I find the errors your spellchecker forgives — and the sentences your reader would have given up on.
I am a copy editor and proofreader working with publishers, agencies, researchers and businesses. My job is to make writing correct, consistent and clear without flattening the voice that made it worth publishing.
That means the mechanical layer — grammar, spelling, punctuation, agreement, tense — but also the layer underneath it: the claim that contradicts page 12, the heading that stopped matching the contents list three drafts ago, the statistic quoted from a source that says something slightly different. I keep a style sheet for every project, so the hundredth page is treated the same way as the first.
I work in Track Changes and Suggesting mode, mark PDFs with standard proofreading symbols, and query rather than assume. Authors keep control of their text; I make sure nothing embarrassing survives to print.
Four levels of intervention. If you are unsure which one your document needs, send it over — I will tell you honestly, even when the answer is the cheaper option.
The last line of defence, performed on near-final copy or typeset proofs.
A full mechanical and consistency edit of a completed draft.
For copy that is correct but not yet persuasive or readable.
Language editing that respects the conventions of your discipline.
Six edits across the kinds of work I handle most. Errors in the left-hand panel are marked; corrections on the right are highlighted.
This study investigate the affect of mobile money adoption on household savings behaviour amongst small scale traders in Lagos state, Nigeria. Utilizing a sample of 420 respondents which were selected through purposive sampling, data was collected via structured questionnaires and analysed using multiple regression analysis. The results indicates that mobile money adoption have a positive and statistically significant relationship with savings frequency (p<.05), however the effect on total savings volume was not significant. These findings suggests that policy makers should focus on infrastructure, in order to deepen financial inclusion amongst this demographic.
This study investigates the effect of mobile money adoption on household savings behaviour among small-scale traders in Lagos State, Nigeria. Using a purposive sample of 420 respondents, data were collected through structured questionnaires and analysed using multiple regression. The results indicate that mobile money adoption has a positive and statistically significant relationship with savings frequency (p < .05); however, its effect on total savings volume was not significant. These findings suggest that policymakers should prioritise infrastructure to deepen financial inclusion within this group.
investigate, indicates, have, suggestsaffect → effect — noun required, not the verbdata was → data were, the plural convention expected in academic prosehowever repaired with a semicolonp<.05 → p < .05Lagos state → Lagos State; proper noun in fullsmall-scale tradersamongst → among, and the second instance cut as repetitionUtilizing… which were selected, in order to, regression analysisthis demographic → this group; a demographic is a statistic, not a set of peopleHere at NovaBank, we are passionate about providing our customers with innovative, cutting-edge financial solutions that are designed to help you achieve your goals. Our team of dedicated experts work tirelessly around the clock in order to ensure that each and every one of our valued customers recieve the very best service possible. Whether your saving for a home, growing a business, or planning for retirement — NovaBank is here for you, every step of the way.
At NovaBank, we build financial tools that help you reach your goals sooner. Our specialists work around the clock, and every customer receives the same standard of service — whether that customer is saving for a home, growing a business or planning for retirement. Wherever you are going next, we have already built for it.
recieve → receive — live on a homepage for eight monthsyour saving → you're saving, then recast to avoid the construction entirelyteam … work → specialists work; collective noun agreement resolved by making the subject pluralinnovative, cutting-edge, tirelessly … around the clock, very best … possibleeach and every one → everyin order to → toevery step of the way replaced with a line that says somethingIn todays fast paced digital world, having a strong online presence is more important then ever before. Businesses who fail to invest in SEO risk being left behind by there competitors. In this article, we will be taking a look at 7 SEO tips that can help you to improve your websites ranking on Google and drive more organic traffic to your site in 2026 and beyond.
A strong online presence matters more than ever. Businesses that fail to invest in SEO risk falling behind their competitors. This article sets out seven practical SEO tips to improve your website's Google ranking and grow organic traffic in 2026.
todays, then, therewebsites → website'swho → that for a non-human antecedentIn today's fast-paced digital world delays the point by seven wordsmore important than ever before → more than ever; before is already in everyour site and filler and beyond removedThe committee have reviewed the data from Q1 and Q2 of 2025, and it's findings indicate that operational efficiency has improved by approximately 12% year on year. However, it should be noted that the aforementioned improvements were largely driven by the implementation of automated processes within the logistics department, and it is recommended that similar measures be considered for adoption across other departments in the near future.
