projects being completed on time, in budget, and to my clients’ and my mutual satisfaction. Your project will always be considered confidential until you say that it’s not.
Depending on the project, I can work alone, with a partner, or as part of a team. Long-term assignments usually require a bit of each of these approaches.
If needed and approved by the client, Shelrock will engage
the services of highly qualified subcontractors considered to be experts in
their respective fields.
Scheduling: At Shelrock, “www” also stands for “we work
weekends.” This is not a 9-5 establishment. I work when my clients need me, not when it
suits my polo schedule. However, I can
get cranky if required to work too many Sundays
during the NFL season.
Facility & Equipment: Shelrock’s office is equipped to produce virtually any type of 3-hole punch or GBC-bound, standard-sized document up to and including final products, printed or electronic, if the need arises. The office is within 5 minutes of a Post Office and has an account with FedEx.
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Sample Document Types
The lists below provide examples. They are not intended to be exhaustive.
HeavyweightsØ Technical Reports Ø Regulatory Compliance Submittals Ø Engineering Reports Ø Planning Studies Ø Project Plans (business or technical) Ø Program Status/Findings Reports Ø Feasibility Studies Ø Maintenance/Operations/Repair Manuals and Procedures Ø Users’ Manuals |
MiddleweightsØ White Papers Ø Report Chapters Ø Trade Journal Feature Articles Ø Brochures Ø Newsletters Ø Web Site Content (copy only) Ø Business Plans/ Prospectuses Ø Competitive RFQ Response Technical Work Scopes, Qualifications (corporate, staff) |
Featherweights Ø Letters Ø Letter Attachments Ø Press Releases Ø Business Cards, Stationery, Labels Ø Ad Copy |
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Work Scope Descriptions
Spelling, punctuation, grammar, and usage corrections are defaults on any documents I write or review.
Now we venture into that murky realm introduced at the top of this web site: Biz-Tech Writing Services. You might know exactly which services you need. Then, again, you might not. Although developing a competent work scope for any potential consultant is a serious task, the process used to define that scope doesn’t really have to be, at least at this pre-preliminary stage when the only person who will know that you’re sitting there in your lucky T shirt, grimacing at nothing in particular, is you. Do any of the following scenarios sound familiar?
1. If you have been staring at your screen or a blank tablet of paper for more than one day, or if you refuse to enter your office because the sight of a blank screen and blinking message light and doodled-on tablet increases your blood-pressure, you need a writer.
2. The table below summarizes typical report-sized (25+ pages) editorial work scopes under descriptive headings actually used by my clients. This might help. For smaller documents or if you simply aren’t sure what you need, call or e-mail me and we can figure it out together. My existing clients and I do this regularly, and I’ve resorted to reading their minds from time to time. Plenty of questions up front results in fewer costly surprises down the road.
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Type of Service |
Sanity Check |
Scrub |
Sprinkle with Fairy Dust |
Clean My Fan Blades |
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A.K.A |
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“Just look it over
and tell me what you think.” ·
“Something’s not
right. Can you tell me what it is?” ·
“I think I might need
some help with this.” |
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“Just fix it, okay?” ·
“HELP!” |
·
“Well, we’re down to
the wire. Here ya go.” ·
“Sorry, sorry, sorry.
Think we’ll still make the deadline?” ·
“It’s all yours, do
your thing.” ·
“HELP!!!!!” |
·
“Can you explain
these comments to me?” ·
“What should I do
with this?” ·
“Seems like I’m just
not hitting the mark with this one.” ·
“HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” |
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Typical Scope |
Substantive, multi-discipline review of content from the
audience’s perspective. Ideally this takes
place prior to submittal of anything to the intended recipient, but it often
is the result of same. |
Substantive review of content and format based on intended audience and project work
scope. Ensures, to the extent
practical, that: 1. the text flows and appears to have been written by one
author; 2. reference citations, internal cross-references, statements
of fact, graphics, etc., are accurate; and 3. the work scope has been met or exceeded. Typically this occurs during the preliminary or first
fully assembled version of a hefty document authored by committee or a team. |
Light Scrub, to the extent that the deadline and budget
allow, and severe polishing of the format, grammar, and usage. This could be viewed as the final review
for documents that have undergone prior scrubbing, a quick-and-dirty for
those that have not. Fairy Dust is invisible to the naked eye and
complimentary. |
Review feedback and comments from intended recipient, or
designated review team members, and facilitate their resolution. Often this requires translating from one
discipline to another (e.g., legalese to engineerese and back again), or
providing third-party documented justification for not accepting, or advising
strongly against incorporating, a comment.
