Having authored and edited journal articles myself, I understand the complexities of the submission process and can help you and your article or journal paper to fulfil its potential.
I offer a copy-editing service that includes layout and formatting to a journal's style guide and correct use of references, tables, figures, etc. to remove some of the issues that might annoy the reviewers and which can act as a barrier to the acceptance of your submitted work.
I also work with postgraduates on theses and dissertations; it is your responsibility to ensure that you do not breach your university's guidelines on collusion when getting professional assistance to improve the language in your thesis or dissertation. Through my proofreading and editing service, I will do everything I can to help you and your work to be as good as it can be.
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What level of service do I need?
The boxes below describe what levels of service I offer for academics but in reality each document has its own, specific, requirements and so I do not quote on the basis of defined levels of service. I will need to view a sample of the work, and will then provide free advice on what the best options are for the document, recommend a process, calculate how long this will take, and then quote accordingly.
I am often asked for a ball-park figure on price and for this I refer to the SfEP suggested minimum rates for copy-editing.
If you are writing in a second language then firstly, I have a huge amount of respect for people who can research and write in a second language.
Secondly, there are several ways in which my proofreading, proof-editing or copy-editing services can help your thesis, dissertation, article or manuscript to communicate your research as effectively as possible and to read as though it were written by a native English speaker.
My editing service is only offered to academics where the work is not intended for submission or formal assessment. I offer a substantive editing service for technical journals and papers within the field of electrical power systems, but would otherwise recommend that the author works with a subject-matter expert or editor specialising in the same field. The work can then be copy-edited or proofread by a specialist technical copy-editor or proofreader – this is a service that I offer.
If you are looking for original content to be written for you, heavy editing or content re-writing, then this is not a service that I offer for students or academics – I recommend you search for a copy-writer or technical writer or a specialised substantive editing service in your technical field to work with you as you develop your content prior to sending it through to me for a final copy-editing or proofreading service.
My copy-editing service is offered to academics and is usually the appropriate level of service required for improving a journal paper or article such that it is suitable for submission. Of course, I cannot guarantee that a copy-edited paper will be accepted by a specific journal, as this depends also upon the merits of the research itself, but I can help to make sure that the written submission fits the journal's style guidelines and is in top shape to maximise your work's chances of acceptance at peer review.
This service checks that your document is fit for purpose. While not including extensive re-writing, some content improvements can be made and consistency of formatting and style will be ensured; this is particularly important where multiple authors have contributed to a paper, brochure or journal.
Again, in an ideal world, you would go through the file after I have sent it back, and then return it to me for a final proofreading stage to ensure the best-possible results from the service.
The proof-edit is the one-stop service that combines the many stages of the publishing process from copy-editing, typesetting and proofreading into a single service. This may be suitable if you need to compromise on deadline or budget.
This service involves one check of the document, focussing on consistency and correctness of style and grammar, spelling and punctuation but does not include significant changes to content or structure. If a heavier editing service than this is required, then I will advise upon seeing a sample of the document.
The proofread is the final stage in any document improvement service. This stage does not typically involve any changes to the content or the structure of the document. Proofreading focusses on the finer details of spelling, grammar and punctuation and ensures that all formatting is correct with no mistakes in line or word breaks.
It is at this service stage that style elements such as the table of contents, footers, headers and numbering etc. are checked and finalised.
The table below presents an at-a-glance summary of what each of the four levels of service that are offered for academic documents include.
Please contact me to discuss your specific requirements and receive a bespoke quotation.
| Academic editing service | Academic copy-editing service | Academic proof-editing service | Academic proofreading service | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Checking accuracy of reference entries with external sources | ||||
| Re-writing for style, clarity and tone | ||||
| Implementing a style sheet/journal style | ||||
| Implementing formatting | ||||
| Querying facts | ||||
| Cross-checking in-text references to illustrations, graphs, equations, etc. | ||||
| Cross-checking in-text references with bibliography | ||||
| Checking that style sheet/journal style is adhered to | ||||
| Ensuring consistency of formatting | ||||
| Spelling | ||||
| Punctuation | ||||
| Grammar |