Editing Samples
The following are typical examples of the kind of editing provided by Editing Iowa.
This is an except from an article copyedited for a pharmaceutical journal:
Original text:
Etoricoxib is a COX-2 inhibitor which inhibits the COX-2 enzyme selectively and decreases the side-effects associated with these agents. It is commonly prescribed in acute pain, gouty arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Conventional tablets of etoricoxib are devoid of rapid action, which is required for faster onset of action and immediate relief from pain. Thus, the present investigation aimed at formulating orally disintegrating tablets of etoricoxib.
Text as edited on the page:
Text as published:
Etoricoxib is a COX-2 inhibitor that selectively inhibits the COX-2 enzyme and decreases the side effects associated with these agents. It is commonly prescribed for acute pain, gouty arthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis. However, conventional tablets of etoricoxib are not capable of the rapid action required for faster drug onset and immediate pain relief. Thus, the goal of the present investigation was to formulate etoricoxib tablets that act faster by disintegrating orally
The following is an excerpt from a manuscript submitted to an economics journal by a non-native speaker of English:
Foreign direct investment has been growing drastically for several decades. For instance, outward FDI stock in US increase 10 times from 1980 to 2005, those in the EU have also increased about 26 times. An increase in acceptance of FDI affect the macroeconomy. For instance, in the East Asia, GDP has been growing rapidly by acceptance of FDI and it affects also the labor markets in both host and source countries.
Text as edited on the page:
Final edited version:
Direct foreign investment (DFI) has been growing at an extremely high rate for several decades. For example, investment in foreign stock by the US has increased ten-fold from 1980 to 2005, while foreign investment by the EU has increased by approximately 26-fold. This increase in DFI affects the world’s macroeconomy, as seen in East Asia where the GDP has been growing rapidly due to DFI, while also affecting the labor markets in both the host and source countries.
The following is part of the introduction of a self-published family history.
Though the original was extensively edited, the editor attempted to retain a sense of the author’s original voice and intention.
Original version:
Life is like a tapestry of golden memories. And each human life if like a truly wonderful tapestry. A family is also a tapestry, and how much more intricate is one woven by it. The warp, or the fixed threads run lengthwise of our lives, but the individual family members forms the woof threads carried back and forth by the shuttle of their own destinies and the pattern becomes ever more complex.
Version as edited on the page:
Final version agreed upon by the author:
Each life weaves a tapestry of golden memories, and what a truly wonderful tapestry each human life is. How much more intricate then is one woven by a family. The fixed threads of the warp run lengthwise through our lives, while the individual members form the woof threads carried back and forth by the shuttle of their own destines as the pattern grows ever more complex.
The following is an excerpt from a medical case study ghost-written based on notes provided by the author.
This article was published in a journal of family medicine.
Coccidiodomycosis, also known as Coccidiosis, ‘San Joaquin Valley Fever’, Valley Fever, and Desert Arthritis, is an infection endemic to areas of the Southwestern United States, Mexico, and Central and South America. It is caused by the spores of the dimorphic soil fungus Coccidiodes immitis (C. immitis) which lives in mycelia form from 4 to 14 inches beneath the soil surface. Its spores are less than 10 microns in size which allows them to settle in the terminal bronchii (1). Inhalation of only a few spores (conidia) results in pulmonary nodules, while inhalation of large amounts leads to disseminated pulmonary pneumonia (2). The majority of cases (60%) are asymptomatic, while the remaining 40% present with a triad of headaches, coughs, and arthralgias (commonly referred to as “desert arthritis”) and are often undiagnosed or misdiagnosed as bacterial respiratory chest infections, with 15% of these cases progressing to more serious or fatal infections.