Virginia St-Denis

Plain language specialist helping health non-profit organizations and researchers transform draft content into clear, accessible online and print publications through writing, editing, and formatting.

Selected achievements:
• Increased readership and advertising revenue for print publications
• Launched a plain language Indigenous health academic journal as a one-person production team
• Raised the profile of a psychiatry journal through plain language media advisories of research papers
• Launched and manage a weekly blog series featuring plain language summaries in forensic psychiatry

I am a publishing professional with 35 years of experience in writing, editing, desktop publishing, and managing online and print publications. I help health organizations, non-profits, and researchers communicate complex information clearly so their audiences can understand and use it.

Having started my career as a reporter-photographer at a daily newspaper, I became a professional storyteller and plain language specialist before those skills became essential for marketing and communications. Connecting with my readers — so I can understand and tell their stories and meet their information needs — has always been my priority and my passion. Readers tend to have the best story ideas.

My work earned me a promotion to editor, first at a weekly newspaper and then at three hobby magazines. My editorial strategy increased readership, which in turn increased advertising revenue.

Health, Medical, and Research Editing

I was the one-person production team that launched a plain language Indigenous health academic journal. I worked with guest editors, an editorial board, authors, and peer reviewers to ensure articles met academic publishing standards. Once articles were approved, I edited them for clarity before laying them out and sending files to the printer and webmaster.

That gave me the experience I needed to become the managing editor of three medical journals, leading a team of editors and graphic designers. I further honed my plain language skills by transforming psychiatry research papers into media advisories, increasing the journal’s profile in Canada.

Plain Language and Knowledge Translation

I am a proud member of Editors Canada, Plain Canada Clair, Plain Language Association International (PLAIN), and Indigenous Editors Association (non-Indigenous member). These organizations not only provide networking opportunities, but they also help me keep my skills up-to-date. I also share my knowledge and expertise by providing webinars and mentoring other editors.

If you have written something, I can help you make it clear, concise, and accessible, so your readers can find what they need, understand what they find, and use that information. Whether you are working on a research paper, article, or website content, I can support you in preparing it for publication. If you have a project in progress and would like support, I would be happy to hear from you.