Dr Julie Banton |

About

I mainly copyedit non-fiction (but also proofread both fiction and non-fiction). I specialise in social science academic work (particularly quantitative research) but have also worked on Christian writing and am happy to work with any kind of material. You will find me to be friendly and approachable.

My mission is to ensure that:

* the key messages of the text are clear

* the writing style is consistent throughout

* there are no embarrassing mistakes or typos

* your written material is the best it can be!

I'm usually available for work during school holiday periods (as well as the rest of the year!)

Experience

I'm currently the sole copyeditor for a social science journal; this involves substantive editing as well as copyediting of mainly quantitative papers. I also copy-edit academic papers for a variety of independent clients.

I've been freelance since 2016 but carried out a lot of informal editing in my previous roles. My background is in both academia (research/teaching for 7 years) and central government (research and statistics for 14 years), so I have experience of working with a wide range of clients.

I'm also co-author of a statistics textbook for beginners (3rd edition forthcoming), so I can see things from an author's viewpoint as well as an editor's!

Training and qualifications

Editing:

Became CIEP Advanced Professional member (2021)

CIEP online conference (2020, 2021)

CIEP Introduction to Fiction Editing (2020)

Passed CIEP basic editorial test and became Professional member (2019)

CIEP Copyediting Headway (2018)

CIEP Working with Non-Publishers (2018)

Introduction to Macros workshop (2018)

CIEP Introduction to Copyediting and CIEP Introduction to Proofreading (2016)

Academic:

PhD in Social Statistics, University of Southampton (2001)

BSc(SocSci) Population Studies, University of Southampton (1994)

Clients

Population Studies journal (academic, social science)

Approved supplier to Newcastle University Business School, University of Southampton, and Durham University (working with individual academics)

A UN agency

Independent academics/authors

I don't currently/usually work with students.

In the past I have carried out copyediting for Charlesworth and Wearset and proofreading for Instant Apostle.

Subjects

Social science and academic. Including health, mortality, social trends, geography, demography, statistics, data, survey questionnaires.

Christian fiction and non-fiction. 

Testimonials

"It is so great to have our manuscript read so thoroughly by someone so careful and knowledgeable. The paper has really improved a lot (and we have avoided several embarrassing typos) thanks to the amazing quality of what you do."

Marianne Tønnessen, Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research, September 2024

"Julie's copyediting went way above and beyond my expectation. In addition to taking care of the language, she pointed out a number of inconsistencies and incoherences in my writing. She even provided great suggestions regarding the demographic terminologies used in my paper. Also, whenever she made any revision that she thought might change the original meaning, she always left notes and asked me to double check. She is the best copyeditor I have ever worked with so far!"

Yifan Shen, Assistant Professor, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, October 2023

"... really thoughtful and comprehensive comments, I am really grateful for getting them. It is so nice to get old-fashioned line edits from someone who cares."

Aashish Gupta, Harvard University, July 2022

"Thank you very much for your excellent copy-editing of my article. The commitment, thoroughness and thoughtfulness with which you analyse the text and the appropriateness of your comments and suggestions are impressive!"

Jacek Cypryjański, University of Szczecin, February 2022

"It is really appreciated that every detail was checked, from content to phrasing to consistency to aesthetics."

Ashira Menashe-Oren, Université catholique de Louvain, January 2022

"... a wonderful and thorough job, the best I've seen anywhere I've submitted to." 

Matthew Wallace, Stockholm University, January 2021

"Julie is a brilliant, meticulous, insightful and knowledgeable copy-editor and proofreader. She is committed and dedicated to her work, and she is also kind and helpful in her approach. She always considers the best for my stories and treats them with care and respect. She's excellent!"

Efrat Danon, Independent fiction writer, July 2019

​"I have never had a paper so thoroughly, thoughtfully, and expertly copy-edited."

Professor Wendy Sigle, London School of Economics and Political Science, July 2019

"We’re very impressed with the thoroughness of the edits and suggestions."

Professor James Raymer, Australian National University. April 2018

"Many thanks for the excellent help with the paper. I have never been so satisfied with the contributions from a copy-editor as I am now."

Professor Øystein Kravdal, University of Oslo. January 2018

"Thank you also for the excellent editing of the papers."

"We really like how the text has been edited. Great job!" 

Professor Frans Willekens, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute. September 2017

"Wow! This is amazing – thanks so much. I particularly like the fact that you are questioning what is written, that is really helpful. Having a professional look at this gives me a lot more confidence; so many people just skim read and it’s so easy to miss the obvious."

Lynda Barrow, Marketing Executive, Naomi House & Jacksplace hospices. November 2016

• Editor
• Proofreader

• Non-fiction
• Religion & theology
• Social sciences