Skip to main content
search
Category

Blog

Feb 16

The art of writing PhD thesis acknowledgments: A guide for economics students

By English writing skills, PhD life, Tips

Blue baseball hat on top of a black Tudor bonnet to symbolize writing PhD thesis acknowledgments reflecting the author’s personality

After more than a decade spent copyediting and proofreading PhD theses for economics students, I can say that, in general, doctoral candidates view writing thesis acknowledgments as either a formality or a celebration of finishing thesis writing. Between the two extremes lies a unique opportunity to show your personality, strengthen your professional network, and enjoy the “warm glow of giving”—all without the constraints of academic writing.

In this long blog post, I’ll examine the seemingly trivial topic of writing acknowledgments to help you make the most of this thesis section. I aim to achieve two goals. The first is to change your opinion about the importance of PhD thesis acknowledgments. The second is to help you write memorable acknowledgments you can be proud of even when the euphoria of finishing your PhD is gone.

Although all the examples here are from economics theses, my tips should be useful for writing acknowledgments in any other academic field. Read More

Jun 21

New content coming soon

By Blog

This blog is no longer dormant! As well as working (slowly) on new articles for this blog—and some for Medium—I’m revising my old articles to ensure their content is still relevant. Each post that I’ve updated with new information includes a “last revised” date at the end.

Some of the links to older blog posts may not work. So, if you’re here because you’ve followed a link from somewhere on the web and the page no longer exists, please use the search function (magnifying glass icon at the right side of the menu) to look up the information you need. Or, send me a message at editor@languageediting.com. Thank you. 

Would you like to read some of the articles I’ve recently revised? Read More

Mar 19

The most popular articles on this blog

By Blog

For several years, I’ve published regularly on this blog, doing my best to offer you useful and free resources each month. Judging by the emails I’ve received from readers, some of my articles have helped some people. That makes me happy and proud.

Here are some of my most popular articles: Read More

Dec 30

Common preposition errors and non-errors: Examples and explanations

By Grammar, Proofreading, Writing

Common preposition errors don’t escape a skilled proofreader’s eye. While there are rules that govern it, English preposition usage is often idiomatic. So, even if some expressions sound illogical (like center around), they may be correct. Here are some preposition examples inspired by the texts I’ve proofread. Learning more about these preposition errors and non-errors can help you make the right choice when writing a text that needs to be accurate. Read More

Nov 30

Why does it take so long to write a journal paper?

By Academic papers, Academic papers, Writing

Writing a journal paper takes more time than doing the actual research—I’ve heard this complaint not only from PhD students but also from experienced research scientists. Why does it take so long to write a research paper?

Obvious reasons include procrastinating, having poor academic writing skills, and not knowing how to develop an outline. However, as a freelance editor who has worked with hundreds of authors, I know there are other reasons writing a journal paper takes longer than it has to. Here are some of the main reasons I have identified. I hope reading this post will help you understand how you could write a research paper faster. Read More

Sep 03

What to do if the journal editor recommends English language editing services

By Academic papers, Editing, Short and sweet

It’s not uncommon for authors to receive a note from the editor of a peer-reviewed journal that says,

  • “the authors are advised to get professional English language editing services”,
  • “have the manuscript checked by someone with full professional proficiency in English”,
    “the authors need a native English-speaking co-author to thoroughly revise the grammar of this manuscript” (as Adriana Romero-Olivares received), or
  • “seek help from a native English speaker to correct the grammar of the manuscript” (if you’re a journal editor, please read this brilliant article by Small Pond Science).

Read More

Sep 02

On writing: Interview with scientist-author Katharina Vestre

By Author interview, Inspiration, Writing

“Writing is my way to keep falling in love with science.”— Katharina Vestre

In The Making of You, the author’s talent for storytelling coupled with a scientist’s eye for detail makes readers turn page after page, while the fresh, clean, and lean writing style appeals to everyone. To discover the secret of Katharina Vestre’s writing process, I decided to interview her.

You started writing your first nonfiction book, The Making of You, in 2015, when you were an undergraduate. It’s unusual for students to spend their summer breaks working on a book. Apart from your genuine interest in the subject, what made you decide to write a pop science book? Read More

Aug 03

Impact vs. effect in academic writing: Which one should you use?

By Academic papers, Short and sweet, Vocabulary

The noun impact has replaced the noun effect in many types of writing, especially in business and web writing. Forceful and charismatic, impact is the life of the party; effect is the shy noun in the corner. It’s no surprise impact has been driving effect out of the academic writing scene.

Those who care about the impact vs. effect difference may wonder, May I use impact as a synonym for effect in academic writing? Depending on context, you may. Having worked as a freelance editor and proofreader for many years, I’ve noticed that many economists and social scientists prefer to study impacts, not effects. But should you use impact when you mean effect in academic writing? Here’s some information to help you decide. Read More

Jun 18

Things I’ve learned from eight years of freelance editing

By Blog, Editing, Freelancing, Lessons learned

Cake made of books to represent 8 years of freelance editingThis month I’m celebrating eight years in the business of English editing. I’ve spent more time working as a nonfiction editor and proofreader than as a geologist, the profession for which I trained till PhD level. It’s about time that I looked back at my freelance editing career to see what big lessons I’ve learned along the way.

