ACADEMIC EDITING SERVICES

Academic editing services that meet your needs

You’ve been researching, writing, editing and fine-tuning your masterpiece, and finally, it’s almost ready for publication. But having read over your work for what seems like the hundredth time, you know it makes sense to find an experienced, professional academic copyeditor to ensure your work meets the highest publication standards.

Which academic editing services are right for you?

Whether your manuscript needs a light touch to add shine or a heavier hand to improve flow, the Detail Devil can help. After many years of working with academic researchers — early, mid and late career — I’ve carefully designed the following options with your needs in mind. Scroll down the page for details of each option. For details of the process of submitting a manuscript to me, see the FAQs.

Option 1 Copyedit (one pass)
Option 2 Copyedit (two passes)
Option 3 Proofread
Option 4 Page proof
Option 5 Manuscript/thesis format
Option 6 Reference format

I need help with academic editing

I need help with thesis editing

I need help with manuscript formatting

OPTION 1

Copyedit (one pass)

The first pass addresses most mechanical (language and style) issues — ideal for lighter edits (often identified during the sample edit; see FAQs), specifically:
Ensure correct use of language, including grammar, syntax, punctuation and spelling (Australian, British, US, NZ etc.)
Maintain consistent language usage (capitalisation, hyphenation, abbreviation, etc.)
Ensure clear expression (e.g. removing ambiguity, wordiness and unnecessary repetition)
Ensure a smooth flow of text (e.g. clear and logical connections between phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections)
Ensure appropriate use of idiom, style and tone
Review appropriate use of technical and specialised terminology, including discipline-specific items, abbreviations and units of measurement
Ensure consistent presentation of illustrations, diagrams and other display items
Crosscheck in-text citations with the reference list, checking that URLs function and highlighting any missing information
Ensure compliance with preferred style guides like APA’s Publication Manual, the Australian Style Manual, the Oxford Guide to Style
Create an editorial summary and Language & Style Notes, tailored to your manuscript, to document my language, style and referencing decisions
Greyed-out items are not included:
Any items in Options 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 (unless specifically requested)
Rewriting, restructuring or substantive editing
Research or fact checking

OPTION 2

Copyedit (two passes)

A second pass tackles less routine matters that can often only be addressed after a first pass —recommended for deeper edits (often identified during the sample edit), specifically:
Review of all the tasks listed in Option 1.
Greyed-out items are not included:
Crosscheck in-text citations with the reference list, checking that URLs function and highlighting missing information
Any items in Options 3, 4, 5 or 6 (unless specifically requested)
Rewriting, restructuring or substantive editing
Research or fact checking

OPTION 3

Proofread

Proofreading is the final review of your manuscript before publication, comparing the copyedited version with the PDF proofs:
Ensure that no errors have crept into the manuscript from previous rounds of copyediting and formatting
Review visual elements (typography, heading hierarchy, page layout, figures, tables and captions)
Check formatting (widows/orphans eliminated, tables not split unnecessarily, page layout)
Confirm integrity (all elements of the manuscript are present and in the correct place)
Greyed-out items are not included:
Any items in Options 1, 2, 5 or 6 (unless specifically requested)
Rewriting, restructuring or substantive editing
Research or fact checking

OPTION 4

Page proof

A page proof is like proofreading but without the full read-through, specifically:
Review visual elements (typography, heading hierarchy, page layout, figures, tables and captions)
Check formatting (widows/orphans eliminated, tables not split unnecessarily, page layout)
Confirm integrity (all elements of the manuscript are present and in the correct place)
Greyed-out items are not included:
Ensure that no errors have crept into the manuscript from previous rounds of copyediting or formatting
Any items in Options 1, 2. 5 or 6 (unless specifically requested)
Rewriting, restructuring, or substantive editing
Research or fact checking

OPTION 5

Manuscript / thesis format

Create and apply Word styles for every part of your document (headings, body text, block quotes, tables/figures, captions, bulleted/numbered lists, references, appendices, glossary and any other styles you might need, ensuring compliance with your preferred style guide and/or university requirements
Ensure consistent numbering for tables, figures and appendices
Create a Table of Contents and Lists of Tables, Figures and Abbreviations; compile Appendices
Verify accurate page numbering (use Roman numerals for preliminary pages if required), applying section breaks where needed
Assemble your manuscript, checking all the elements are present and correctly positioned
Present your manuscript professionally and beautifully

OPTION 6

Reference format

Format your reference list in the required style, such as APA, Harvard, AMA, CMoS or as specified by the publisher
Highlight missing information, inconsistencies and errors
Verify URLs and flag any inaccuracies
Greyed-out items are not included:
Looking up missing reference elements
Compiling a reference list from in-text citations

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Pam assisted me to finalise submission of a book manuscript of over 130,000 words [Assessing Mathematical Literacy: The PISA Experience, 2014, Springer]. She has an excellent command of English, including the finer points of grammar. She set up the styles for our Word program to simplify the formatting task and to deal with references, figures, tables and indexing. Pam is a master of academic style manuals and finds answers to complex referencing questions quickly and accurately. She is indeed good at detail and tracks it through the manuscript. Best of all, Pam is able to achieve just the right balance between making a decision and referring a decision to you. A pleasure to work with.

Emeritus Professor Kaye Stacey (Mathematics Education), University of Melbourne, Australia

Pam efficiently and expertly copyedited my PhD thesis prior to submission. She provided professional and respectful suggestions that improved my writing style and structure. I learnt a lot from Pam as her corrections/suggestions were clearly explained and justified. Pam is kind, accommodating, and has brilliant communication skills. I will definitely be recommending Pam’s services to peers and colleagues.

Jessica Zanuttini Doctoral Candidate (Education and Social Work), University of Sydney, Australia

I am writing to express my gratitude to your patience in giving suggestions in detail and to let you know that your job is appreciated. I can absolutely understand the pressure of doing such a job because I was an English teacher before I started this research and I used to mark my students’ compositions for Chinese College English Test. Each time after marking their work, I felt I could not breathe for several days. So many tiny mistakes and inappropriate usages! Your work reminds me about those days and reminds me to reflect myself and to be a better teacher, with more patience and understanding. You are an amazing person.

Yu Han Doctoral Candidate (Chinese Teacher-Researcher Education), Western Sydney University, Australia

We need to acknowledge our copyeditor Pam Firth of The Detail Devil. We have endless appreciation for her unwavering contribution to this project, where her professionalism shone through immeasurably. No doubt our readers will witness Pam’s editorial acumen contained in this book [The globalisation of higher education: Developing internationalised education research and practice, 2018, Palgrave Macmillan].

Dr Tim Hall, A/Prof Tonia Gray, Dr Greg Downey, Prof Michael Singh (Eds.), Western Sydney University, Australia

ACADEMIC EDITING SERVICES