Mrs Petra Bryce | Fiction & general non-fiction | Children & adults | German

My background

One of my earliest memories involves having my nose stuck in a book, and in that respect nothing much has changed, except that these days I have turned reading into a career. Because I'm an avid reader, I will always consider the material I'm working on from both perspectives.

Before embarking on a career in publishing, I was a nurse for nineteen years in various disciplines, and I still retain more than a passing interest in anything relating to medicine or science, but I'm equally at home in the humanities, especially history. Additionally, I enjoy flexing my language muscles by working on titles teaching German to English speakers (mostly students at secondary schools), and I'm often engaged as a language adviser to provide native speaker checks. However, I have a particular love for children's publishing.

To date I have worked on over 250 book titles, ranging from adult fiction and general non-fiction, to children's general non-fiction and children's/YA fiction, to textbooks for paramedics and German language teaching.

I went freelance in 2012 and have been an Advanced Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP), and before that of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP), since 2017. I'm thorough and reliable, with a keen eye for detail, and can communicate well. I've built my reputation on delivering high-quality work on time. I have professional indemnity insurance from AXA.

Subjects

The following list is not exhaustive, and I'm always happy to consider other subjects:

children's general non-fiction (biography, science, anatomy, environmentalism, mental health, special educational needs, history, natural history, philosophy), children's fiction/illustrated children's fiction/picture books (fantasy, adventure, diary, humour, supernatural, anthology, short stories), poetry, YA fiction (thriller, crime, fantasy, paranormal), adult general non-fiction (modern history (esp. Second World War, Third Reich), popular science, medicine, biology, biography, memoir, general knowledge, films, travel, antiques, sport, psychology), collected prose, poetry, adult fiction (historical fiction, historical mystery, historical thriller, science fiction, fantasy, short stories, contemporary fiction, literary fiction, translated fiction), educational (GCSE revision [in German or English], German language teaching, ELT [esp. for German speakers])

Recent clients

For various reasons I've been working exclusively with publishers for several years. My recent clients include:

Penguin Random House Children's, Scholastic, Newgen Publishing, Haremi, Educate.ie, Faber & Faber, Templar Books (Bonnier Books)

For a full list of all (publicly available) projects I've worked on, please see my portfolio on my website.

Services offered

I offer the following services:

• proofreading (proofreading stamps, Adobe comment tools, MS Word)

• copyediting (MS Word)

• proof correction checks (PDF)

• anglicisation

• limited fact checking

• native speaker checks (German)

• language review (German)

• audio checks (German)

I work with the following media:

• PDF

• MS Word

• MS PowerPoint

• MP3 files

Training

After leaving nursing in 2011 and deciding on a second career in publishing, I completed the following training modules:

• Word for Practical Editing (CIEP distance learning course)

• Introduction to Fiction Editing (SfEP distance learning course), 2018

• Basic Editing (PTC distance learning course), 2017 – pass

• Grammar at Work (PTC distance learning course), 2017

• Practical mark-up of PDFs (workshop), 2017

• Proofreading mentoring scheme (SfEP), 2014

• Basic Proofreading (PTC distance learning course), 2013 – merit

• Proofreading problems (SfEP study day), 2012

• Proofreading and Editorial Skills (Chapterhouse distance learning course), 2011

Testimonials

Publishers are not allowed to provide testimonials, but the fact that I've been working for many of my clients for years I think speaks for itself, and I regularly receive positive feedback from my clients.

The following testimonials therefore mostly go back to the beginning of my career:

I was delighted to have Petra proofread my manuscript – the fifth edition of How to Market Books. No author likes to think they need editing, and having the obvious errors (single noun, plural verb – did I really write that?) pointed out can be a stressful, if not humiliating experience. Petra was tactful and considerate throughout, and her list of queries showed how deeply she was concentrating. At one point, while going through her list, I had to resort to a cup of tea in order to fully admire the extent of her engagement. In short, my work was better for her involvement, and I am very grateful to Routledge for allocating her to me. –Alison Baverstock, author of How to Market Books (5th edn)

My copy-editor, Petra Bryce, demonstrated outstanding professionalism and skill. – Richard Davis, author of Hamas, Popular Support and War in the Middle East: Insurgency in the Holy Land

Our experience with Petra Bryce has been very positive. She delivered a great end product with an excellent turnaround. I highly recommend her. – August Felix, SEI Healthcare

Petra, thank you. I was under pressure from my publisher and suffering 'second album syndrome' with my new book. Your diligence and speed has helped me feel much better about the whole affair. Not only that, I am delighted that I was able to 'modify a noun' – I didn't know I had it in me. – Drew de Soto, author of Know Your Onions: Web Design

• Editor
• Proofreader

• Action & adventure
• Children & young adult
• Crime, mystery & thriller
• Education & training
• Environment & nature
• Medical & dental
• Narrative non-fiction
• War & military
• Humour & satire
• Languages
• History
• Poetry