In amending and improving written English for more than 20 years, I have become experienced in providing these services for a very wide range of subject matter. Through my previous employment, studies and client commissions I have a particular knowledge of numerous topics such as economics, business, marketing, branding, social media, international development, sustainable development, environmental issues, natural resources, town planning, regeneration, architecture, politics, health,
dentistry, medicine, linguistics, education, fashion and design.
Welcome to Wimbledon Proofreading….
Are you an academic who is requiring your latest research paper to be proofread in readiness for publication?
Are you a student who uses English as a second language and has a PhD or postdoctoral thesis, or postgraduate or
undergraduate dissertation, or an essay or project document to be checked and corrected for English language errors?
Are you an author or a blogger who is looking for a fresh pair of eyes to provide editing advice or just a final proofreading
of your latest creative offering?
Are you a business or other form of organisation that is in need of reports to be proofread or marketing literature to be polished?
I offer personal and comprehensive proofreading and copyediting services to businesses, researchers, academics, authors, bloggers, publishers, website owners and private individuals. For students, I offer a proofreading service only.
Over the years I have come to particularly specialise in assisting people who use English as a second language. I have extensive experience in amending the writing of students, researchers and academics. As well as the UK, my clients come from many different countries and cultures such as Japan, China, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand, Spain, Italy, France, Greece, Turkey, Russia, Mexico, Venezuela, Brazil, India, Saudi Arabia and Iran. As such, I am very familiar with the typical difficulties that different nationalities often experience when writing in English.
About me….
My name is Paul Lancaster. I am a native English speaker. Originally from a small town called Lymington on the south coast of England, I lived in London for almost twenty years. I now split my time between the UK, Valencia in Spain and other countries throughout the world.
I have a passion for travelling and engaging with people from other cultures. This is perhaps why I have come to specialise in helping to correct and improve the writing of non-native English speakers, from which I gain immense satisfaction. I also teach English to such speakers, and which has reinforced my understanding of why certain errors in English are made by specific nationalities.
I have a master’s degree in economics of urbanisation from University College London, and an undergraduate degree in economics and social studies as well as a postgraduate diploma in development economics from the University of Manchester.
In my previous employment as a policy adviser within the UK Civil Service I was involved in the development of government policies and legislation in various social, economic and environmental fields such as town planning and regeneration, sustainable urban design, regional economic development, transport, housing, and nationally significant infrastructure development consent. This work also entailed writing and editing detailed policy documents and guidance, as well as drafting policy briefing notes and correspondence for government ministers, and advising on and proofreading documents written by colleagues.
In 2012, I left the UK Civil Service to pursue a self-employed way of life, establishing first Wimbledon Proofreading and then Wimbledon English, through which I provide English lessons.
Proofreading service
For the proofreading service the key aim is to only make direct amendments (via track changes) to the text which ensures aspects such as the correct use of grammar, appropriate punctuation, sentence flow / syntax, correct and consistent spelling, consistent tone, etc., rather than to impose my own personal preferences on how text could be written. I do though, where appropriate, also provide additional suggestions in comment boxes where I feel that the client may wish to consider alternatives. What I always bear in mind is whether there is sufficient clarity of the text for the intended audience.
Unless requested otherwise, I will apply the accepted UK English approaches to the use of verb tenses, verb choice, spellings and punctuation.
For punctuation, although there are many clear and universally accepted rules on when certain punctuation should be used, there are also numerous situations where alternative approaches can correctly be taken, and which is just a matter of personal preference, most notably in the use of commas. I aim to ensure a consistent use of the client’s preferred approach to punctuation, but which at the same time adheres to the accepted rules.
The proofreading will include amending for a consistent use of spelling where alternatives could be used, such as words ending in either ‘ise’ or ‘ize’, and a consistent use of spelling of names.
It will also include a general ‘tidying-up’ in terms of such things as a consistent use of font and font sizes, accurate headings / sections numbering, etc., but it will not include undertaking a more fundamental reformatting of the document.
Any in-text citations will be checked to ensure they have been written in a consistent format, and also adhering to a format style (e.g. Harvard) where such a style is required.
When specifically requested by the client, a reference / bibliography section will be proofread to ensure that the entries have been written in a consistent format, and also adhering to a format style (e.g. Harvard) where such a style is required. Note that a different fee is applied for this if it is a substantially-sized list (e.g. for a PhD thesis). See the fees section for further details.
Reference list / bibliography cross-check service
When specifically requested by the client, a cross-check of a reference list / bibliography can be undertaken to ensure that all of the in-text citations in the document have a corresponding entry in the reference list / bibliography. This is a separate service which would thereby be additional to the proofreading service or proofreading and copyediting service that is applied to the other parts of the document. See the fees section of this website for further details.
Combined proofreading and copyediting service
With this service, relatively substantial changes can be made to the writing, as well as a general proofreading of the entire text. As such, this service will be of benefit when the writer of the document is looking to have more significant amendments made, beyond what would be undertaken for just the proofreading service.
Such amendments could be for the restructuring of significant portions of the existing text, along with the consequentially necessary rewriting of sentences; or the rewriting or paraphrasing of a relatively substantial number of sentences, paragraphs or whole sections; or advising on the reduction of word count by a significant proportion.
It is possible for such copyediting to be requested for only clearly identified parts of the document, and with the proofreading part of the service still being undertaken on all of the document.
Not available for students:
Please note that I do not provide a copyediting service for students. This is because it would go further than the types of support with the English language that academic institutions normally allow their students to receive from third parties.
Fees
I use a simple and transparent fee structure that is based on the word count and whether you require the proofreading service or the more substantial combined proofreading and copyediting service.
The payment only needs to be made after you have considered my suggested amendments and we have resolved any questions that either of us may have. I send an invoice with the proofread / copyedited document, for either payment to my bank account or Wise account.
Proofreading only
The proofreading service fee is £8 per thousand words for up to 20,000 words, and then £5 for each thousand words in excess of 20,000. There is a minimum fee of £15.
Combined proofreading and copyediting
The proofreading and copyediting service fee is £12 per thousand words for up to 20,000 words, and then £8 for each thousand words in excess of 20,000. There is a minimum fee of £20.
If copyediting is only needed for a clearly identifiable part of a document, only the proofreading and copyediting fee is applied to that part, with the proofreading fee being applied to the remaining word count.
Non-text material
If all or a substantial part of a document primarily consists of diagrams, tables, mathematical formulae, etc., then that can be proofread using an hourly rate of £15 per hour.
Reference lists / bibliographies
Where a document contains a substantially-sized reference list / bibliography, such as for a PhD thesis, it would be proofread using an hourly rate of £15 per hour, if the client specifically asks for it to be proofread. A relatively short list would just be proofread for the rate that is being applied for the rest of the document, i.e. the proofreading rate or proofreading and copyediting rate.
An hourly rate of £15 per hour is applied if the client requests a cross-check of a reference list / bibliography to be undertaken to ensure that all of the in-text citations in the document have a corresponding entry in the reference list / bibliography.