My “language set” includes plain English, engineering (nuclear,
mechanical, electrical; some hydraulic, chemical, and civil), environmental
science, power plant licensing & regulatory compliance, economics,
finance, management, strategic
planning, some medical, some IT, and some legal. |
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Shelrock
Client List
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Feedback from Clients
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Jack Levin, President DocuMetrics, Inc. 1395 Piccard Drive, Suite 306, Rockville, MD 20850 Phone: 301-519-6800 e-mail: jplevin@worldnet.att.net Nuclear Power Plant Information Management, Licensing, and Engineering Services “Lots of people can write and edit documents, Shelley O makes
them sing! The BEST writer/editor with
whom I have ever had the pleasure of
working. More a co-author than an editor, Shelley understands subjects that she
has no business understanding and contributes substance as well as syntax,
if that is what you need. A candid, expert, enthusiastic partner who
never disappoints. Five star rating in
my book!” |
Bob Falk, Project Manager Enercon Services, Inc. Germantown, MD Phone: 301-972-6900 e-mail: bfalk@enercon.com Consulting Services to the Nuclear Power Industry “Being in the consulting business I have learned the hard way
about sending deliverables to a client that do not meet their
expectations. Now, when I first budget
a project, I make sure there is budget to engage Shelrock's services. SLO has provided technical writing, editing
and research services for over 15 years on a wide variety of my engineering
projects in the nuclear power industry. I have found her work to be of higher
quality than any other person I have relied on for similar support. SLO
consistently adds value to my work products due to the thoroughness of her
work, the valuable recommendations she makes based on industry experience,
and her unwavering focus on the message I need to deliver and the audience it
is to be delivered to.” |
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A. Scott Leiper, former Project
Manager National Environmental Studies
Project, AIF, Inc. Excerpt from Preface, AIF/NESP-040,
Regulatory Considerations for Extending the Life (sic) of Nuclear Power
Plants, December 1986 “…, Finally, a special debt is
owed Shelley Owrutsky for her skill and patience in editing, a task not made easier
by the large number and extraordinary diversity of authors and reviewers of
this study.” |
J.C. DeVine, Jr., former
Technical Planning Director GPU Nuclear Excerpt from letter dated
March 13, 1984 “Please accept my thanks for your
outstanding performance on the TMI-2 Program Strategy. … Your professional
skill in translating it from engineering gibberish into crisp, intelligible
English was a vital part of the job, and your personal efforts in meeting a
demanding schedule are also very much appreciated.” |
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FAQs
1.
How do you pronounce your last name? Oh rut’
ski, but Shelley, SLO, or Shelley O is fine.
2. How do I figure out which service(s) I need? See Work Scope Descriptions.
3. Does Shelrock only accept T&M contracts or do you also provide fixed-price bids? Both are fine for most projects.
4. Does Shelrock carry business liability insurance? Yes.
5. What types of assignments don’t you do? I do not perform any independent verification of calculations, drawings, safety evaluations, software documentation, or engineering specs. I do not write contracts or other legal documents independent of an attorney co-author. I do not accept assignments in technical subject areas unfamiliar to me unless specifically begged to do so. I do not accept long-term assignments that require full-time presence at the client’s facility (i.e., onsite contractor jobs).
Shelrock Enterprises, Inc.
1025 Windsford Road
Towson, MD PA
21204
How
to Contact Shelrock
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Shelrock Enterprises, Inc. 1025 Windsford Road Towson, MD PA
21204 |
By Snail-Mail:
By E-Mail: ShelleyO@Shelrock.com
By Phone: 410-296-1544