Meet our member: Ruth Abigail Oliver

Ruth Abigail Oliver is a freelance editor and writer, and a Professional Member of the CIEP. She works with businesses, charities and consultancies to help them communicate with clarity and confidence. After a career in marketing and the arts, she now specialises in shaping web copy, articles and longer-form content, as well as supporting clients with brand messaging.

In this interview, Ruth shares how she found her way into editorial work via marketing, why she’s passionate about making complex ideas clear and accessible, and how she’s helping organisations understand the value of editorial expertise.

Ruth's story

The opening page: My favourite word 

Hope – a feeling of expectation and desire for a particular thing to happen.

It’s a little word with a lot of power, and it feels very necessary right now. 

Chapter 1. How it all began 

Q: How did your career begin and what led you into the world of editorial work? 

A: I’ve always been a big reader and interested in words, but I actually went to art college to study Photography. After graduating, I worked in hospitality, alongside some unpaid arts internships, before returning to education to do an MA in Cultural & Critical Theory. When I graduated from that in 2013, I got a job at a digital marketing agency – and although I didn’t know it at the time, that’s where my professional editorial work began.    

The agency published a lot of thought-leadership content, from short blog posts and email newsletters to long-form pieces. As the Marketing Manager, I worked with the wider team of subject-matter experts to plan, brief and edit their writing. I also worked with colleagues and freelancers in design and development to create beautiful print and webpages. I really enjoyed helping to communicate complex ideas with clarity, and making sure that industry jargon and overly complex sentences were banished.  

My next role was also in marketing, but this time for a small arts charity. In that organisation I was focused on avoiding art-world jargon and making sure that all of our communications were clear and accessible.  

Then I moved to Shetland and worked for four years for an arts charity here, in a variety of roles. During that time I was also doing a small amount of freelance editing and copywriting work. When my role was made redundant in 2023, I decided to go fully freelance, and that’s when I discovered the CIEP.

Chapter 2. What I do now 

Q: What does your work look like today, and what do you enjoy most about it? 

A: I work directly with businesses and charities, and I also work with a small number of consultancies on their client projects. I edit, and sometimes write, web copy, articles and newsletters. And I edit and proofread business books and annual reports.  

I also work on brand messaging – which, to me, is a kind of editing. Most business owners have A LOT to say about their business, yet they struggle to hone their proposition and services down to the key messages. That’s where I can help!  

I enjoy working with my clients to help them communicate their ideas as clearly as possible. In addition to the editorial skills, I bring a fresh pair of eyes to their writing, which can be invaluable.  

Chapter 3. My biggest challenges 

Q: Are there particular challenges that shaped your development as a professional, and what did you learn from them?

A: One of my biggest challenges is that most businesses and charities aren’t looking to hire an editor, even though they often require editorial support. When I worked for the marketing agency and arts charities, the editorial work was thought of as part of the writing, or even general marketing, work.  

As I’ve taken CIEP training courses and gained a deeper understanding of editing as a discipline, I’ve become even more convinced of the impact that an editor can have. Any organisation that’s sharing words with the world – whether that’s on their own website, in other publications or via email and social media – would benefit from working with an editor.    

I know that the sensible thing to do is to focus on the clients who already understand the power of an editor – but I can’t help wanting to spread the word. I know that many organisations have one senior person who ‘sorts out’ documents before they leave the office. Working with an editor – and a style sheet – makes the whole process so much smoother and saves time and money.    

Q: Self-promotion can sometimes feel tricky. How have you found ways to talk about your work that feel authentic and comfortable for you? 

A: If you believe in what you’re selling, then it shouldn’t feel gross – I always try to remember that I’m offering potential clients a solution. If they hire me, their life (or at least one tiny part of it!) will be easier.  

The only promotion I do, outside of my own website, is on LinkedIn. I believe that the most important thing is building and nurturing your network of peers and potential clients. I try to share useful, interesting things, but sometimes a brief post reminding folk of your availability can be just as useful.  

Chapter 4. My proudest moments 

Q: Which achievements, publications or collaborations stand out as particularly meaningful to you? 

A: I’ve worked with content strategist Lauren Pope for a long time. We were colleagues at the marketing agency and she was my first freelance client back in 2019. Lauren has always been hugely supportive, and her belief in my writing and editing skills helped me enormously when I was deciding whether to take the plunge and go fully freelance. She’s still a regular client. I edit her monthly email and we often work together on client projects.  

Q: Are there quieter wins or behind-the-scenes moments that feel just as important as big achievements? 

A: I was very excited when I got my first client from the CIEP Directory! It was a great piece of work for a well-known organisation, and they got in touch after seeing my profile.  

Chapter 5. How I stay connected 

Q: Editorial work can be quite solitary. How do you create connection and community alongside your work – formally or informally? 

A: I work part time for a local knitwear business – it’s the opposite of sitting in front of a screen all day, and it’s great to be in the studio shop meeting customers face to face.  

I also make an effort to connect with other freelancers and small-business owners in Shetland. This can be informal meetups that we organise ourselves or through groups and events facilitated by local business organisations like Business Gateway.   

And it’s been really valuable to be part of the CIEP community. I’ve volunteered at the conference the past two years, which has been a fantastic way to meet people and get to know the organisation. There’s people I’ve met there that I keep in regular contact with, and lots of other folk that I enjoy catching up with during virtual events and at the annual conference.   

Chapter 6. My life beyond the desk 

Q: What brings you joy outside of your editorial work? 

A: I read a lot. I’m a fan of books and magazines. I find it easier to focus away from screens. I subscribe to the Guardian Weekly magazine and the New Yorker, and sometimes Elle Decoration (to complement my YouTube house tour addiction!). I love my local library and always have multiple fiction and non-fiction books on the go.  

I also like to be outside, walking with my partner and dog or combining a beach walk with a quick dip in the sea.

Q: If you weren’t doing this, what other path or passion do you think you’d be exploring? 

A: I have a qualification in wine, from my previous hospitality work, and I also did a stand-up comedy course about ten years ago. So perhaps something combining those?! 

Or, more likely, I’d be working with artists and craftmakers. Part of my previous role was organising and curating exhibitions of craft and visual art, and I’m still trying to work out how to bring some of that kind of work into my current freelance life.  

Chapter 7. Desert island desk

Q: If you could only take one book with you, what would it be and why? 

A: The Poetics of Space by Gaston Bachelard. I first read it when I was working on a photography project about different homes I’d stayed in, and it was also an important part of my final MA dissertation. It’s a book I can return to again and again, and always find something new – and there’s a chapter on shells, which I’m sure would take on new meaning on a desert island!