Rachel McAlpine
Encyclopedia
Rachel Phyllis McAlpine is a writer and web content strategist. She is the author of 30 books including poetry, plays, novels, and books about writing. Since 1996 she has trained people how to write business content for a digital and electronic world. In 2007 she launched Contented Enterprises jointly with Alice Hearnshaw to provide scalable, cost-effective online training courses for business writers.
, where she attended Christchurch Girls High School and Canterbury University, graduating BA and Senior Scholar. She was married twice: to civil engineer Grant McAlpine (1969–1981) and to artist Michael Smither
(1988–1992).
After four years in Geneva she moved to Masterton, New Zealand. There she raised four children, taught high school, wrote her first poetry book, and gained a Dip. Ed (Massey University
) and B.A. Hons (Victoria University of Wellington
).
McAlpine says that her career swerved abruptly in May 1995, when she first saw a web site. As a writer, she immediately realized that traditional writing styles would need to change for this new medium. She began teaching short courses on writing and managing web content in 1996, writing her first book on the topic, Web Word Wizardry, in 1999.
As Curriculum Director of Contented Enterprises, McAlpine created online writing courses. Contented teaches writing skills needed for blogs, social media, intranets, web sites, email, e-learning, and all documents that are managed electronically. Contented courses go beyond the traditional print-based curriculum for business writing: they show how to make content accessible and searchable. McAlpine's courses and conference speeches are original and playful (as befits a poet), while delivering solid information.
Besides her professional work, McAlpine writes two personal blogs. She lives in Wellington
, dances with the Crows Feet Dance Collective, walks a lot and does Tai Chi. She also lobbies for plain language
communication from government agencies.
1993–1995 Guest Professor, Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts
, Kyoto
1991 New Zealand Scholarship in Letters
1986 Writer in Residence, Canterbury University
1982 Australia-New Zealand Writer’s Fellowship, Macquarie University
2007 Better Business Writing on the Web. (Wellington, New Zealand: CC Press)
2000 Nine Winning Habits of Successful Authors (Wellington: CC Press.)
1999 Crash Course in Corporate Communications (Wellington: CC Press, Revised 2006)
1999 Web Word Wizardry (Wellington: CC Press; 2002. 2nd edition. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed)
1998 The Passionate Pen: Romance Writers of New Zealand speak to Rachel McAlpine (Christchurch:
Hazard)
1997 Global English for Global Business (Auckland: Addison Wesley Longman; reprinted CC Press 2005)
1996 The Great New Zealand Study Trip (Auckland: New House)
1995 Ready for English (Wellington: Learning Media)
1995 Katherine Mansfield in New Zealand (Tokyo: Asahi Press)
1994 The Secret Life of New Zealand (Tokyo: Tairyusha)
1994 Masako in New Zealand (Tokyo: Tairyusha)
1992 Real Writing (Wellington: GP Publications)
1980 Song in the Satchel: Poetry in the High School (Wellington: NZCER
)
2005 Humming (Christchurch: Hazard)
1990 Farewell Speech (Auckland: Penguin Books
). 1996 Translated into Japanese by Masako Meio (Tokyo: Shinsui-Sha)
1987 Running Away from Home (Auckland: Penguin)
1986 The Limits of Green (Auckland: Penguin)
2001 Another 100 New Zealand Poems for Children (Ed.)(Auckland: Random House
)
1993 Tourist in Kyoto (Wellington: Nutshell Books)
1988 Selected Poems (Wellington: Mallinson Rendel
)
1986 Thirteen Waves (Palmerston North: Homeprint)
1983 Recording Angel (Wellington: Mallinson Rendel)
1980 House Poems (Wellington: Nutshell Books)
1978 Fancy Dress (Auckland: Cicada)
1977 Stay at the Dinner Party (Dunedin: Caveman)
1975 Lament for Ariadne (Dunedin: Caveman)
1993 Maria in the Middle (London: HarperCollins
) (also broadcast by NZ On Air)
)
1990 Power Play (Wellington: Playmarket
; various productions)
1988 Peace Offering (Auckland: Heinemanns; various productions)
1980 The Stationary Sixth Form Poetry Trip (Wellington: Playmarket; many productions)
1985 Driftwood (Wellington: Victoria University Press
; many productions)
)
1988 The Op Shop Quartet (Radio New Zealand)
1984 Quite Nice Really (Radio New Zealand)
1982 Cats Don't Marry (Radio New Zealand)
1981 The Life Fantastic (Radio New Zealand)
1986 Paper Towers (Christchurch: Court Theatre (New Zealand)
)
Biography
McAlpine and her five sisters grew up in small-town vicarages in Canterbury, New Zealand. When she was 10 the family moved to ChristchurchChristchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, where she attended Christchurch Girls High School and Canterbury University, graduating BA and Senior Scholar. She was married twice: to civil engineer Grant McAlpine (1969–1981) and to artist Michael Smither
Michael Smither
Michael Duncan Smither, CNZM is a New Zealand painter and composer.He was born in New Plymouth and was educated at New Plymouth Boys' High School and Elam School of Fine Arts, Auckland...
