Mission & Me
Before I knew my passion for helping mission-driven authors, I'd been a lab tech at veterinary facilities, a grad. student and cancer researcher, a public relations rep, a magazine manager, and a health and science writer. A proud Austinite, reading sates my curiosity about people and the world, and practicing a mindfulness-related martial art called Aikido has grounded me for 35 years.
Who do I help?
Self-published and traditionally published writers who want to create impactful self-help, nature essay collections, memoir and other nonfiction, as well as historical fiction.
Why work with me?
I have the content-development skills, eagle eye, experience with six publishers, and big picture vision to help in expressing your intelligence, passion, and personality on the page. That includes acing certification training as a copy editor, and being rigorously trained and vetted as an Author Accelerator Certified book coach in fiction, memoir, and nonfiction, a highly respected program in the publishing industry (see below for experience details).
Barbra A. Rodriguez
The CV Skinny
Before focusing full-time on author support, I spent 15+ years working with university faculty and staff to present their life-science, engineering, health and other discoveries in print, while freelancing for alumni magazines and other outlets.
5 freelance awards
Two national awards for magazine health writing, and a state award for a profile of conservationists, plus travel fellowships to global science journalism, and ecological research, conferences
100+ press releases
Developed releases that drew national and state media coverage about advances in areas such as biology, genetics, nanoscience, psychology, and sustainable landscaping
8 national publications
Freelanced for the AARP's Segunda Juventud, Diabetes Self-Management, a newspaper supplement, etc., plus the general science journals, Nature and Science
4 meeting summaries
Written three recaps about meetings on the mental health needs of higher education students of color, and one about Latin American science journalism initiatives
3 years of coaching
I've helped writers refine ideas for a historical and a career development book, develop a self-help book proposal, a memoir manuscript, etc.
3 coach certifications
Over 500 hours training for book coach certification for Nonfiction, for Memoir, and for Fiction by Author Accelerator, whom I work independently of
3 competitions judged
Of nonfiction books in national and state competitions for the National Assoc. of Science Writers, and Writers League of Texas
2 related certifications
Hold a copyediting certificate from UC, San Diego, and in Science Communication from UC, Santa Cruz, plus coursework on memoir structure, publishing routes, etc.
In 25 years of editing, I've managed and written university magazines, overseen a trade journal, and worked on 20+ book projects for six publishers and independent authors
11 self-help/how to books + 7 memoir edited
Since 2016, including edits of structure and style for MIT Press, and Spanish dialogue in an indie memoir
4 conservation clients
Edited and written for, including TX chapter of The Nature Conservancy, and the Ecosystem Sciences Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab
4 publications managed
Three conservation or life science magazines managed, and executive editing of thirteen issues of a trade engineering journal
13 health modules developed
Updated twelve physician education web modules (research and editing) since 2017, and written another module for the State of Texas
