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How can I help you?

academic

Academic

Writing is rarely easy and having a partner in this process can make a world of difference. I understand the intricacies of academic writing, including the challenges of successfully communicating complex information and experience to readers in accessible and meaningful ways.

 

I’m conversant with several qualitative research methods and many theories that underpin the social sciences and humanities.  I work with several citation styles:  APA, McGill (legal citations), Chicago, MLA, CSE, and others.

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Depending on the project, key tasks may include the following:

  • Tightening the logic and flow of ideas and arguments to enrich analysis and clarity

  • Integrating plain language principles into complex texts to improve readability for non-specialist or diverse audiences

  • Assisting non-native English speakers—to enhance naturalness, fluency, and accuracy

  • Canadianizing wording and spelling when appropriate

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Academic Projects I've worked on

  • Grants (see Grants section for more details) 

  • Journal articles

  • Theses and dissertations

  • Research proposals

  • Books (anthologies, monographs, and textbooks)

  • Book proposals

  • Book chapters

  • Research reports

  • Evaluation reports

  • Tenure application dossiers

  • Letters of recommendation

  • Application letters & statements

  • CVs

  • Plain language revision (from academese) for popular readership

  • Award applications (E.g.: Royal Society of Canada; Killam; 3M Teaching Awards)

  • Blog posts

Grants

Grants

Grant writing is a unique genre with specific aims and audiences, calling for a particular writing approach...which reflects that you are asking for money! ​​Projects for which I’ve provided editing or mentoring have generated, in sum, over $22 million in research funding. I’d be thrilled to help you prepare your submission.

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I have worked with writers on their submissions to numerous grant streams. Here are several examples.

 

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC)

Insight Development; Insight; Special Topics/Targeted Research

Partnership Development; Partnership; Partnership Engage

New Frontiers in Research (Exploration; Transformation); Banting PostDoctoral Fellowship; Connections; Knowledge Synthesis

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Provincial

Alberta Conservation Association

Alberta Innovates

Alberta Land Institute

WorkSafeBC

Kule Institute for Advanced Study (Cluster), University of Alberta

U of C Strategic Research Collaboration Fund

University of Calgary (U of C) Internationalship Grant

Women and Children's Health Research Institute​

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Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)

Engage; Discovery

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Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Project Grant

 

Arts-related

Alberta Foundation for the Arts

Calgary Arts Development

Calgary Allied Arts Foundation

 

Federal

Ministry of Justice

Canada First Research Excellence (a tri-council fund)

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

Killam Research Fund

The Alzheimer Society Research Program

 

International

Al Qasimi Foundation

Spencer Foundation

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research

Awards

Academic awards recognize excellence, so submissions must be engaging while showcasing and applauding the applicant's accomplishments across specific domains, years, and sometimes an entire career. I've written or provided stylistic and structural editing for submissions to the following award streams: 

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  • Killam Memorial Chair

  • Killam Research Excellence Award

  • Royal Society of Canada (Fellows in the Academies of Arts, Humanities, and Sciences of Canada)

  • 3M National Teaching Fellowship Award

  • U of C Sustainability Reaching Award

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Businss / Institutional

Business / Institutional

These interesting projects require flexibility and creativity. Clients are sometimes individuals within a business context, but are also institutions, non-profits, or other groups. I’m happy to consult with you to determine how best to support you, as each project has unique needs and timelines.

Here are some examples of prior projects, to give you a glimpse of my range:

 

Stylistic Editing

  • Institutional portion of Canada Research Chair submission

  • Lengthy standards of practice guidelines for a regional college of naturopathic doctors

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Substantive (Stylistic and Structural) Editing

  • Non-profit group’s application to direct a $200M endowment (100+ pages)

  • Research and policy recommendation report for an independent research institute (100+ pages aimed at government policy development)

  • Quarterly reports for an oil services company

  • Regulatory compliance and risk management documents for a major bank

  • Crown prosecutor’s detailed application statement for a judgeship

  • Leadership book by Oil Executive—developmental and substantive edit

Edit & Layout

  • Substantive edit and layout of Nursing Alumni Association historical commemorative booklet

  • Stylistic edit and layout of a patient information brochure on death/dying for a Hospice Association

  • Substantive edit and some layout of a graduate program re-accreditation report (100+ pages)

 

Writing

  • Rewrite and major substantive edit of a university-wide environmental scan and lengthy submission report for EDI accreditation—including data organization to glean key insights

  • Rewrite of IT manual for software company—tech jargon to plain language in preparation for translation

  • Plain language interpretation and synopses of health science research papers for a global online food retailer—to be used for promotion

  • Academic award nomination letters and biographies

Creative / Fiction

Creative

Therapeutic stories, memoirs, novels in various genres, a high fantasy role-playing game, a self-help book on mindfulness and horses—these are among the many creative projects I’ve edited over the years. To give your project the love and attention it deserves, I rely on an interactive process that creates a meaningful dialogue between us—as writer and editor.

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The workflow described below often folds in multiple levels of editing (explained here), but we can tailor this to your particular needs, such as just developmental editing or just copyediting.

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  • We meet briefly (in-person, phone, or Zoom) to discuss your project.

  • I take one slow, detailed pass through your manuscript, editing at 4 levels (copy, stylistic, structural, and developmental, explained here).

  • I return the electronically edited manuscript to you. This will have many in-text edits, tons of in-text comments, several pages of additional notes, and a style sheet (a record of how you usually handle spelling, numerals, measurements, dates, grammar choices, etc.).

  • You follow up on my edits, comments, and recommendations as you prefer and then return the revised manuscript to me. 

  • I take a second, faster pass as I check this revised copy, and clean up other things I notice.

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I further recommend a final proofreading pass (to catch any lingering errors). I am willing to do this, but sometimes it is better to have “fresh eyes” on the manuscript for this final pass.

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