The difference between copyediting and proofreading: in many instances people will seek out proofreaders, while expecting copyediting skills. Often, people are not aware of the differences between the two disciplines. Some even assume they are the same thing. However, they […]

Students: How a proofreader can help you with your essay
Not all students are blessed with a command of perfect or exceptional English. Many international students, for whom English is a second (or perhaps even third) language find it difficult to express themselves in writing when compiling essays or other […]

Is the double negative a definite no-no?
The Oxford Dictionary of English says a double negative “is a negative statement containing two negative elements (for example he didn’t say nothing)” and “a positive statement in which two negative elements are used to produce the positive force, usually […]

House style – Part 2
In part 1 I considered why a house style is necessary for a business – for reasons of consistency, brand identity, and economy. Here I will cover a few areas that should be considered based on UK English usage Writing […]

Developing a house style
Why you need a “house” style By “house” style I mean a writing or editorial style that a company or organization will aim to apply to all the documents and communications it produces. The same can perhaps apply to an […]

Proofreading myths exposed
There are some myths about proofreading that are untrue and need exposing and refuting.

Proofreading services: Not just for publishers
People associate proofreading with books and journals produced by publishers, that final stage where uncorrected errors in the original manuscript or those introduced during the editorial and production processes are eliminated. But publishers are not the only ones that require […]

Legalese – kicking a bad habit
What is legalese? It is a very specific language written by lawyers that is often verbose and opaque to the lay reader. Perhaps lawyers write in a long-winded manner as it takes longer to read and write – after all […]

Free proofreading samples – are they fair?
Occasionally I have been asked if I would provide a free sample of my proofreading – in one case a whole academic paper – with the suggestion that this could be the prelude to a series of papers if the […]
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