Ms Justyna Bielecka | Copyeditor and Proofreader

I am a friendly and thoroughly trained proofreader and copyeditor with experience working on fiction and non-fiction titles for publishers and self-publishing authors. I have a background in applied linguistics and I am bilingual in English and Polish. I am open to working with publishers and self-publishing authors, including multilingual authors, on texts that are written in English or translated to English.

I like being part of the editing community and I participate in the CIEP conference and networking activities on a regular basis – that helps me to keep up to date with the trends in the publishing industry and to learn constantly.

PROOFREADING

As a proofreader, I work on copyedited and typeset proofs providing the final check before publication. I correct the usual spelling, grammar and punctuation mistakes, ensure that the style is consistent and catch layout and formatting problems, as well as last-minute inconsistencies in the text. 

Proofreading experience

My proofreading experience includes a variety of genres of both fiction (literary, thriller, romance, crime, classics) and non-fiction (memoirs, biography, nature writing, self-help, and more). I am a versatile proofreader who works on a variety of documents: both new material and new editions of previously published material; I am equally comfortable with proofreading blind and against the copy – I have experience working on proofs made from poor quality scans of pages from old books. I have worked on heavily illustrated publications and those with a large number of notes and long bibliographies.

I have completed over 700 hours of proofreading for publishers. My clients include Faber and Faber, Octopus, Orion, Pan Macmillan and Penguin Random House.

Recent proofreading projects include a history of an iconic fashion magazine, a biography of a musician, a memoir of a retired psychiatrist, a book about clay and pottery from a historical perspective, a memoir of a farmer, a book about ultra marathons, a book about training dogs, an anthology of classic texts about Paris, and many more.

Proofreading qualifications

CIEP Core Skills Proofreading courses (Introduction, Headway and Progress)

CIEP Mentoring programme (9 months) in proofreading

Proofreading Dissertations and Theses

COPYEDITING

As a copyeditor, I help clients make their message clear and accessible to the reader by ensuring that grammar, punctuation, spelling and editorial style are correct, accurate, consistent and appropriate for the genre and audience. I flag material that is potentially copyrighted and may require a permission to be used. 

Copyediting experience

I am a newly qualified copyeditor, so my copyediting experience is not vast. I have worked with several self-publishing authors on various genres, e. g. a memoir of a playworker and mother, a memoir of a Deaf man and how he learned to speak, a romantic comedy, a fantasy novel with a romantic backstory. I am happy to provide a sample copyedit so that you can see the quality of my work and determine whether we are a good fit.

Given that the non-fiction list of the titles I have proofread is particularly strong and that I enjoyed working on those titles, I would like to build on that experience and copyedit non-fiction, with a special focus on the following topics:

• Applied linguistics (I have an MA in Applied Linguistics; specialisms: sociolinguistics, discourse and narrative analysis, Critical Discourse Analysis, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, language policy, bilingualism and multilingualism, sign language, etc.)

• Memoirs and biographies

• Health and fitness

• Travel writing

• Nature writing

• Current affairs and politics

• Pop culture

Copyediting qualifications

Essential Copy-Editing (the Publishing Training Centre)

References (CIEP)

TESTIMONIALS

“I liked that Justyna explained why she suggested changes to my text but didn't demand I accepted her edits. She respected my artistic licence. I found her approachable and knowledgeable so her service was a valued learning curve for publishing my first book. She was professional and friendly – highly recommended.” ~ Adele Cleaver, Children Don’t Dissolve in the Rain

“Justyna’s commitment pleasantly surprised me to a great extent: she brought my attention to aspects of my book that needed updating. I don’t think it was a coincidence that I came across her: she had more knowledge about children’s simultaneous learning of spoken and signed languages than I did. I strongly recommend Justyna because of her excellent professionalism, easy manner in communicating with her client and effortless way of working.” ~ Rafal Wysoglad, From the World of Silence to the World of IT: Against All Odds

“Once again my book has fallen into just the right hands. Into her work, Justyna not only puts her heart and passion, but above all – her broad knowledge. Her input is always very insightful, descriptive and immensely valuable. She’s very easy to work with, she appreciates and respects your style. Five stars for her editing services is an understatement. I WILL be coming back for more with my upcoming books. Thank you!” ~ Em Baran, The Worst of Gods trilogy

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I follow the brief carefully, always meet the deadline and work within the client's budget.

Please email me for a free sample copyedit or proofread. 

[email protected]

• Editor
• Proofreader

• Non-fiction
• Fiction
• Biography, autobiography & memoir
• Classics
• English as a second language
• English literature
• Health, fitness & wellness
• Languages
• Linguistics
• Literary fiction
• Narrative non-fiction