I’m a born and bred Yorkshire girl who grew up happily in 60’s and 70’s Britain. At 16, the career advice was “secretary or nurse?” I chose nurse. So I trained, got a job, married and had my two sons. Shift work meant that I could work and look after my boys, but I always felt there was something and somewhere else out there for me.
In June 1999 we made the decision to emigrate to New Zealand and by January 2000 we were here; the right decision as it turns out. The family settled into life on Auckland’s North Shore. I had several jobs over the next few years that fitted in with family commitments: night-shift nursing, teaching assistant, phlebotomist, practice nurse. My boys did well, both going on to higher education.
Then came the trauma and challenges of divorce. With the support of my friends and family, I learnt how to stand on my own two feet and become independent. I stayed in nursing, bought a house, travelled a bit and after six years met my lovely man, and now fiancé, Willem. We were both ready to change our lives. We sold our houses, left our jobs, did some overseas travelling and toured New Zealand in a campervan for six weeks. And that’s when it happened; we fell in love with Nelson.
So here we are. Every day looking out to the mountains and sea and realising how lucky we are to live in a beautiful, safe country with opportunities around every corner. Last year we started a graphic design business and a video conversion business. Then, one day last September, a light bulb came on; I saw an advertisement for the NZIBS Diploma in Proofreading and Editing course and I knew immediately that I wanted to do it. Yes, I am the fussy, correct-grammar-loving perfectionist that they were targeting!
I graduated with excellence, and with the help of my ever-supportive Willem, I now have my own freelance business, Word by Word. I am slowly getting my fifty-eight-year-old head around social media, SEO, networking and direct marketing. I realise that I enjoy working with words and it’s something I’m good at. I’ve even copy-edited a 16,000 word bioscience thesis; I never thought I would hear myself say that!
As the saying goes:
“Sometimes in the winds of change, we find our true direction”
Liz Fleet
Graduate Proofreading & Editing
I trained with The New Zealand Institute of Business Studies and qualified with a Diploma in Proofreading and Editing (Excellence). I then started my freelance business, Word by Word. I enjoy making a client’s hard work look polished and professional. Yes…I admit I am a bit fussy when it comes to detail! My partner and I live and work in beautiful Nelson, New Zealand. We also have a graphic design and illustration business – White Cloud Creative
You can find Liz’s website here.