(1988–1992).
After four years in Geneva she moved to Masterton, New Zealand. There she raised four children, taught high school, wrote her first poetry book, and gained a Dip. Ed (Massey University
Massey University
Massey University is one of New Zealand's largest universities with approximately 36,000 students, 20,000 of whom are extramural students.The University has campuses in Palmerston North , Wellington and Auckland . Massey offers most of its degrees extramurally within New Zealand and internationally...
) and B.A. Hons (Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a former constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is particularly well known for its programmes in law, the humanities, and some scientific disciplines, but offers a broad range of other courses...
).
McAlpine says that her career swerved abruptly in May 1995, when she first saw a web site. As a writer, she immediately realized that traditional writing styles would need to change for this new medium. She began teaching short courses on writing and managing web content in 1996, writing her first book on the topic, Web Word Wizardry, in 1999.
As Curriculum Director of Contented Enterprises, McAlpine created online writing courses. Contented teaches writing skills needed for blogs, social media, intranets, web sites, email, e-learning, and all documents that are managed electronically. Contented courses go beyond the traditional print-based curriculum for business writing: they show how to make content accessible and searchable. McAlpine's courses and conference speeches are original and playful (as befits a poet), while delivering solid information.
Besides her professional work, McAlpine writes two personal blogs. She lives in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
, dances with the Crows Feet Dance Collective, walks a lot and does Tai Chi. She also lobbies for plain language
Plain language
Plain language is clear, succinct writing designed to ensure the reader understands as quickly and completely as possible.Plain language strives to be easy to read, understand, and use. It avoids verbose, convoluted language and jargon...
communication from government agencies.
Contented
- Business blog: Contented—content that makes people happy
- Personal blog: Old Lady Laughing
- Writing on the Web
- Quality Web Content
Honours
2010 Writer in residence, Chateau de Lavigny, Switzerland1993–1995 Guest Professor, Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts
Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts
is a private women's college in Kyotanabe, Kyoto, Japan. The predecessor of the school was founded in 1876, and it was chartered as a university in 1949.-External links:*...
, Kyoto
1991 New Zealand Scholarship in Letters
1986 Writer in Residence, Canterbury University
1982 Australia-New Zealand Writer’s Fellowship, Macquarie University
Macquarie University
Macquarie University is an Australian public teaching and research university located in Sydney, with its main campus situated in Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of Sydney...
Non-Fiction
2009 Write me a web page, Elsie! (Wellington, New Zealand: CC Press)2007 Better Business Writing on the Web. (Wellington, New Zealand: CC Press)
2000 Nine Winning Habits of Successful Authors (Wellington: CC Press.)
1999 Crash Course in Corporate Communications (Wellington: CC Press, Revised 2006)
1999 Web Word Wizardry (Wellington: CC Press; 2002. 2nd edition. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed)
1998 The Passionate Pen: Romance Writers of New Zealand speak to Rachel McAlpine (Christchurch:
Hazard)
1997 Global English for Global Business (Auckland: Addison Wesley Longman; reprinted CC Press 2005)
1996 The Great New Zealand Study Trip (Auckland: New House)
1995 Ready for English (Wellington: Learning Media)
1995 Katherine Mansfield in New Zealand (Tokyo: Asahi Press)
1994 The Secret Life of New Zealand (Tokyo: Tairyusha)
1994 Masako in New Zealand (Tokyo: Tairyusha)
1992 Real Writing (Wellington: GP Publications)
1980 Song in the Satchel: Poetry in the High School (Wellington: NZCER
NZCER
The New Zealand Council for Educational Research is an independent, educational research organisation that provides educators, students, parents, policy makers, and the public with innovative and independent research, analysis, and advice...
