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Academic Writing Consultant | Thesis and Dissertation Editor | Qualitative Research Methodologist | Instructional Designer
DEBRA FISHER is a personal writing coach and academic advisor, providing guidance and encouragement during the prospectus, proposal, analysis, and publication phases of scholarly writing. Whether helping clients brainstorm a researchable thesis; providing theoretical guidance relative to research focus and/or positional development; recommending structural and organizational revisions to enhance the clarity and cohesion of an argument; or editing for grammar, mechanics and punctuation, she customizes her services to meet the specific needs of her clients.
Debra has enjoyed coaching-editing-advising relationships with hundreds of learners who represent a broad spectrum of academic disciplines, and all have been awarded their graduate degrees.
As a qualitative researcher and academic/scholarly writing consultant, Debra works with students, researchers, and writers in the following fields of study: philosophy, sociology, theology, neurobiology, curriculum development, adult learning, adult education, disaster studies, emergency management, homeland security, and counterterrorism. medicine/nursing, business.
VAL GERARD, MA, PhD in Biology
Scientific Editing | Medical Editing | Editor of Scientific Research Papers
Dr. Gerard edits research papers, grant proposals, theses, dissertations, and materials for commercial or public use (brochures, instruction manuals, websites, etc.) in medicine, the life sciences, and other fields of science. She retired after 30 years as a scientist and professor, with a strong record of publications and successful research funding. She now uses her skills to help others achieve similar successes.
Val has worked with professionals and students on writing projects in a broad range of medical and scientific fields. Many of her clients have returned for assistance with new or ongoing projects. Val helps her clients to communicate complex information in a succinct, clear, and well organized manner; to design clear and efficient figures and tables; to identify and summarize the most important points. With her assistance, clients have been successful in obtaining multi-million dollar research grants, publishing articles in prestigious journals, completing and defending dissertations, etc. Val takes pride in the achievements of every one of her clients, and particular pride in the development and improvement of their own writing skills that will help to ensure their future success.
- Dr. Gerard’s research has appeared in 50+ publications (e.g., physiology, biochemistry). She has written, reviewed, or edited one million dollars worth of successful grant proposals.
- High rate of client success with manuscripts submitted to scientific and medical journals.
- Over thirty years of teaching experience, including scientific writing courses. Served as advisor and/or mentor to many graduate and undergraduate students.
- Past experience as associate editor, editorial board member, and/or reviewer for over two dozen scientific journals, including Science, and government funding agencies.
- Associate editor and/or reviewer for over two dozen scientific journals, including Science and government funding agencies.
- Past and current clients from Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Columbia, Croatia, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malawi, Mexico, the Netherlands, Patagonia, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Thailand, Uganda, the U.K., the U.S., and Venezuela.
- Medical and science editor and writer since 2001. Editing and copyediting of manuscripts, books, grant proposals, dissertations. Topics range from oncology, cardiology, immunology, and epidemiology to ecology, oceanography, molecular genetics, biochemistry, and development of new therapies through chemical mining. Specializes in organization, interpretation, and clear presentation of complex information.
- Helps clients improve their own writing skills for future projects, including non-native English speakers.
- Provides rapid turnaround. Helps you submit your grant proposal, manuscript, book chapter, or report on time.
CAROL LEVINE has B.A. and M.A. degrees in English Language and Literature from the University of Michigan and more than 25 years of experience as a writer, editor, English instructor, writing coach, and APA format expert. As the Writing Specialist for the University of Phoenix for 17 years, she worked extensively with students in the Master of Counseling, Master of Education, and MBA programs. Carol also developed and conducted numerous workshops on the use of APA format for University of Phoenix students and faculty members (e.g., The ABCs of APA; APA Formatting: From Soup to Nuts; APA: Changes in the Fifth Edition Manual) and earned the unofficial title of “APA Queen.”
Carol is not only an APA format expert. She is also a meticulous proofreader who takes pride in spotting errors that are overlooked by spell check programs, as well as a skilled editor with a vocabulary that enables her to complete the Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle. She is highly efficient, never misses a deadline, and is comfortable doing either paper or electronic editing.
“Carol was exceptionally diligent in her work. She was in constant contact with me over the time she was working on my paper and finished the work several days ahead of schedule. She paid great attention to detail, catching a couple redundancies I had missed, as well as some inconsistencies, which were beyond the scope of the APA compliance I was looking for.” Doctoral candidate at Nova Southeastern University. Contact information on request
JEFF KARON is a writer, teacher, proofreader, and consultant who has helped students and professionals for over twenty years. He has edited, revised, and proofread publications that include reports, theses, dissertations, textbooks, proposals, essays, stories, and articles. His Ph.D. is in English with a specialization in Rhetoric and Composition, a choice that signals his devotion to clarity and power in language. Prior to his years as an English professor, he studied and taught philosophy, critical thinking, and logic, publishing in these fields as well as in literary studies. He also is a published poet and essayist; he was a finalist in the Sandhill Review/St. Petersburg Times 2010 essay contest. He has led writing and editing workshops for students, teachers, business people, and artists. Currently, he is leading creativity workshops and developing ways to build honor in the classroom and workplace.
As a writer and teacher, he believes that we should strive for excellence by practicing effective and fair techniques at all times. He has combined a life-long interest in the martial arts with writing: if you choose to work with him, he will ensure that your writing is powerful, not merely competent.
