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- About us
- Meetings
- Publications
- Services
- Open-access journals
- Special publications
- Preprints/compilations
- APC information
- For authors
- For reviewers
- For librarians
- Software updates
- Launch YOUR journal
- Open science
- Online system
- Customers
- Facts & figures
- News & press
- Career
- Responsibilities
- Contact us
- Imprint
- Data protection
- About us
- Meetings
- Publications
- Services
- Open-access journals
- Special publications
- Preprints/compilations
- APC information
- For authors
- For reviewers
- For librarians
- Software updates
- Launch YOUR journal
- Open science
- Online system
- Customers
- Facts & figures
- News & press
- Career
- Responsibilities
- Contact us
- Imprint
- Data protection
English copy-editing services
At Copernicus, we understand your desire to publish the most polished article possible. Even after dozens of readings, the eye can overlook minute mistakes such as forgotten or misplaced punctuation, incongruent conjugation, or the occasional misspelling. Sometimes, however, manuscripts contain crucial errors that can affect the reader’s comprehension of the text or compromise its reception from the scientific community.
That is why Copernicus offers copy-editing as a standard service for most of its journals, and as an optional service upon request. Our team of dedicated copy editors brings a variety of skill sets and a spectrum of backgrounds to the table, applying a proficient balance of linguistic and scientific know-how to every manuscript they read. Their goals are to ensure your work adheres to scientific writing standards, grammatical accuracy, and overall readability. The latter encompasses aspects such as rephrasing awkward expressions and sentence structures or adjusting incorrect collocations. This can lend a more natural flow to your article and thus provide a more significant reading experience for your audience.
Based on the Copernicus concept of "copy-editing lite", we respect the fact that any changes made to your work is a delicate matter, which is why all revisions come back to you for confirmation; you might also choose to contact your copy editor during this process if you have questions. The important thing to remember is publication takes place only when you are satisfied with the text.
Key aspects to keep in mind during the copy-editing process:
- Remark boxes are a means of communication between your copy editor and yourself. Remark boxes are used to convey any messages pertinent to the text. This can include requests for clarification or questions about the manuscript. In any case, it is important that these messages receive a response, as it could potentially affect changes made by your copy editor.
- English variety: while we do not require any certain variety of English (American, Australian, British, etc.) to be used, we do strive to make each text consistent. In the event that a manuscript contains writing conventions from two or more varieties, your text will be adjusted according to your wishes.
- Internationality: the English language has become the world’s lingua franca and with that reflects the diverse influences of its speakers. As a result, there are cases where grammar rules may contradict each other or do not take more current language use into consideration. In cases such as these, our copy editors will apply a house rule in order to guarantee consistency amongst journals.
Copy-Editing team
Focus: linguistics, literature, mathematical logic
ProfileBorn in East London (South Africa), Carl is also an adopted Capetonian. After bachelor’s degrees in German, English and Linguistics from the University of Cape Town, in September 2010 he moved to Bremen to pursue his master’s degree in Middle High German. Highlights of this study period also included extended stays in Portugal and Sicily as part of his degree programme. Before joining Copernicus in September 2013, Carl had also worked for several years as a freelance editor, translator and private tutor. After hours he likes to indulge his passions for music – Mozart and Mahler being particular favourites – and architectural and landscape photography.
Focus: linguistics, biology, natural hazards
ProfileMeredith hails from the great state of Pennsylvania, USA. As a teenager, she left the suburbs of Philadelphia for a summer and went to Ulm, Germany, where her passion for language and travel came to light, later compelling her to major in German and Spanish. By the time she completed her BA, she had been to over 30 countries and had spent significant time abroad at universities in Spain and Germany. Her wanderlust and fondness of Germany eventually got the best of her, and persuaded her to stay. In the years that followed, she worked in Cologne and Mallorca in order to finance her vision of acquiring her MA in linguistics. After procuring her graduate degree in 2011, she worked as a freelance translator and copy-editor for various German universities before starting at Copernicus Publications. She has since settled down in Göttingen and taken a liking to what Lower Saxony has to offer.
Focus: history, pedagogy, linguistics
ProfileHugh grew up in Australia, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. He recently completed a BA in history and English, having been awarded first-class honours. Following a lifelong fascination with Germany, the German language, and German history, and a period as an exchange student in Thuringia, he is now enjoying his more permanent settlement in Göttingen.
Focus: linguistics, history, glaciology
ProfileHelen grew up speaking English and German and has lived in Germany, the UK and Ireland. She holds a PhD in medieval studies and, following a postdoc, worked as a freelance translator and proofreader of academic texts before joining Copernicus. Through her academic background, she has a detailed understanding of academic writing as well as formal linguistic matters. Her linguistic knowledge and professional experience as well as her practical knowledge of other languages, including French, Icelandic and Irish, have given her an awareness of the difficulties non-native speakers may encounter when writing in English, and she draws on this awareness in her work in order to assist authors. Through working at Copernicus, she is able to combine her linguistic interests, academic experience and an interest in natural-science subjects.
