Classic and Conscious Copyediting
Reader-focused copyediting and accessibility evaluation for your educational, non-fiction, or fiction project – online or in print
Services
Proofreading & Copyediting
I can help you make sure your writing is free from errors and adheres to a style guide, ensuring that your communicate clearly with you reader.
Line & Developmental Editing
I can help you develop your writing and style, making sure that what your reader gets from your writing matches your intent.
Accessibility & Plain Language Evaluation
I can assess your document, course, or other media to make sure it meets accessibility and plain language standards, ensuring that everyone has access.
Philosophy
My philosophy on reader-focused writing and editing began when I started to work in advocacy in Israel and Palestine. The focus was now on the audience: getting them to care about the situation in Palestine and Israel, helping them understand nonviolent action, and convincing them to attend webinars and meetings when there were other things they could do with their time.
This continued in educational design. Every word has to serve the learner. Does it help them understand? Does it connect with who they are and their goals? Is there a more effective way to help them learn?
During this time, I adopted two books as the foundation of my thinking about editing: Stephen Pinker’s The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century (in which he discusses “classic” style) and Karen Yin’s The Conscious Style Guide: A Flexible Approach to Language that Includes, Respects, and Empowers.
If you’re interested in writing for your audience, I highly suggest these two books. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
Classic Style
“The guiding metaphor of classic style is seeing the world… It succeeds when it aligns language with the truth, the proof of success being clarity and simplicity. The truth can be known, and is not the same as the language that reveals it; prose is a window onto the world.”
“A writer of classic prose must simulate two experiences: showing the reader something in the world, and engaging her in conversation.”
“Classic writing, with its assumption of equality between writer and reader, makes the reader feel like a genius. Bad writing makes the reader feel like a dunce.”
—Steven Pinker, The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century
Conscious Style
“Conscious language is a philosophy and a practice that goes beyond terminology. I chose the word conscious because it means ‘aware, mindful, and intentional.’ So, to use conscious language is to be more aware, mindful, and intentional about how we treat ourselves and others through language…
Conscious language liberates instead of limits. It emphasizes the importance of context and critical thinking, and it flexes and grows alongside society.”
—Karen Yin, The Conscious Style Guide
Specialties
Accessibility
Accessible language and processes
Readability
Plain language and grade level
Reader-Focused
Maximizing learning, engagement, and retention
Contact Me
Questions? Please use the button to ask or to schedule a free consultation. I’m happy to message, use email, video chat, or make a phone call—whichever form of communication works best for you.