copyediting samples

Materials on the History of the Jews in Latvia

Materials on the History of the Jews in Latvia is a history book that about the daily lives and politics of the Jews who lived in Latvia before the world wars. The book was originally compiled by rabbis and other prominent Jewish men in the 19th and 20th centuries. It was written first in German, then it was translated into Russian, then into English.

I was the managing editor for the teams of translators and editors, and I completed much of the copyediting work myself, as well as helping out with some of the Russian-English translation. I also typeset the book in collaboration with the publisher, Association SHAMIR.

Edited in 2021

Services completed:

• Translating
• Copyediting
• Typesetting
• Indexing

Stars and the Light of the Gospel

“Stars and the Light of the Gospel” is an article discussing stars and how the world’s artificial light often drowns them out. The author compares stars to the truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He states that in order to make it to our eternal destination, we need to be able to put aside the world’s distractions and listen to the Spirit.

This article was written by a 15-year-old member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He wrote it with the goal that it would be published in the magazine For the Strength of Youth.

Edited in 2021

Editing services completed:

• Copyediting
• Substantive editing

Spiritual Watering

“Spiritual Watering” is an article discussing faith and how we can’t just nourish it once and then let it sit—we need to consistently nourish it, or it won’t grow. The author compares faith to planting and growing a flower, basing his words off of his experience planting flowers on the grounds of the Pocatello Idaho Temple. He states that in order to stay spiritually protected and become more like Jesus Christ, we need to listen to and obey the prophets and the Spirit, and we need to do it consistently.

This article was written by a 12-year-old member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He wrote it with the goal that it would be published in the magazine For the Strength of Youth.

Edited in 2021

Editing services completed:

• Copyediting
• Substantive editing

[anonymous novel] (excerpt)

In this adult historical fiction novel, a teenage boy in East Berlin is given two opportunities of a lifetime: One is the chance to play his cello in a major concert in West Germany. The other is the chance to guard a dangerous secret, one that will put him, his friends, and his family at odds with each other and with the ruthless Stasi.

The author of this novel requested copyediting for the first chapter. I made a few style suggestions but mostly focused on word-level changes, such as for punctuation, grammar, and word choice.

Edited in 2021

Editing services completed: 

• Copyediting

Too Close to the Son (excerpt)

In “Too Close to the Son,” a YA fantasy short story, one young actor has a point to make to his cynical father. The boy discovers a secret ability: when he acts, people believe he truly is the role he’s playing. Determined to prove himself to his father, he practices this ability, building up an urban legend in the meantime. But there’s an unforeseen cost to his newfound power.

This story was published in Issue 76 of Leading Edge Magazine, the quarterly science fiction and fantasy journal edited and published by students from Brigham Young University. You can read the full story here.

Edited in 2019

Editing services completed: 

• Copyediting

UCHD Style Guide

Publishing style guide

For one of my editing classes, groups of students were assigned to write style guides and then send them to other groups to be edited. The members of my group separately edited a fictional style guide designed for the Utah County Health Department. As I edited, I took into account inclusivity, making sure that when cultural groups were mentioned, the language used was sensitive and unbiased.

Edited in 2019

Editing services completed:

• Substantive editing
• Copyediting