What Makes Me Unique
I have a strong background in project management, customer service, quality assurance, logistics coordination, and process excellence.
I learn incredibly fast, whether it’s particular processes or new skills, and I work just as quickly.
I can look at the big picture and focus on the details.
I’m both analytic and artistic: I love working with numbers and data, and I’m equally at home with words and design.
I’m an especially thorough and efficient proofreader, and I write clean, effective copy.
I’m a problem solver: I’m constantly on the lookout for ways to improve and will take the initiative on my own to come up with fixes that will make everything run more smoothly.
My Background
I grew up in Silicon Valley, graduated from Vassar College in New York, and spent two years teaching English in rural Japan before moving to the Seattle area. I fell in love with the forests and rainy weather of the Pacific Northwest, and I’m here to stay. I love reading, traveling, dancing, and attending to my cats’ whims.
I also love learning and challenging myself. From working as a project manager at an ISO-certified translation company to managing operations at an independent bookstore, the jobs I’ve held have given me the opportunity to develop a wide range of skills. No matter the industry, without fail I immediately find myself in positions taking loads of work off my managers’ shoulders, juggling multiple roles and making all of them more efficient. So now I’m making that the core of what I do!
When it comes to assisting authors specifically, I know the business from a lot of sides. In addition to my independent bookstore background, which involved everything from event coordination and social media management to buying inventory and managing returns, my publishing industry experience includes reviewing and volunteering at conferences: currently I’m the Programming Coordinator for 4th Street Fantasy and among other hats at Sirens has been the Sales & Auction Coordinator. I’m also a graduate of the SFF residential writing workshop Viable Paradise, and you can find information about my writing career on my author website.
No collection of tasks is outside my ability to manage, and I excel at figuring out systems, whether that’s a matter of working out a new process or resolving a glitch. You can can count on me to accomplish whatever I set out to do with minimal direction. If you want to find out more about why I can help you take back your time, contact me today!
Meet Marissa Gunning
I’m delighted to share that Marissa Gunning has now joined my VA team! Marissa and I met working together at a local independent bookstore, so on top of her customer service skills, I know firsthand how efficient Marissa is at knocking tasks off to-do lists, organizing chaos, and fine-tuning processes to work better for everyone who touches them. With a master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Washington, she’s a metadata enthusiast, and researching niche topics is her jam.
Outside of work, you can find her diving into historical costuming and weaponry, playing TTRPGs (and hoarding dice), and taking care of a small dog with the personality of a cat.
Testimonials
I had the privilege of hiring Casey Blair at our company The Root Beer Store, and without reservations recommend her as an outstanding individual that we would gladly rehire at any time. Although Casey was originally hired for general labor, she was quickly transitioned into various management responsibilities in our corporate office. She is organized, communicates well, and has a good business acumen. Casey was self-motivated, and developed plans and procedures for our company on her own that streamlined our operations. She found a way to work well with difficult co-workers. She juggled multiple tasks at one time, and remained composed during stressful moments. Given little direction she “took the bull by the horns” and got the job done. Any organization would benefit from having her in their employ.
Corey Anderson, President of The Root Beer Store
Casey is a consummate professional, a precise communicator, and a pleasure to work with. As part of the content team at Sirens, a conference about the exceptional women and nonbinary people of fantasy literature, Casey’s deep knowledge of books and understanding of our complex messaging—which is both inclusive, and specific—makes her an invaluable asset. She can be counted on to deliver thoughtful, accurate, thoroughly-researched, and occasionally funny articles, lists, and reviews on time if not ahead of schedule, and her feedback is always incisive and brilliant. Even if you don’t think you need Casey in your corner—and believe me, you do—your corner will be brighter and better and more prepared than you thought possible.
Faye Bi, Communications Director at Sirens
Casey has been invaluable to the complex process of arranging programming for the annual 4th Street Fantasy Convention for the last few years. She’s honest, time-conscious, diplomatic but forthright, and detail-oriented. In fact, Casey has handled everything so well that we’ve made her head of programming for 2020 and beyond.
Scott Lynch, board member of 4th Street Fantasy
Casey is one of the most organized people I know and is great at organizing others. She’s also a terrific problem solver; I know because I was stranded in China with her with only $200 and she had a plan in under 2 minutes. Her years of experience as a writer, bookseller, book reviewer, conference organizer and panelist have given her a depth and breadth of knowledge about books, authors and the book industry that is impressive. She is a gem.
Nicole Lisa, author of The Desert Wall as Raf Morgan
Casey is well worth hiring as a virtual assistant. She is an incredibly competent human being. When we were coworkers she kept many of our workplace plates spinning and created clearly written documentation of those tasks that we have since been able to use to implement said tasks where she left off. Due to her ability to communicate effectively those plates are still spinning successfully. She is excellent to work with and one of the finest and smartest people I know.
Marissa Gunning, former coworker at Brick & Mortar Books
Proofreading is essential to every writer. The process of shepherding ideas from the brain to published work requires honest and actionable feedback. Sometimes, finding the right reader is nearly impossible—a writing group may be overly familiar with a work, a writer’s mother is overly enamored with pride, and the editing white pages are full of strangers.
Camille Griep, author of Letters to Zell and New Charity Blues
Fortunately, there is Casey Blair. Not only does she understand the rules of writing 101, she’s deeply read, thoughtfully intelligent, and equipped with a vast knowledge of genres and their nuances. She is detail-oriented and careful, seeing inevitable variations that happen through a manuscript’s editing process, from variant names to continuity errors, that plague even the most careful writer. Unafraid to probe the “why” of any project, Casey cares deeply about story and the words that serve said story work in a superlative, cohesive, and efficient manner. While demanding the best of a writer’s work, she is also respectful and supportive of the writer’s vision. Casey is my first, best, and only choice for proofreading and developmental feedback.