Focus: geology, environmental science
ProfileHaving focused on the maths and sciences in high school, Alex instead looked to the past for his BA in classical studies, which ultimately led to him living on top of a hill next to a castle in England. Deciding that his life needed a new twist, he returned to his native Canada where he began to study German for his BA in modern languages before moving to Germany to study English. Although some laugh that he got that the wrong way around, it did give him the opportunity to see and experience more of the world. His desire to read and learn is what led him to copy-editing, first with the theses of friends, then a sociological research group, and now Copernicus.
Focus: geoscience communication, climate change, glaciology
ProfileFor Cathy, variety is the spice of life, and her career path is no exception. After completing high school, she attended the University of Cape Town to study English literature, classics, film, and media. Thereafter, she pursued her passion for the English language by working in advertising as well as academic and mass-market publishing; she even had a stint in the tourism industry. In 2010, Cathy returned to University of Cape Town and retrained as an English and history teacher and taught at various high schools in and around Cape Town. In 2018, she moved from South Africa to Austria, where she further honed her teaching practice in various local schools as part of a non-profit bilingual classroom initiative. Later that same year, she relocated to Kiel, Germany, where she trained adults in business and general English. In 2020, she decided to return to her publishing roots and has since made Copernicus her corporate home.
Focus: linguistics, natural hazards, air and soil pollution
ProfileRuth's roots trace back to the beautiful shores of Cornwall, England. Her passion for language began growing at an early age. Spending time in vibrant London spurred her on in her love of being among many different cultures and languages. In her degree in linguistics and German she could explore her particular interest in sociolinguistics, as well as translation and syntax. The idea of moving to Germany started brewing; after taking a few short trips over and a year abroad in Kassel, she was sold. When she isn't poring over manuscripts (or when she is, for that matter), she can be found enjoying a good cup of tea.
Focus: geography
ProfileMadeleine credits growing up in the small English city of Bath (famous for its Roman thermae, rolling hills, and Georgian architecture) with her love of the humanities and decision to study history. This eventually led to an MA specializing in early 19th-century literacy. Madeleine worked as a freelance English teacher in Göttingen for six years before joining Copernicus. In her spare time, she enjoys running, hiking, and telling stories.
Focus: linguistics, social sciences, computer science
ProfileBrendan grew up in the American Midwest and holds a Bachelor of Arts in German and Linguistics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA) and a Master of Arts in European Linguistics from the University of Freiburg (Germany). Before beginning at Copernicus, Brendan worked as an English-language copy editor and taught university courses on Germanic linguistics and English as a foreign language. He enjoys travelling and speaks multiple languages at varying levels of proficiency.
Focus: literature, social sciences, climate change
ProfileAmanda is originally from the US Midwest and has a BA in English literature from the University of Southern Indiana. An adventurous spirit and a long-awaited opportunity to explore the world took her to South Korea in 2005, where she taught English as a foreign language for three years. She also met and married her (German) husband in South Korea and travelled with him to Germany to pursue an MA in higher education at the University of Kassel, which she completed in 2010. Since then, she has worked as an international student coordinator at Uni Kassel and a freelance English teacher, copy editor, and German-to-English translator before joining the Copernicus family in January 2017. In her free time she enjoys running, Pilates, and science fiction.
Focus: physics, chemistry, nanotechnology
ProfileBrian grew up on a farm in the west of Ireland. Following his passion for the sciences, he moved to Dublin to study physics and in 2010 he obtained a master's degree researching organic LEDs. An adventurous spirit led him to Munich to begin his PhD studies and he joined the Center for NanoScience (CeNS) at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität. In 2012 he moved to the MPI for Solid State Research in Stuttgart, where he studied photocatalysis. This research had the ambitious goal of splitting water into hydrogen using simple catalysts and a bit of light. He obtained his doctorate degree in 2016 and then moved to Göttingen. Brian's interests in cartography and programming as well as his extensive scientific background bring an excellent addition to the Copernicus team.
Focus: biology, climatology, ecology
ProfileLuigi grew up in Los Angeles, California, where he developed a passion for the sciences at a young age. Following his interest in the study of human pathogens and infectious diseases, Luigi completed his BA in biology while interning at various hospitals and researching the population biology of macroparasites of fish species inhabiting polluted waters. Working for the National Institutes of Health in collaboration with the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, Luigi conducted his master's thesis research on parasite–host interactions, obtaining his MSc in biology in 2016. Luigi joined the Copernicus family in February 2017 and now enjoys a quiet life in Germany. In his free time Luigi can most often be found reading, playing his piano or guitar, or enjoying the great outdoors.