Editing Skills & Services
Wednesday, August 24th, 2011
 Writing a thesis can be a daunting task. However, knowing some of the basic rules can make this challenge much more manageable.
Usually, before the thesis can be written, much research needs to be done into the subject of your paper. If it is a literature or arts paper, then this step usually involves reading or viewing the works, as well as the papers of others who have written on the same works. You will then have to form your own opinions on the subject and discuss your ideas in the thesis, while also citing the texts and opinions of others. However, if you are writing a math or science thesis, then your research would usually involve conducting experiments, as well as exploring the results of those who have studied in the same field.
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Tags: editing, Thesis Editing, writing
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Sunday, August 14th, 2011
 In academic writing it’s conventional to back up your statements and ideas with quotations. As you are editing your paper you need to think about how to contextualize them and how to set them out.
The first challenge is to weave your quotations neatly into your text. Think about the range of verbs you can use for introducing your chosen author’s ideas: observed, stated, commented or noted might serve as well as said or wrote.
Next, think about the presentation. Check that you have supported your quotations with formal citations. The layout of these will depend on the style guide required for your paper (MLA, APA, CSE, Chicago, etc.). You will need to be clear about this and consult a relevant up-to-date source. Your institution will be able to supply you with specific guidelines.
Then there are the general points about layout.
Run-in quotations
If your quotation forms part of your sentence, check that the citation is placed after the closing quotation mark, and followed by the rest of the surrounding sentence or the final punctuation of that sentence.
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Tags: edit quotations, editing, writing
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Sunday, August 7th, 2011
 Should I write “20th century” or “twentieth century”? Is it okay to put “the 1990s” or should I write “the nineties”? With a bewildering range of examples on the internet, in books and in periodicals, simple answers to questions about style can seem elusive.
Anyone writing or editing papers, articles, books or poetry for publication in American English, should know that the authoritative guide is the Chicago Manual of Style (CMS). This explains the conventions for punctuation, spelling, the setting out of quotations and dialogue, the presentation of abbreviations, captions for illustrations, the content of tables, and indexing. In summary, the Chicago Style covers all aspects of copy-editing.
The CMS is available in hard copy and on the web. Published by the University of Chicago Press since 1906, it is periodically reviewed and is currently in its 16th edition. All serious writers should consult it and keep abreast of developments in the latest edition. (more…)
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Wednesday, June 1st, 2011
 You have written an essay and sent it to your supervisor. He has reviewed it and sent it back, but instead of marking it with red pen, as all your other teachers do, he has used the Track Changes under the Review tab in Word. You have never seen this before and don’t know what to do. Here’s where this blog will help you. You can also visit http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word-help/track-changes-while-you-edit-HA001218690.aspx to see how to use track changes while you edit. This useful website gives all the basics on how to understand and use Track Changes.
Track changes show changes that have been made in a document – they are usually red, but can be set to any color depending on how many people review the document, and the insertions are underlined and deletions scored through. A black line is also inserted at the left-hand side of the text to indicate that a change has been made in that line of text. (more…)
Tags: editing, track changes, writing
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Sunday, May 22nd, 2011
 The definition of a white paper is somewhat broad. It initially referred to mainly government papers, which can later extended to include commercial documents. Nonetheless, a white paper is a term that describes an authoritative report or guide on a specific subject. Thus, they are often requested and used in politics, policy, business, academic and technical fields. In commercial use, the term encompasses documents used by businesses as a marketing or sales tool.
Whatever their origin, white papers are frequently cited in publications, especially in academic writing. Thus, the citation and referencing rules that apply to other sources information govern the use of white papers. Depending on the style guide chosen for the presentation of your thesis, different formats will apply. Hence when editing your thesis, you might find the guidelines given below useful, where the white paper citation and referencing formats applicable to some popular style guides are presented.
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Tags: editing, Professional Editing, writing
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