Most people are trustworthy

Read More

Apr 23

Writing geoscience papers: A list of useful resources

By Academic papers, Editing, Writing

Open book with globe behind to represent writing geoscience papers resources“About 10 percent enjoy writing; the other 90 percent consider it a necessary chore”, says David R. Lindsay in Scientific Writing = Thinking in Words.

Writing geoscience papers becomes less of a chore if you have access to all the resources you need. Having to pause in the middle of a sentence to look up whether a term is hyphenated or check the capitalization of a geological unit can slow you down. And being unsure about what to include in an illustration can set you back days or weeks.

To help you speed up the process of writing and editing geology manuscripts, in this article I will discuss several resources for earth scientists and editors. Read More

Mar 30

How I wrote my PhD thesis in three months

By Academic papers, Lessons learned, PhD tips, Writing

Keyboard with academic hat to represent how I wrote my PhD thesis in three monthsUp until the end of my doctoral studies, I’d been a procrastinator. Completing an abstract for a conference would take me a week, drafting a literature review, a month. I liked writing but couldn’t focus on it when I had a deadline to meet. Any writing task was too much for me to handle in an efficient manner.

But writing my PhD thesis had to be different, I told myself when I could finally see the finish line. I couldn’t afford to procrastinate. My PhD scholarship was about to expire, I didn’t have the money for a prolonged stay in the UK, and I didn’t want to be on the island anymore. So, I decided I would leave Cardiff in three months, bought a one-way ticket back home, and then opened the folder “PhD stuff” on my laptop. It was thesis o’clock. Read More

Mar 15

Why give detailed instructions to your freelance language editor

By Editing, Freelance, Short and sweet

Not even the best freelance language editors can read their clients’ minds. Sure, experienced language editors can make an educated guess, but they can’t be sure what you want unless you tell them.

In this short post I will list the three main things to tell your freelance editor, especially if you’ve never worked with them before, to increase your likelihood of being happy with their service. Read More

Feb 24

How to respond to reviewers’ comments: A practical guide for authors

By Academic papers, Editing, English writing skills

An open envelope to represent how to respond to reviewers’ commentsIn February 2020, Nature announced that it would give authors the option to publish their referee reports and responses to reviewers. Though this change is only a trial for this journal, other Nature Research journals have opened the peer-review process. I applaud the effort of these and other journals to make peer review more transparent, and hope it will become a standard.

Whether you publish your referee reports with your paper or not, how you respond to reviewers’ comments on submitted articles is essential to publication. Read More

Feb 17

Is “et al.” singular or plural?

By Academic papers, Short and sweet, Writing

Et al. is a commonly used Latin abbreviation in scholarly writing, so most academics know what it means. If you don’t, a dictionary will give you the explanation.

But whether et al. is singular or plural is not always clear, even to experienced writers. An author may use a singular verb after et el.; another author may use a plural verb after et al. Are they both correct, or who is wrong and who is right? To help you understand how to use et al. in a sentence so it’s grammatically correct, let’s look at a few examples. Read More

Feb 07

What is structural editing in nonfiction?

By Definitions, Editing, Short and sweet

Structural editing of a nonfiction document is a level of editing that deals with the structure of the manuscript. This level of editing is also called substantive editing.

Some editors and authors consider substantive editing as belonging to developmental editing. Others use the terms substantive editing and developmental editing interchangeably.

Both levels of editing are concerned with the big picture of the manuscript rather than its grammar and spelling. But developmental editing can happen early during the writing process—even when you have only an outline—as well as in later stages. Its goal is to set the direction for the manuscript. In contrast, structural editing requires that you have a complete draft. Read More

Jan 25

Publishing economics papers: Advice from experts

By Academic papers, PhD tips, Writing

Open book with blue globe on top to represent publishing economics papers

If publishing economics papers in top economics journals is your goal, you need excellent writing skills, because the economics literature has high standards. So, you need to learn how to write economics research papers that present your results clearly and use flawless language. The following tips from economics researchers, writers, editors, reviewers, and faculty will help you write better economics articles for scholarly journals. Read More

Jan 15

What is developmental editing in nonfiction?

By Definitions, Editing, Short and sweet

If you are writing or planning to write a nonfiction book, chapter, or article, you may have heard that developmental editing is crucial for a writing project. But what is developmental editing in nonfiction? And should you work with a freelance editor on your manuscript?

In this short post I aim to answer these two questions so you know what to expect from developmental editing in nonfiction. Read More

Dec 28

References: Citing a paper when the authors have the same last name

By Academic papers, References, Short and sweet

When you must follow a certain referencing style, such as APA or Chicago, you’ll come across a tricky citation every now and then. Take, for instance, a paper whose authors have the same last name.

In this example three of the authors have the same surname:

The publisher suggests citing this paper as

Saeidi, Sayedeh Parastoo & Sofian, Saudah & Saeidi, Parvaneh & Saeidi, Sayyedeh Parisa & Saaeidi, Seyyed Alireza, 2015. “How does corporate social responsibility contribute to firm financial performance? The mediating role of competitive advantage, reputation, and customer satisfaction,” Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 341-350.

But how do you cite this work in APA or Chicago? Read More

Close Menu