Author Support Services | Bringing your book to life

About

Alex Fullerton

Author’s Consultant

Hi, I’m Alex Fullerton. I am a guide on your writing journey, always there to unravel ideas, answer questions, provide options and move you quickly and efficiently to the day when you hold your book in your hands.

When I started Author Support Services 18 years ago I was a single mum without a support network. After 20 years in admin, with a gift for helping businesses make their writing accessible and understandable, the decision to move into editing was easy. As a born nurturer (I now have seven children in a blended family), my goal was to help others shine their brightest. Client demand quickly saw the business grow into a full book coaching and self publishing service with a team of specialists to ensure every step in the publishing journey is covered.

If you would like to read more about my story of my unconventional life, my experiences in the Boxing Day tsunami with my children, and my journey back into life and business click on the Profile Magazine cover, as they did a wonderful job with their cover story on me.

Alongside the business I also built a not-for-profit group, the Sunshine Coast Women Entrepreneurs, with a membership of around 2500 women who benefitted from regular meetings and training in a variety of business skills. Mentoring women in startups has informed my work in publishing and helped me understand the diverse needs of readers and business women.

But change is good for the soul. After taking my business where I could on my own, culminating in being a finalist in the Business Woman of the Year awards in 2015, my husband and I were involved in a bad road accident. You can click on the Muse magazine cover to read that article. I have now been forced to rest, and have finally embraced the opportunity to truly work in a team environment.

These days I have a consultant role in the business, caring for each client one to one through the process, making sure you get the support you need to stay in the driver’s seat through each step of publishing.

I need to make my business efficient so it fits into the time and energy I have available. Just like me, as a small business person, you need to make sure that every dollar and every hour you spend is worthwhile.

You believe in what you are doing and want to make a difference in the world, but you must balance this with being professional and successful.

If you’ve got a book cooking inside you that needs a little nurturing to get it over the line, consider the support of someone who spends every day bringing books to life. Contact me today to book a powerful strategy session, just you and me, to fine-tune your project and share your own ideas and inspiration.

Louise Zedda-Sampson

Editor

Louise Zedda-Sampson is a researcher and award-nominated editor who has worked on projects ranging from New Age, memoir, instruction books and journals to history projects, community collections and sports. One of Louise’s biggest joys as an editor is seeing the puzzle pieces coming together to really shape the story that needs to be told.

Louise is also an author in her own right with an eclectic mix of non-fiction, speculative and literary fiction. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications in print, online and in peer-reviewed journals. Her debut book Bowl the Maidens Over: Our First Women Cricketers [2021] examines the Australian women cricketers’ first games in the 1870s.

Tanja Gardner

Editor

Tanja Gardner has been a professional word-nerd for over 15 years. Today, as a ghostwriter, structural editor and copy editor, she loves helping authors who want to make a difference with their books to clearly communicate their core messages. Tanja has worked on over 35 books, both fiction and non-fiction, on topics that range from investment to engineering, software to spirituality, and human resources to hormone balance.

Joanna Yardley

Editor

Joanna has been editing non-fiction books for 10+ years. She has a natural sense for structure and refining content for immense reader engagement. She is also an experienced copyeditor and is highly skilled in grammar and punctuation conventions.
As an editor with a passion for building relationships, Joanna prides herself on her reputation for creating lasting connections with authors. She values the strength of her interpersonal and communication skills and uses these talents to maintain the confidence and trust of others.

Natasha Higgins

Admin Support, Copy Editor and Proofreader

Natasha is a professional copy editor and proofreader who enjoys working on a wide range of topics, including health and wellness, selfhelp, parenting and travel. Working closely with authors to refine and polish their writing, Natasha believes great teamwork brings great results.

Natasha was previously editor of Kids on the Coast and Kids in the City parenting and lifestyle magazines in South East Queensland and has also completed a Graduate Certificate in Editing and Publishing. She loves life with her family in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, having spent her childhood in Central Queensland and her early adult years living in the UK and travelling the world.

