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Publishers & pre-press

Are you a publisher or pre-press company (book packager) looking for a copyeditor?

Then you are definitely in the right place:

  • I specialise in copyediting scholarly humanities and social sciences titles.
  • I’ve copyedited some 210 scholarly books and 300 journal articles (I cruised past 26 million words a while back).
  • I’m equally happy editing UK or US English.
  • Styles, tags or your own template – any is fine.
  • Bibliographies and footnotes are my bread and butter.
  • Contributed volume? The more the merrier!
  • I enjoy working directly with authors to resolve queries and supply files that are ready to typeset,
  • or you may prefer me to document the queries and let you take over from there.
  • Get in touch to discuss your project!

    I’ve worked with a range of publishers and pre-press companies. Imprints past and present include:

    • Bloomsbury, including Academic, Visual Arts, Arden, Business, Fairchild, IB Tauris, T&T Clark, Methuen Drama
    • Bristol University Press, including Policy Press, Longitudinal and Life Course Studies and Global Social Challenges journals
    • LID Publishing and LID Business
    • Taylor & Francis, including Routledge, Earthscan, Shakespeare journal, Psychology Press, Spon
    • And a few others, including one large intergovernmental organisation that I can’t name for contractual reasons. You’d definitely recognise the name, though.

    It’s not a long list, because I do so much repeat work. But it’s always nice to get out and meet new people, don’t you think?

    Pricing

    I’m sure you have a budget in mind, but I’ll assess the job on receipt and let you know whether it can be done for your preferred figure, or whether I foresee complexities and difficulties. Email me at: info@aptwords.co.uk to start a discussion.

    Brilliant

    All safely received …. And all immaculately presented as ever. I like getting jobs back from you as it makes my life so easy.
    Merv Honeywood
    Client Manager (for Bloomsbury), RefineCatch Ltd

    …you are the best copy editor we use

    and there are over 30 of them! I would like to have used you more over the last couple of years but when you are good at your job that’s how it goes…
    Rob Brown
    Project Manager (now retired) at Saxon Graphics (also now retired), Derby, for Taylor & Francis and Continuum

    Normally

    I don’t fill out these kinds of surveys, I really don’t like them. But I took some time to fill this one out because I found the experience with the team Routledge had assembled to be so positive. … Sue Littleford was quick, careful, and very pleasant to work with as our copy editor… She was very easy to work with, and her queries and messages were always very clear.

    Dr Greg Halseth

    Professor in the Geography Program at the University of Northern British Columbia, Canada Research Chair in Rural and Small Town Studies and Co-Director of UNBC’s Community Development Institute, Canada, volume editor of Transformation of Resource Towns and Peripheries (Routledge, 2017)

    And in the survey

    It was a pleasure to work with the copy editor. Sue Littleford did a fabulous job in a very timely manner. She was very easy to work, and her queries and messages were always very clear. Dr Greg Halseth,

    Dr Greg Halseth

    Professor in the Geography Program at the University of Northern British Columbia, Canada Research Chair in Rural and Small Town Studies and Co-Director of UNBC’s Community Development Institute, Canada, volume editor of Transformation of Resource Towns and Peripheries (Routledge, 2017)

    Thorough and painstaking


    I have just finished working through the copy-edited manuscript of my book for Policy Press. I wanted to say a big thank you for all the work you did to put this into some sort of shape. I first published a book in 1986 and I have never had anyone do such a thorough and painstaking job on my text. Your patience is exemplary!

    Chris Pierson

    Emeritus Professor of Politics, University of Nottingham, author of The Next Welfare State? UK Welfare After COVID-19 (Policy Press, 2021)

    From the book’s preface:

    And last but not least, while celebrating the heterogeneous, Mixed Forms of Visual Culture is doubtless more productively consistent in aspects of its prose and presentation by virtue of Sue Littleford’s meticulous and sympathetic copy-editing.

    Dr Mary Anne Francis

    Principal Lecturer, School of Art, University of Brighton, author of Mixed Forms of Visual Culture (Bloomsbury Visual Arts, 2021)

    Sue Littleford is an excellent copyeditor

    On top of being very knowledgeable, experienced, thorough, extra careful and fast, she is very kind, helpful and uses a wonderful method which is easy to handle.  

    Dr Michalle Gal

    Senior Lecturer in History and Philosophy of Art and Design, Shenkar College, Israel, author of Visual Metaphors and Aesthetics: A Formalist Theory of Metaphor (Bloomsbury, 2022)

    Always the best quality work

    Always the best quality work, friendly and professional, and on schedule. I find your methodical and meticulous work ethic second-to-none. That’s why you have such a great reputation in the field.
    Dave Wright
    Production Manager
    Typo•glyphix (Typesetting and Project Management)