HOLLY MONTY, MA, MAC, ELS
Editor and writer
Format Expert: APA 6th Edition, Chicago Manual of Style, LaTeX (tables, figures, equations)
Medical copywriting and editing
Ms. Monty, a Microsoft Word and LaTeX expert, has worked on books and articles published by many of the world’s leading publishers, including Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, MIT Press, W. W. Norton, Sage, John Wiley, Springer, Lawrence Erlbaum, Pearson-Prentice Hall, Praeger, Greenwood, Blackwell, and other top names in academic and nonfiction publishing. To date, she has edited more than 2,000 published journal articles, more than 150 nonfiction books, and a wealth of dissertations and theses. Ms. Monty is proud to have worked with a diversity of students and academics from a broad range of our nation’s universities. Given her wealth of experience, she is adept at working within the precise terms of your university’s thesis/dissertation guidelines or with the publication guidelines of any peer-reviewed journal.
A good editor can work within just about any field, but Holly is particularly interested in the following areas:
- economics
- education
- film and film studies
- game theory
- history
- leadership studies
- linguistics, communication, and rhetoric
- nursing and medicine
- philosophy
- physics and geophysics, including water
- psychology and social sciences
- urban studies
APA Thesis Editor, APA Dissertation Editor
Specialties: Philosophy, Religious Studies, English Literature
JAMES N. POWELL is a former professor of English Literature. He holds master’s degrees in both English Literature and Religious Studies and has been editing, coaching, and tutoring writers and students for years. James has been an APA proofreader of doctoral dissertations at Fielding University since 2000.
NANCY ROSENBAUM is a deadline-driven editor, proofreader, and fact-checker who specializes in APA format, Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS), Modern Language Association (MLA), American Medical Association (AMA), and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) formats.
As an academic editing and scholarly writing specialist, Nancy:
- double-checks online texts to ensure completeness and accuracy of direct quotations (wording, punctuation) and publication details (author(s), title, publisher, date, page), as well as mirroring of parenthetical references to complete entries in the references section;
- marks and searches for sources corresponding to citations for which details were not included in References;
- marks unused sources in References, allowing students to choose whether to cite or delete them;
- corrects grammar and punctuation;
- marks too-short paragraphs;
- corrects presentation of numbers, fonts, and run-in and stand-alone list elements;
- checks word or page limits, as appropriate to EDT or journal guidelines;
- ensures gender neutrality and absence of bias in text;
- formats tables according to type;
- numbers equations;
- ensures completeness and accuracy of sources in References, including confirming the need for issue numbers, edition numbers, digital object identifiers, database names, URLs;
- applies styles to headings and subheadings, allowing her to create automated tables of contents that are readily updated if the document’s contents change;
- automatically numbers table and figure captions to generate readily updated lists of figures and tables;
- corrects section/page breaks to ensure page numbering follows APA or university-specific schemes;
- explains the nature of the errors made (in comments and/or cover memo notes).
BARBARA VON DIETHER has an Ed.D. from Brigham Young University and was the graduate research and writing coordinator at Utah State University for 12 years. She counseled over 300 students a year who were seeking help with the graduate process, and published a Publication Guide for Graduate Students (Utah State University Press, 1980).
She was the final editorial review for theses and dissertations from 54 departments. She has an M.Ed. from Utah State University in education technology. President of the Utah Conference of the American Association of University Professors, she met with the Board of Regents and college and university presidents to resolve faculty conflicts. She wrote grants for research funding that supported graduate students.
Academic Writing Consultant | Generalist | Topics Include:
Education administration, education technology, secondary education, curriculum development, needs assessment, distance education, education leadership, instructional design, instructional media, advertising, business administration, business management, leadership training and development, communications, NEPA-compliant environmental assessments and impact statements.
Academic Advising
Graduate on time
Dr. von Diether guides students through difficult advisor relationships and hazy research proposals.
Academic Writing
Maximize the time and money invested towards obtaining a higher degree
Dr. von Diether helps students write theses and dissertations that connect with advisor, committee, and graduate school demands. Dr. von Diether helps organize research and content and prepares students for the final defense.
SHANNON WILKINS holds a B.A. and an M.A. in English (Literature) in addition to a Ph.D. in English (Professional Writing). In the doctorate program, she learned to craft arguments of various types and to look at every document as a persuasive one.
Documents that Shannon edits have the following characteristics:
They are unified. Commitments the writer makes early in a document should be delivered upon later in the manuscript. Readers like to know what they are getting into and that writers will follow through. Shannon also flags new information that appears later in a document with no introduction beforehand. Readers don’t like surprises.
They are appropriately formatted. Shannon is an expert in AMA and APA style. She has edited for the Journal of Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics, using AMA style. She is also a former scientific editor for Mayo Clinic. Furthermore, she has helped students to align their theses and dissertations with university style requirements.
They are concise. Of course, theses and dissertations are intended to be extensive examinations of a topic, but they should not include extraneous information. Shannon is able to spot the most common words and phrases that waste the reader’s effort. In addition, she applies her in-depth knowledge of academic writing to reorder text when necessary while still keeping the author’s voice.
After going through the process of working with her own thesis and dissertation committees, Shannon can anticipate many of the questions that advisors might have about the claims made in a dissertation. With Shannon, you get an editor who knows the demands of APA style but who also knows the expectations of the academic community. Academic writers rarely need only style consultation. Her editing complements the scholarly work that writers have done to position them as credible sources within their fields.
Disclaimers
1. Your agreement, whether oral or written, is with your thesis or dissertation editor/consultant, not with the network as a whole or its coordinator.
2. It is the client’s responsibility to review all work completed to ensure accuracy and adherence to specifications.
3. We do not write or sell dissertations, theses, term papers, or essays. We will, however, polish your draft. The final product will be yours — legitimately.