The committee has reviewed data from Q1 and Q2 2025. Its findings show that operational efficiency improved by approximately 12% year on year. These gains were driven largely by automation in the logistics department; the committee recommends extending similar measures to other departments in Q4.
it's → its — the possessive, not the contractioncommittee have → committee has; collective noun treated as singular per the client's US house style, recorded on the style sheetit should be noted thataforementioned → Theseit is recommended given an owner: the committee recommendsin the near future → in Q4, queried with the author and confirmedapproximately 12% retained — the hedge is the author's and is defensibleGrandma's house always smelled of woodsmoke and something sweet that I could never quite identify. She would sit their in her old rocking chair, the one with the faded blue cushion, and she would tell me stories about the war. Her voice was soft, almost like a whisper, and I would listen to her intently, hanging on to her every single word, until the sun went down and mother called me in for dinner.
Grandma's house always smelled of woodsmoke and something sweet I could never quite identify. She would sit there in her old rocking chair — the one with the faded blue cushion — and tell me stories about the war. Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper, and I would listen until the sun went down and Mother called me in for dinner.
their → theremother → Mother, capitalised where it stands in for a nameshe would cut; one auxiliary carries both verbsalmost like a whisper → barely above a whisper; the simile was hedginglisten to her intently, hanging on to her every single word — three ways of saying one thing, reduced to the plainestthat dropped as an unnecessary relative pronounTo install the package, first you should ensure that Python 3.9 or higher is installed on your system. Then, run the following command in you're terminal. If the installation fails, it maybe due to insufficient permissions, in this case try running the command again with sudo priviledges. Note: Windows users will need to utilize the Command Prompt instead of Terminal.
Before installing the package, confirm that Python 3.9 or later is installed on your system, then run the following command in your terminal. If the installation fails, the cause may be insufficient permissions; in that case, run the command again with sudo. Note: Windows users should use Command Prompt rather than Terminal.
priviledges → deleted; sudo alone is correct and the misspelling disappears with ityou're → yourmaybe → may bein this case fixed with a semicolonhigher → later, the conventional term for version numbersutilize → usefirst you should ensure → confirmConsistency is not memory, it is documentation. This is an extract from a style sheet built for a 240-page non-fiction title — the client keeps it, and every future book in the series inherits it.
No surprises, in either direction. You know the cost before I start; I know the brief before I open the file.
Send the document and tell me the audience, the deadline and the style guide, if you have one. I edit a representative extract at no charge so you can see the depth of intervention before committing. It also tells me what level of service the text actually needs.
A fixed price based on word count, condition of the copy and turnaround — not an open-ended hourly estimate. The quote states the service level, the delivery date, what is included and what is not. Nothing begins until you approve it in writing.
Grammar, spelling, punctuation, agreement and typography, in Track Changes. The style sheet is started on page one and updated as decisions arise, so recurring choices stay consistent to the last page.
A separate reading for meaning: contradictions, timeline slips, unclear antecedents, headings that no longer match the contents, figures that disagree with the table beside them. Names, dates, quotations and links verified against sources. Anything I cannot resolve becomes an author query rather than a silent guess.
Three files: the tracked version, a clean version, and the completed style sheet. Queries are collected in comments with suggested options, phrased so you can accept or reject each one quickly.
Once you have answered the queries and made your revisions, I re-read the affected passages at no extra cost. Newly written text introduced at this stage is the most common source of published errors, so it gets checked too.
Priced per word so you know the total in advance. Condition of the copy matters more than length — clean copy at 3,000 words an hour costs less than dense copy at 900.
| Service | Rate | Typical pace | Standard turnaround |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proofreading | $31.92/hr per word | 2,000–3,000 words/hr | 5,000 words in 2 days |
| Copy editing | $37.11/hr per word | 1,200–1,800 words/hr | 10,000 words in 4 days |
| Line editing | $26.11/hr per word | 700–1,200 words/hr | 10,000 words in 6 days |
| Academic editing | $35.11/hr per 1,000 words | 1,000–1,500 words/hr | Thesis chapter in 3 days |
| Rush surcharge | +25% | — | Under 48 hours |
“[Two or three sentences from a client. The most persuasive quotes name a specific problem you solved — a deadline met, an error caught before print, a reviewer's comment about clarity.]”
“[Ask permission to use the client's name and organisation. An anonymous quote is worth far less; ‘a postgraduate researcher, University of Ibadan’ is an acceptable compromise.]”
“[If a client praises you over email, reply and ask whether you may quote it on your site. Most say yes.]”
Free sample edit, no obligation, usually returned within two working days. Tell me the deadline, the audience and the style guide, and I will tell you what the document needs.