Whether you’re writing a thesis, a book or book chapter, a journal article or a research report, copyediting brings out the best in your ideas. It corrects errors, ensures consistent style, but also revises phrasing to clarify meaning and instil an active, confident voice. It’s the key service I offer.
When I’m copyediting, I’m focusing closely on rephrasing to improve clarity and flow. I make your writing easy and enjoyable to read, so you sound like the best, most persuasive version of yourself.
Elegant.
Compelling.
Authoritative.
I copyedit all sorts of academic writing.
I’m ready to copyedit scholarly books in all disciplines. I can do this as a short-term project, where you hand over the manuscript to me and I’ll edit and return it. Or if you prefer a more collegial working relationship, I can edit your book over time, chapter by chapter, and get to know your project better.
I also copyedit journal articles and book chapters. I can sharpen your expression and streamline your style – or head off any pedantic notes from Reviewer 2. And when I’m copyediting multi-authored works, I can create a unified voice out of the different authors’ individual writing styles.
And I copyedit theses, exegeses and dissertations.
My thesis copyediting service is great for a master’s degree, a PhD or doctorate, and for a whole thesis or an exegesis component. I offer two levels of thesis copyediting:
- My standard thesis editing service is for confident writers who want their written expression polished and tightened so it’s the best it can be.
- Meanwhile, my intensive thesis editing service is recommended for candidates whose first language isn’t English, or whose supervisors feel their written expression needs much more detailed editorial revision.
Intensive editing is my premium copyediting service. It’s definitely worth considering if you’ve had feedback that your writing is digressive, repetitive, unclear or imprecise. Or perhaps your supervisors aren’t available to work closely on your writing craft…
But semantics are my specialty. In an intensive copyedit, I give your writing the line-by-line attention it deserves, and tease out what you mean to argue.
I abide by IPEd’s Guidelines for Editing Research Theses, which delimit the roles of candidates, supervisors and external editors. So I don’t offer developmental or structural editing to graduate researchers.
| Not sure whether you need standard copyediting or intensive copyediting? I can do a free edit of a 1000-word sample to show you what my approach looks like, and let you know which level of editing I’d recommend for you. Email me to find out more. |
I copyedit to your preferred style.
A key aspect of copyediting is consistency – which comes from a style guide. Also called a style sheet, this is a list of decisions about language usage and formatting. As I copyedit, I ensure you’re always deciding consistently.
I can work to any existing style guide you nominate. If you don’t have one, I can send you my fun Style Quiz: a set of either/or options covering spelling, formatting, punctuation and more.
I use this to generate your Editing Notes: a custom style guide for your project. It offers lots of detail on the editing strategies I’ve used. And you can consult it for subsequent edits you or others make.
Depending on your budget and your preferences, I can copyedit your in-text citations, footnotes and reference list to your preferred scholarly style. I’m familiar with the major referencing styles.
My copyediting process
I work in MS Word, Apple Pages or Google Docs using track changes, documenting my edits in the comments. My workflow is flexible — I can edit an entire document at once, or individual chapters.
My active editing approach front-loads your sentences with your key ideas. That way, your reader’s insight into your topic grows satisfyingly with every word they read. Of course, I also correct spelling, grammar and punctuation.
But I edit sensitively, never ruthlessly. I preserve the rhythms and word choices of your unique voice. And I don’t ever change the substance of your argument. When I find ambiguous wording, I’ll leave a comment suggesting several different potential edits. That way, you decide how best to say what you mean.