Frequently Asked Questions
Below is a list of queries we often receive when discussing a potential editing project with a client. If you’d like to chat more, send us an email, contact us here, or schedule a call. We’re always happy to answer questions and come up with a plan that meets your needs and budget.
What is a copy editor?
A copy editor, sometimes referred to as a line editor or proofreader, is someone with a keen eye for detail (likely also a perfectionist) who reads your work, checks for spelling and grammatical errors, revises or suggests changes to improve clarity and flow, and makes corrections or leaves feedback to improve the text before you submit it for publication. We also check your formatting and citation style to ensure that all sections of your document are in tip-top shape. If needed, we can help you reduce the word count of your document (usually by up to 20% of the original text).
There are many types of editing, including developmental/structural, copy/line, and proofreading. At Acadia Editing Services, we mainly focus on line or copy editing and proofreading. Whereas proofreading is a quick review of an already clean text to check for last-minute errors, a copy edit is a deeper dive that involves some rewording or reworking of sentences. It also includes formatting the file and editing your references list or bibliography and in-text citations per the required style guidelines.
What is formatting and how is it different from copy editing?
Formatting is part of the editing process. It involves setting the font and paragraph styles, margins, pagination, language (British vs. US English), and other aspects of the document according to the guidelines provided by the publisher or university.
Some book and journal publishers have extensive formatting requirements, and trying to figure out why your page numbers keep starting over at 44 on every new chapter is probably the last thing you want to do when you’ve finished writing a book. Following university formatting guidelines for dissertations and theses can be particularly cumbersome. For instance, how do you create a table of contents that automatically updates the headings and page numbers listed? Don’t worry, we’re here to help!
Some clients request that we format their documents without editing them, and we’re happy to accommodate this. Send us your document, the formatting guidelines, and the deadline, and we’ll be happy to get you a quote.
What types of documents do you edit and format?
We edit and format a variety of academic and nonfiction texts, including research papers, theses, dissertations, journal articles, conference papers, books, grant proposals, institute reports, and job market materials.
We also have extensive experience working with authors for whom English is a foreign language (EFL, or ESL–English as a second language). We edit and offer comments with care and sensitivity, and we often see repeat clients adjust their writing in response to our feedback and explanations about English grammar and usage.
We’re always open to considering whatever your project may be, so let us know what you have in mind. You can also check out our Portfolio for examples of our work, and reviews from our clients.
What subjects or fields do you work with?
We primarily edit documents in the social sciences, humanities, education, business and economics, nursing, and environmental science. If you’re not sure if your work is a good fit, just contact us and we’ll let you know if we think we’re a match for you.
Thanks to Paulina’s background in research design and analysis, we specialize in editing work that uses qualitative and quantitative research methods. Many academic editors have no experience with statistics, and we’ve seen a lot of cringe-worthy revisions to text indicating that the editor doesn’t know the difference between a p-value and a coefficient. In addition to reviewing your paper for grammar and spelling mistakes, we ensure that the explanation of your findings is accurate, clear, and concise.
What style guides and citation formats are you familiar with?
We primarily edit documents that use the American Psychological Association (APA) style guide (versions 6 or 7), or Chicago style (CMOS 17 or 18). We also edit a lot of writing that applies the Modern Language Association (MLA) and American Medical Association (AMA) styles. Of course, if you’ve ever submitted a paper for publication, you know that each journal has its own tedious unique take on how a paper should be prepared. Let us tackle these details so you don’t have to.
What is your experience in copy editing and Spanish translation?
Paulina has over 20 years of experience in higher education and previously worked as a political science professor. In that role, she conducted original qualitative and quantitative research, and she wrote and published several peer-reviewed articles and a book. She has been a reviewer for multiple political science journals and has served on academic job search committees. This means that she can offer valuable insights into how to get your work published and what hiring committees are looking for.
As an editor, Paulina has revised over 60 books and over 1,000 research papers, dissertations/theses, job market materials, and other documents. She has worked as a freelance copy editor for book publishers including Edward Elgar, Routledge, University of Michigan Press, and Myers Education Press. She is also a freelance editor and proofreader for Summersdale Publishers, a UK press that specializes in trade and gift books in the wellness, inspirational, trivia/puzzle, and memoir spaces.
Steve recently retired from his position as Judicial Magistrate (Jefferson County, Iowa) after completing a 40-year career as an attorney. He was raised in Cordoba, Argentina, and in Panama and has been bilingual in Spanish and English since childhood. Steve’s background makes him an expert in both legal editing and Spanish translation. He has written and edited countless legal petitions, briefs, judicial rulings, contracts, and judgments, and he has translated (Spanish to English) numerous rule books for jails in Iowa, and even novels. Finally, Steve also served as a courtroom interpreter for the courts of Iowa.
For more information, please read About Us.
How do you ensure confidentiality and data security?
We will never share any documents you send us with anyone, unless you’ve explicitly asked us to. Your files are stored on a local computer (not on a cloud service), and we are the only people with access to them.
What is your turnaround time?
Turnaround times depend on the word count of the document sent for editing. Typically, an article-length piece of 5,000-10,000 words can be returned to you within 3 business days. Longer manuscripts (20,000-100,000 words) require between 5 business days and one month for editing. We accommodate last-minute requests for immediate turnarounds (72 hours or less) when we are able, but typically we are booked out 1-2 months in advance. Of course, it never hurts to ask!
What are your copy editing rates and payment methods?
Editing projects are billed at a per-word rate. Editing typically costs between 5 and 8 cents per word, depending on the extent of revisions needed, the complexity of the formatting guidelines, the work required on the references list and citations, and the turnaround time. Our Spanish translation service is often packaged with our editing service; please contact us for more information. Let us know what you’re working on and how we can help!
We accept Venmo, Zelle, credit cards (via Stripe–we cover the fees), and Wise (international transfers). If you have institutional funds, we’re also happy to become an approved vendor with your university or organization to accept a check or ACH transfer.
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