About Mary

Who is Mary VanMeer, and what are her credentials?

First, here is a BRIEF description of my skills.   I have 40 years of experience writing, editing, proofreading, and typing.   I have 25 years of experience using computers and the Internet.  I have nearly 20 years of experience creating profitable websites for myself and others.  I type 110 words per minute with great accuracy.

I am highly qualified to help you accomplish your goals.  I am a perfectionist, and my virtual assistant team meets my expectations.  I believe in going the extra mile on every project.  Therefore you get much more than you pay for.  I always charge fairly, and you can trust me to follow through on everything we agree upon.

Second, if you would like DETAILS about my background, here is an unconventional overview of how I acquired and developed the many skills I can now use to help YOU as your virtual assistant.  It is also a hopefully-enjoyable walk down memory lane beginning in the 1960s.

 

It is divided into the following sections:

  • The Early Years:  High School and College
  • My Writing and Business Careers
  • The Personal Computer Made Everything Easier
  • What I Can Do for YOU
  • The Home Team:  Your Virtual Assistant’s Assistants

 

The Early Years:  High School and College

When I was a teenager I discovered many things, and among them were the facts that I have a knack for writing, spelling, English grammar, editing, and typing.  While no one seemed to understand how I could enjoy these skills so much, I did and still do.  I suppose you could call me an English language geek.  After learning to type (at age 14), I began typing everything, including my detailed daily journal (diary).

I graduated from Alma High School in 1965 and then went to Michigan State University for two years.  That is when I discovered I could make extra money typing term papers for students on my Smith-Corona manual portable typewriter.  I also EDITED these term papers because it seemed that I was living in a world where most people never learned, or simply didn’t care about, correct punctuation and grammar; nor could they spell.  The word spread and my business flourished.

When I transferred to the University of Florida in Gainesville, a whole new typing world opened up to me . . . GRADUATE SCHOOL students!!!  Now there were Law Review articles for law students, in addition to Master’s theses and PhD dissertations.  The professors needed manuscripts and articles edited and typed (and sometimes ghostwritten).

Students from other countries were grateful for my help because when English is your second language, the correct use of words and grammar isn’t always as simple as it seems.

I finally upgraded to an IBM Correcting Selectric II.  It had changeable type fonts, carbon ribbon, and lift-off tape that made corrections easy to do.  And it was electric!

I graduated from the University of Florida in 1970 with a Bachelors Degree in Education, with a major in French and a minor in Spanish.  I stayed in Gainesville nearly a year longer just because I was making so much money with my typing business and had such a good following!

 

My Writing and Business Careers

But then it was time to travel and focus more on writing.   Throughout the years, I published many articles, books, and newsletters.  I have always had thriving businesses of my own.  As a result, I was invited to be listed in Marquis Who’s Who in America as well as Who’s Who in the World two decades ago, and my biography still appears in each annually-updated volume.

If you’re interested in reviewing my writing and business careers, go to your library’s reference section and look me up in Who’s Who for free; or ask me.  I love to talk about my careers; but it would take up too much space here!

You can read about my book Thrifty Traveling at http://thriftytraveling.com/publications/thrifty-traveling-book/ if you would like to see a sample of one of my books.  It was honored as “The Best Travel Book of the Year” by Newsday in 1996.

That same year, Newsday announced that my newsletter The Thrifty Traveler was one of the top three travel newsletters that year.  Then, Newsday was known as New York’s Newsday, and the syndicated columnist who wrote about my publications on more than one occasion was Barbara Shea.

 

The Personal Computer Made Everything Easier

I was thrilled to discover the personal computer in the early 1980s.  There were no Windows then or desktop publishing; and websites were much more complicated to create.  The Internet was just beginning to emerge, and was used mainly by universities and the military.  Eventually anyone could pay by the minute to do research online.  That often became very expensive.

To do word processing you had to deal with user-hostile (in my opinion) things like DOS and WordStar.  It was terrible and wonderful all at the same time!  It was definitely quite an improvement over just using a typewriter.

I also bought a Mergenthaler Linotype CRTronic typesetting machine in the early 1980s.   You had to type in codes that were very similar to present-day HTML codes before and after text, to indicate if you wanted something bold or blue (for example).

Then you printed it out on photographic paper and developed it by feeding it through a machine that was like a mini-darkroom, complete with toner, fixer, and water, and then a dryer.  The result was beautiful.  Of course, then you had to (literally) cut-and-paste it onto a sheet before taking it to the printer or photocopying it.

[NOTE: If you have no idea what I’m talking about in the two previous paragraphs, don’t worry.  There will not be a test!  This information is primarily to show you how I fine-tuned my skills over the last 40 years.]

Then Windows and desktop publishing and, ultimately, blogs and social media came along.   Internet marketing and research and creating websites (and website traffic) are basically a combination of writing, typing, and editing.  It’s just like it was in high school and college, but a lot more fun.

 

What I Can Do for YOU

While I have learned how to make money online, and am working on yet another book, I enjoy helping others reach their goals as well.  I’ve helped friends and family throughout the years, teaching them how to set up websites and make their businesses a success, as well as editing many of their projects.

Now I’ve decided to make it official.  With the advent of the Virtual Assistant concept, I can take my love of writing, editing, typing, typesetting, Internet marketing, social media, and helping others prosper (even in this challenging economy) globally.

  • If English is your second language, I can help.
  • If English is your primary language but grammar and punctuation aren’t your strong point, I can help.
  • If you’re a new entrepreneur and are feeling a little bit overwhelmed, I can help.
  • If your business is prospering but you don’t have enough hours in the day to do everything, I can help.
  • If you want to write a book or article or blog but don’t know how to turn your ideas into words, I can help.
  • If you’re desperately trying to meet an “impossible” deadline, I can help.
  • I can help you reach your goals!  I can help you get rid of a lot of the stress you’re feeling so you can take back control of your life.

Contact me today and request a free quote on your project!

 

The Home Team:  Your Virtual Assistant’s Assistants

While you will be dealing directly with ME, I do have a select group of people who assist me with many of the basic and often time-consuming delegatable tasks such as typing, and organizing your goals into an effective strategy.

However, I do most of the creative work; and nothing leaves this virtual office without my reading, analyzing, and approving every single detail.  I oversee everything and take great pride in knowing that you will get the expert results you need within the time frame that is required.