Copyediting

With over a decade of experience in copyediting and proofreading, I bring a comprehensive skill set to both print and digital media projects. My expertise lies in fine-tuning academic journal submissions, doctoral dissertations, and nonfiction books and articles.  My ability to effectively collaborate with writers and researchers from various countries has honed my linguistic dexterity and attention to detail.

For before-and-after samples of my copyediting work, please email me at maknauf [at] gmail [dot] com.

As a proofreader/copyeditor for the English-language quarterly Kyoto Journal, Martha Knauf has greatly impressed me with her high-level skills and consistently impeccable attention to detail. She also showed herself to be capable of successfully taking on the challenges of interviewing to develop a well-structured and informative profile piece, as featured in our most recent issue (KJ 103 – Creativity). It is truly a pleasure to work with her.

—Ken Rogers, Kyoto Journal managing editor

I was very grateful to Martha for her highly professional and punctual editorial work on my recent book Umui. I will strongly consider her for future editorial projects. 

—Everett Kennedy Brown, artist and writer, everettkennedybrown.kyoto

Martha is my go-to choice for my academic copyediting needs and has edited many of my journal articles and grant applications. She has a strong work ethic, delivers quickly, and is a pleasure to work with. 

As a copyeditor, she always enhances my writing without altering my intended meaning. When I request developmental copyediting services from Martha, she always manages to identify logical flow issues in my writing and proposes actionable ways to address them.

—Samar Helou, PhD, assistant professor, Osaka University

Martha was very professional while working on the copy edit of my dissertation. She not only corrected my English sentences but suggested ways to clarify ideas that sounded confusing, were repetitive, or needed further explanation. 

She worked against the clock, with a tight deadline which resulted in a written piece that was easy to grasp, even for an audience who is not familiar with art terminology. I highly appreciate her effort, patience, and great work!

—Rosanna Rios, artist and scholar

I struggle with run-on sentences and was stuck in an editing block. Martha helped me not only with copy edits, but also with rearranging some of the ideas to improve the flow of the paper.

—Crystal Uchino, assistant professor, Doshisha University

Martha is one of the best editors I have worked with in my writing career. She helped me edit my research papers and personal statements for my graduate school applications, and I would not have been able to complete my process without her assistance.

Not only did she edit my research papers accurately, she also suggested information I should add, checked every citation, and found sophisticated words to express ideas — all of which largely enhanced my overall writing.

When editing my essay, she captured my core message, understood cultural nuances, and found the exact words I was looking for. Her edits helped me bring my voice into my writing as I struggled to make it concise. Every time I read comments from her and worked on my second edit, it was a great learning experience.

—Shiho Takezawa, journalist and editor 

I had the pleasure of working with Martha on my non-fiction book, and I can attest to her exceptional editing skills. She is detail-oriented and thoughtful: her edits were insightful and precise, never compromising my original vision.

—Sarah Brown, author and tech leader 

© Martha Knauf. All rights reserved.

Last updated on January 2023.