Sylvie Blair

Book Designer

Sylvie has worked in the book trade, newspaper and advertising industry for over 20 years. Her expertise in creating beautifully designed books has been her passion and never are two books the same. Her role in guiding authors and providing them with a positive experience is what keeps authors coming back to work with her multiple times. Authors adore her work and she exceeds their expectation of how their book will look. Sylvie is a pro with using Adobe InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop tools and will always ensure a smooth process from mock-up ideas to completion of the book design.

Zonya Bird

Book Designer

Zonya Bird has over 35 years of experience as a graphic designer and is experienced in using Adobe Indesign, Photoshop and Illustrator programs, producing creative design solutions for our author’s needs.

She is based on the Sunshine Coast now but started out in the UK studying General Vocational Design covering interior design, fine art, photography, 3D design, art history and graphic design. Zonya specialised with a Higher Diploma in Graphics where she flourished with the creativity, attention to detail and organisation she brings to client projects today.

Tamara Protassow (she/her)

Writing Coach

Tamara Protassow is a writing coach and book mentor who specialises in developing non-fiction books with purpose-driven authors.

Tamara has developed and edited books with 50+ authors, and has edited both freelance for self-published authors as well as for Hay House UK.

Her favourite moment is when an author sees their book as real in their mind for the first time and believes that they can actually write it into existence, knowing it will go on to make a difference in the lives of their readers.

Kym Campradt

Proofreader

Kym Campradt has been a freelance proofreader of non-fiction books for over eight years. She has an exceptional eye for detail and loves to help authors polish their work by correcting any typos, spelling and grammar errors, and inconsistencies. 

Kym has had overwhelming positive feedback regarding her perceptiveness and first-class attention to detail from well-known and reputable authors and publishers.

With a professional background in health, Kym particularly enjoys proofreading books about health and wellness, self-help and parenting.

Dianne Cosgrave

Digital Content Creator and Strategist

Dianne Cosgrave’s bright and friendly personality and strong skill set in creating engaging social media content make her the ideal fit for the Author Support Services’ culture and vision.

Her career has spanned a diverse group of industries from publishing through digital media to baking.

When Dianne is not creating beauty online, she is finding inspiration in beach walks, reading, travelling and cooking for friends.

Honey Randall

Illustrator

Honey is a digital illustration artist who hails from the Sunshine State of Queensland and is now based in Melbourne, Victoria. She works mostly digitally with the occasional piece using traditional pencils, pens and watercolours, and her work can be stylised or realistic depending on the look her client is after. Honey has experience working with Procreate, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. Honey has worked on several of our client projects from children’s books to business diagrams. She is working on becoming a full-time illustrator.

Aliah Lennox

Illustrator

Aliah is a published illustrator and high school English teacher from SE Queensland. She believes that fostering a journey of creativity, discovery and expression is the role of a lifetime. Her goal lies in inspiring people to love reading and find their own inner artist.

Jessie Gore

Illustrator

Jessie is an illustrator and artist living and working in Melbourne where her works have been published in both print and online. She works mainly with pencils, watercolour and inks and loves creating loveable characters and dreamy whimsical scenes.

Dianne Wallyn

Digital Content Creator and Strategist

Dianne Wallyn has a degree in Communication and Media Studies and 11 years of experience in digital content creation, management and strategy.
 
She believes that every piece of content should bring value to the intended reader and loves to weave story and strategy together to achieve a double win for both the reader and the client.
 
Out of hours, Dianne loves to travel and is always up for an adventure. With her two besties, she has even climbed all three bridges in the southern hemisphere that can legally be climbed!

Aliah Lennox

Illustrator

Aliah is a published illustrator and high school English teacher from SE Queensland. She believes that fostering a journey of creativity, discovery and expression is the role of a lifetime. Her goal lies in inspiring people to love reading and find their own inner artist.

Jessie Gore

Illustrator

Jessie is an illustrator and artist living and working in Melbourne where her works have been published in both print and online. She works mainly with pencils, watercolour and inks and loves creating loveable characters and dreamy whimsical scenes.

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