Martha Kennedy Knauf

Writer | Copy editor

I grew up in Vermont and got my BA in English from Vassar College. I have lived in Seattle, San Francisco, Paris, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Osaka, Kyoto, and Beirut, acquiring a wealth of knowledge and experiences along the way. My time living abroad has given me a unique perspective and sensitivity to cultural nuances, allowing me to effectively convey stories to a global audience.

Education & Certifications

Vassar College | 2008

BA, English. Minor in French.

ILA Vietnam | 2012

CELTA (Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages)

University of California Berkeley | 2019

Certificate, Professional Sequence in Editing

Skills

Copyediting | Proofreading | Copywriting

Chicago Manual of Style | AP style

LATEX | WordPress | Adobe Acrobat | Adobe InCopy

SEO | Prompt Engineering

Japanese, French, Arabic: Basic Proficiency

Experience

AI Content Curator

Mother Tongue | UK (remote) | June 2023 – Present

Ensure user alignment for LLM and genAI applications: interpretation of user intent, analysis of UX context, review of content structure, and linguistic adherence to quality standards.
Review and audit content against preset parameters to optimize AI model performance for different use cases.
Rewrite content to improve the model's performance while adhering to policy and stylistic guidelines.
Conduct comparative analysis and quality assessment of AI-generated and human-created content.

Proofreader

Hachette Book Group | USA (remote) | June 2023 – Present

Proofread 10 non-fiction books on history, sociology, psychology, politics, and current affairs.
Ensure stylistic consistency and adherence to the house style guide and the Chicago Manual of Style.
Conduct thorough fact-checking of references and critical details to ensure accuracy.

Writer & Copy Editor

Kyoto Journal | Japan (remote) | May 2022 – Present

Contribute to editorial team operations; copyedited 5 full volumes of Kyoto Journal, an award-winning quarterly focused on Asian culture.
Proofread and edit articles, interviews, and essays to ensure accuracy, clarity, and consistency in style and tone.
Collaborate with authors and editors to meet publication standards and goals.
Authored a profile of a kintsugi artisan in Kyoto based on in-depth interviews and independent research.

FunkyCorp Digital Agency | Japan (hybrid) | Sept. 2017 – May 2022

Wrote 70+ web articles for Japan National Tourism Organization’s global website.
Won the Best Explanatory Text Award from the Japan Tourism Agency.

Culture Trip | UK (remote) | Jan. 2020 – Apr. 2020

Wrote 9 culturally sensitive articles showcasing Japanese culture, art, and food.
Conducted interviews with local artists, chefs, business owners, and residents to gather firsthand perspectives.

Art Listings Editor

Kansai Scene | Japan | Jan. 2020 – Dec. 2020

Researched and created engaging descriptions for art exhibitions and events in the Kansai region of Japan for the only English-language magazine dedicated to travel and events in Western Japan.

Writer

GaijinPot Travel | Japan | Oct. 2016 – Oct. 2018

Wrote articles on various topics related to Japanese culture for an English-language website targeting a non-Japanese audience.
Conducted research and gathered information from personal interviews and online resources.

Proofreader

Tuoi Tre News | Vietnam | Sept. 2013 – Sept. 2014

Copyedited news and culture articles for Vietnam’s leading daily newspaper.
Collaborated closely with editors and reporters under tight deadlines.

Additional Experience

EFL Teacher | Japan & Vietnam | Dec. 2012 – Dec. 2022

High Schools, Universities, Corporations

Last updated on January 2023.