Modern business is done, the vast majority of the time, through the written word. This is clearly and truly true—after all, what else would allow for the precise communication of specific ideas necessary for commerce in the absence of a face-to-face meeting? However, what many businesses fail to recognize is that the quality of that writing is almost as important as its very existence.

Poorly worded advertisements and offensive or misleading copy are the delights of online comedy forums and skilled litigators alike—almost always at the expense of the business. In the wake of new machine learning technology and the often derivative (or insufficiently specific) copy that technology produces, the importance of quality website and print copy can only grow. Businesses of all kinds, from retail stores to law firms, stand to benefit from choosing professional quality over cheaper quantity.

Francesca Cronan has spent the past twenty years honing her craft and proving herself an example of that professional quality. Her writing and editing experience is built on decades of professional work and a rich academic heritage. She specializes in turning her clients’ ideas into impactful narratives that meet her clients’ goals.

The Triad of Quality Writing

“In an industry where it is tempting to cut corners, I stand apart because I have a standard of quality that I maintain,” Cronan says. “Ultimately, my clients quickly realize the value of continuing to invest in high-quality writing.”

Francesca Cronan’s professional work takes three primary forms: grant writing, copywriting, and editing. Each of these forms comes with unique needs, expectations, conventions, and output, and Cronan is adept at each.

Grant Writing: Nonprofits and organizations often need to apply for funding in the form of grants, which can come from private, corporate, or government entities. Grant writers like Cronan research, draft, and submit the proposals needed for these organizations to be granted the funding they need. The grant writing process has several necessary steps, including but not limited to:

• Aligning the request with the funding guidelines from the funder
• Preparing the narrative outline for the grant and anticipating questions
• Writing the grant narrative by the budget and guidelines
• Assembling and organizing the key attachments
• Reviewing and submitting the proposal

Failure to properly research and write a grant proposal can mean the organization or charity loses the chance to expand its operation, pursue its mission, or even continue functioning. Grant funding is often the difference between an organization being able to make a positive impact and the organization failing to get off the ground at all. It’s work that requires precision and a strong narrative, and it’s work that Francesca Cronan excels at. 

Copywriting: What do website content, news articles, blogs, interviews, marketing content, and print brochures all have in common? They’re all forms of copy and fall under the copywriting umbrella. The vast majority of written work customers and clients will see from a business or organization is written by a copywriter for a specific purpose and is the bulk of many writers’ professional experience.

The broad nature of copywriting as a discipline requires the copywriter to be adaptable to the varying genres and needs of any given client or project. Style guides, the internal documentation describing the preferred language, diction, and branding, can vary wildly from company to company, and Francesca Cronan is adept at navigating them as an independent writer.

Editing: A novice editor checks for spelling and grammar errors. A skilled one analyzes the efficacy and strategy of new and existing copy to see what can be done better. The best editors can identify what strategies succeed and fail in a piece of copy, with the parameters for success determined by the type of copy at hand.

For example, using casual language and colloquial terminology in a white paper or business brief is a great way to undermine that copy’s credibility. On the other hand, the choice to use curated, cold, and technical language for a blog or social media post may be seen as standoffish by other users and dampen the potential engagement of the post. Editing is about identifying the goal of a work and then making sure it’s targeting that goal most effectively.

This applies to virtually any type of written work: resumes, novels, essays, blogs, articles, and so much more. Francesca Cronan is an editor with experience handling everything from basic spelling and grammar checks to in-depth document reviews and provides comprehensive edits to make sure her clients’ copy is as effective as it can be.

Maintaining a Competitive Edge

Francesca Cronan works hard to consistently provide the highest quality writing and editing possible. She puts in the effort to stay continuously up to date with new styles, trends, and technologies in the copywriting and editing industry to best serve her clients. Cronan is proud of her ability to work well with people of a variety of communication styles, and she’s made it a priority to build meaningful relationships with collaborators and clients to make sure ideas and needs are easily transmitted and understood.

When it comes to professional writing, the elephant in the room must be discussed. The advent of generative AI technology is something that writers and artists alike have been forced to monitor closely and adapt to in recent years. While this technology is, for now, cheaper for clients than a traditional professional writer, there is one significant issue with it that makes the difference: writing generated by a machine is often disjointed, inauthentic, and off-putting. As Cronan says, “It’s missing the connective thread that captures a reader’s interest and keeps them engaged.”

Cronan is certain that the value of authentic, human-made, high-quality writing will remain even as generative AI becomes more mainstream. The technology may cover some lower-level skills, but it’s far from perfect. She says, “Surprisingly, I have found that it’s often better to start with a fresh page than to have to parse through and rewrite content that has been AI-generated.”

A Future of Writing and Entrepreneurship

Francesca Cronan is well-positioned to continue writing professionally for her varied clients. In 2017, she started her own business, Write Sisters LLC, to expand her freelance writing work and bring on a writing partner. Her keen editing eye and her passion for writing lend themselves well to the projects and tailored messaging she provides for her clients, and she’s excited to continue her career of turning business ideas into compelling narratives.

In her time she enjoys cooking and baking, but her love of literature often pulls her away from the oven and into the reading nook with a fiction novel. Beyond that, she enjoys going on walks and hikes with her family and the occasional karaoke night with her friends.