West Editorial Services

Services

Proofreading

I started as a legislative/legal copyholder, then moved on to make proofreading books my primary line. To date, I've cold read or comparison read over 100 books as traditional galleys, page proofs (singles or double-page spreads), program code, bound books, word-processed copy, or scanned copy. I've also proofread Adobe Acrobat files and PowerPoint presentations. The subjects covered to date range from technical, science, and medical to humanities, social science, and fiction. I'm fast, accurate, pay attention to the specifications and style sheet, and can mark for editorial and printer errors.

Copyediting

To date, I've copyedited over 80 books on a variety of subjects, including el-hi and college textbooks, business, science, computers, psychology, and trade nonfiction. As a medical copyeditor, I've done hundreds of medical journal articles as well as monographs, posters, and PowerPoint presentations. I can do light, medium, or substantive edits, have past experience with a variety of different styles, and know how to compile style sheets.
     I'll edit on paper or electronically with Microsoft Word. I've been copyediting on the computer for over 10 years, so I'm familiar with file cleaning, reformatting, and change tracking, and I can adapt to a variety of querying or commenting formats. I'm also very comfortable with different markup preferences, including STM.

Fact-checking, Research, and Writing

I've fact-checked articles and monographs against sources in the medical and magazine areas, and I wrote bibliographies for an encyclopedia for several years. I also have limited writing experience; I don’t consider this a primary line of work, but I can handle it when necessary.

Publishers
  • Academic Press
  • American Camping Association*
  • Baen Books
  • Bantam Books*
  • Blackwell Science
  • Brown & Benchmark
  • Cadmus Journal Services
  • Curry-Rockefeller Group
  • D. C. Heath
  • Del Rey/Random House
  • Dowden Health Media
  • Harvard University Press*
  • Elsevier Science
  • General Motors/Allison*
  • Human Kinetics
  • IDG Books
  • Indiana Historical Society
  • Richard D. Irwin
  • Jist Works*
  • Liberty Fund*
  • McGraw-Hill College
  • Oxford University Press
  • Penguin Putnam (Berkley, Perigee, Signet)
  • Prentice-Hall Business*
  • Que/Macmillan
  • SAMS/Macmilllan
  • Science Press
  • Scott, Foresman Professional*
  • Steck-Vaughn*
  • Taylor & Francis/Brunner-Routledge
  • University of Oklahoma Press
  • John Wiley & Sons*
  • University of California Press*
  • Williams & Wilkins
  • World Book Encyclopedia

* Subcontract with packager.

Styles
  • American Chemical Society (ACS)
  • American Medical Association (AMA)
  • American Psychological Association (APA)
  • Associated Press (AP)
  • Chicago Manual of Style (CMS)
  • Modern Language Association (MLA)
  • U.S. Government Printing Office (USGPO)
  • Words into Type (WIT)
Tools

OS: Windows 2000

Software: IBM/Windows compatible platform. Windows 2000 Professional, Word 2002 for Windows, Stedman's Plus Medical Spell-checker (regular upgrades), Microsoft PowerPoint 2000, Adobe Acrobat 5.0 (full version).

File transfers: I have a broadband connection, so I can accept files electronically by e-mail, FTP, or browser-based upload to my host server. I also can accept files stored on 2.5-inch floppy disks, CD-R, DVD-R, LS-120, and USB memory sticks.

Work History

West Editorial Services. 1989 to present. DBA, Grant County, IN.

Enumerator. April–June 2010. U.S. Census Bureau, Fairmount, IN.

Proofreader. Indiana State Senate, Indianapolis, IN.

English Instructor. Ball State University, Muncie, IN.

Service Representative. Social Security Administration, Lafayette, IN.

Education

M.A. Folklore. Indiana University at Bloomington.

B.A. Medieval Studies. Purdue University at West Lafayette.

  • National Writer's Union
  • Purdue Alumni Association
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