Writing is difficult. A good editor can help. This is especially true if you are not writing in your native language. In the spring of 2020 I joined with UK-based academic and editor Kirsty Kay to create The Editing Cooperative. Although we are open to all types of editing and proofreading projects, we are especially oriented to non-native English writing academics. Both Kirsty and I have lived and worked in Eastern Europe and Asia (Kirsty in Hungary, me in Russia). Along the way, we have both found brilliant colleagues doing work that deserves the wider academic audience English provides. We acknowledge the injustices of a globalized academy that privileges English and seek to introduce as much linguistic egalitarianism into this system as we can. Our hope is to provide fairer non-Western rates to non-Western academics. Get in touch with us through our website here or check out my individual services below.
I am also beginning to edit fiction (sci fi/fantasy). Get in touch for a special discounted rate.
Experienced professional and published writer
I have over ten years experience proofreading and editing academic texts (journal articles, essays, dissertations, monographs, book proposals, research grant proposals, etc.). I served as an assistant editor of a Q1 Scopus journal from 2012-2017, so I understand what top journal look for and the ins and outs of the submission and review process. I also have extensive experience teaching academic writing to both native-English speaking and non-native undergraduates. I have mainly focused on academic texts in the social sciences and humanities, however, I do have experience editing texts in the hard sciences and I am willing to work with you. I am also trying to establish myself as a fiction (sci fi/fantasy) editor. I’m currently offering a special low rate for fiction editing. So if you are looking for an editor, proofreader, tutor, or researcher/writer do not hesitate to get in touch!
What I offer:
- developmental editing/manuscript evaluation
- line editing
- copy editing
- proofreading
- tutoring in academic writing or political science; critical theory
- writing and research
- consultations at any stage of the writing and publication process
- fiction developmental and line editing (sci fi/fantasy)
The process
Most texts require a round of line editing and/or copy editing before the proofread. I therefore offer a flat, one-time fee for multiple rounds of editing/proofreading on journal articles and essays as you prepare them for publication. The first round is the most intensive and includes fixing grammatical and spelling errors, restructuring sentences for style and clarity, and engaging closely with the argument of the text. Authors usually receive the text back from me with extensive tracked changes and margin comments and questions. After this first round, authors accept, incorporate, or reject my changes and try to elaborate where I noted clarity or structural problems. The second round is much the same as we home in together on a clear, crisp text (sometimes not needed depending on state of the original). The final round is proofreading which corrects any remaining grammatical and spelling errors, formats the text and bibliography, and ensures consistency. Authors are encouraged to provide me with the style guide of the journal or press they plan to submit to before this final round.
Reviews and Testimonials
“Working with Zach was great. He was very reliable, the correspondence was easy, and most importantly, he delivered on time. If you are looking for a fast and competent editing service at a fair price, Zach is a great option.”
–Gerrit Gonschorek, University of Freiburg (Germany)
“Zachary provides comprehensive proofreading and line editing including advice on punctuation and style. As a scholar, he is also well familiar with social sciences and humanities and can provide a useful feedback on the general structure of the text, logic, and argumentation. The price is quite affordable too. In June 2020, he edited and proofread my manuscript on the psychological mechanisms of media reception in nondemocracies, and the work was done very professionally and fast. I find Zachary’s work very satisfactory and will definitely use his services again.”
–Maxim Alyukov, Tyumen State University (Russia)
“I am very pleased with the results of the editing job accomplished by Zachary Reyna. I greatly appreciate the fact that alongside proofreading he enriched my text with useful comments and gave me some valuable pieces of advice. I would strongly recommend his expertise to anybody looking to give a nice shape to a piece of writing. I’m sure that you won’t be disappointed either by the final result or by the price which is more than fair.”
— Ekaterina Smirnova, Ghent University (Belgium)
“I had Zach edit the materials for the website of the research group I am a member of. My colleagues and I liked that he did not just correct the grammar mistakes but made our texts sound like they were written by native speakers. At the same time, texts were not changed completely, and we could still feel like the authors of these texts. Based on my experience of having my texts proofread, I can say that to find this compromise is the hardest thing. Sometimes, proofreaders just change your grammar mistakes, so all your brilliant ideas are still there, but texts continue to sound like written by a foreigner. Other times, proofreaders try to make your texts sound native, so they change your wording, but it appears at the end not exactly what you tried to say. Zach was able to find a balance between these two “bad” alternatives and made our texts sound native while keeping them being “ours.” I also liked that he did his work even faster than we initially agreed.”
–Natalia Savelyeva, University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA)
“In recent decades, English has increasingly become the lingua franca in international humanities and social sciences. This is a great process of international integration, but there is the serious danger of on the one hand underprivileging non-native speakers of English in the marketplace of ideas, or on the other hand barbarizing the English language and reducing the role of precise linguistic expression, which would be fatal for the humanities as we know them. This is why the field of academic proofreading becomes a highly important profession requiring a lot of skill. Proofreaders basically take you from your particular existence and bring you into your universal existence. Kirsty Kay and Zachary Reyna are unique virtuosos of proofreading, with interdisciplinary academic competences, mastery of English, and many years of experience in the profession. I highly recommend them!”
–Artemy Magun, Director of the Center for Practical Philosophy at the European University at St Petersburg (Russia); Editor of Stasis: journal of social and political philosophy