)
Fiction
2010 Scarlet Heels (Wellington: CC Press)2005 Humming (Christchurch: Hazard)
1990 Farewell Speech (Auckland: Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
). 1996 Translated into Japanese by Masako Meio (Tokyo: Shinsui-Sha)
1987 Running Away from Home (Auckland: Penguin)
1986 The Limits of Green (Auckland: Penguin)
Poetry
2005 A for Blog (Wellington: CC Press)2001 Another 100 New Zealand Poems for Children (Ed.)(Auckland: Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
)
1993 Tourist in Kyoto (Wellington: Nutshell Books)
1988 Selected Poems (Wellington: Mallinson Rendel
Mallinson Rendel
Mallinson Rendel Publishers Limited was an independent publisher based in Wellington, New Zealand founded in 1980.It concentrated mainly on children's fiction and picture books and also published a small number of popular new titles each year...
)
1986 Thirteen Waves (Palmerston North: Homeprint)
1983 Recording Angel (Wellington: Mallinson Rendel)
1980 House Poems (Wellington: Nutshell Books)
1978 Fancy Dress (Auckland: Cicada)
1977 Stay at the Dinner Party (Dunedin: Caveman)
1975 Lament for Ariadne (Dunedin: Caveman)
Children's books
1994 Maria and the Lady Next Door (Wellington: Learning Media Limited, tr. 4 Pacific languages)1993 Maria in the Middle (London: HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
) (also broadcast by NZ On Air)
Stage Plays
2000 The Dazzling Night: a Noh play in English (Produced Le Mata Theatre, Auckland; published Kyoto Journal & New Zealand Journal of Asian StudiesNew Zealand Journal of Asian Studies
The New Zealand Journal of Asian Studies is a peer-reviewed academic journal that was founded in June 1999. It is the official journal of the New Zealand Asian Studies Society. The journal covers a broad range of Asia-related topics. It is published biannually, in June and in December...
)
1990 Power Play (Wellington: Playmarket
Playmarket
Playmarket is a not-for-profit organisation providing script advisory services, representation for playwrights in New Zealand and access to New Zealand plays....
; various productions)
1988 Peace Offering (Auckland: Heinemanns; various productions)
1980 The Stationary Sixth Form Poetry Trip (Wellington: Playmarket; many productions)
1985 Driftwood (Wellington: Victoria University Press
Victoria University Press
Victoria University Press founded in the 1970s, is the book publishing arm of Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand.It publishes new fiction and poetry and specialises in New Zealand history, biography and essays.-Sources:...
; many productions)
Plays performed but not published
1989 (adapted from Katherine Mansfield) The Stranger, Mr Reginald Peacock's Day (Radio New ZealandRadio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand is a New Zealand public service radio broadcaster and Crown entity formed by the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news, current affairs and arts network Radio New Zealand National and classical music and jazz network Radio New Zealand Concert with full government funding...
)
1988 The Op Shop Quartet (Radio New Zealand)
1984 Quite Nice Really (Radio New Zealand)
1982 Cats Don't Marry (Radio New Zealand)
1981 The Life Fantastic (Radio New Zealand)
1986 Paper Towers (Christchurch: Court Theatre (New Zealand)
Court Theatre (New Zealand)
The Court Theatre is a professional theatre company based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded in 1971 and located in the Christchurch Arts Centre from 1976 until the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake and is currently developing a new site from which to resume activities before the end...
)
External links
- New Zealand Book Council
- Knowledge, wisdom and the joy of writing: presentation for Society for Technical CommunicationSociety for Technical CommunicationThe Society for Technical Communication is a professional society for the advancement of the theory and practice of technical communication.-Overview:...
India 2010