I am an experienced copy-editor and proofreader with an aptitude for producing accurate and readable text.
I can undertake copy-editing and proofreading projects, both on screen and hard copy, offering efficient turnaround to tight deadlines.
Working on English copy created by multilingual authors is one of my specialities.
Recent projects include:
- copy-editing various documents for the World Health Organization (including the flagship 2012 and 2015 European health reports) on topics including public health, environmental health, emergency preparedness and management, communicable diseases and new medicines;
- copy-editing reports on health economics for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development;
- copy-editing various documents on child rights education and development finance for UNICEF;
- copy-editing a questionnaire assessment report and guidance document on small-scale water supplies for Umwelt Bundesamt (UBA), the German Federal Environment Agency;
- copy-editing various documents for GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance;
- copy-editing and proofreading several reports by academics for social policy research and development charity The Joseph Rowntree Foundation via Cambridge Publishing Management Ltd;
- copy-editing and proofreading work on a variety of social science subjects for Taylor & Francis (Routledge), The Policy Press, Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press;
- copy-editing and proofreading books on music and on Shakespeare for Cambridge University Press;
- copy-editing a PhD thesis on applied ethics, as well as various articles and papers from a team of Japanese academics working in fields including applied and medical ethics, philosophy and art history;
- copy-editing and contributing to issues of the quarterly corporate magazine for the Caucasus region of an international organisation;
- copy-editing a variety of commercial articles, newsletters and announcements by native and non-native English speakers;
- proofreading international salary surveys for a professional membership body;
- copy-editing reports, press releases and training tools for a consultancy firm;
- editing website material for a new translation and interpretation company.
Before focusing full time on editing I gained several years’ experience in the service sector, achieving a senior management position. My duties included preparing, editing and proofreading communications such as CVs, advertisements, marketing literature, promotional material and presentations.
My qualifications include an MA in Shakespeare Studies (Shakespeare Institute, University of Birmingham), and a BA in English Literature (UCL). I have also completed numerous training courses run by the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) – formerly the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP) – and will continue to attend these as part of my continuing professional development.
I am an Advanced Professional Member of the CIEP, and adhere to its Code of Practice. You can see my entry in the CIEP Directory of Editorial Services at:
ciep.uk/directory/lydia-wanstall
To see feedback on my work, please read some of my clients’ testimonials.