Alex Mackenzie

Alex Mackenzie – Editor

Eagle-eyed, approachable copyeditor. Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading. Master's in Education.

Overview

I am the editor you can trust to be non-judgemental, flexible and meticulous. My free sample will demonstrate my skills.


My last two Reedsy collaborations were a book about helping young adults with autism and a book about helping people overcome perfectionism – how about your book now?


Nonfiction specialisms include: language learning (ELTon award-winning); meditation; diversity (neurodivergent learners; gender); sustainability; arts; and education.


Fiction editing covers any genre; I aim to get under each author's skin and reflect their intentions invisibly.


I have a regular client who publishes a magazine for English teachers and last month I edited assessment worksheets for UK secondary school exams (GCSE Spanish).


Other recent editing includes: English language learning materials; a teacher's guide for adolescents with autism; a travel novel; a romantic fiction novel; a self-help book about empathy; a novel about the 1980s music industry; blogs about meditation; bilingual school books on art, geography, geology and citizenship; as well as sustainability presentations and reports on climate change.


Please see a recent testimonial from a publisher:


It has been a pleasure working with Alex across a number of projects. She is an excellent editor for both American English and British English texts, with an in-depth knowledge of the intricacies of both.

Alex has a great attention to detail and is willing to explain any stylistic inconsistencies she encounters.


And one from a novelist:


I approached you feeling rather insecure and unsure of myself. Thank you for the polishing and the support you offered every step of the way.

You scrutinized my writing with eagle-eyed attention to every tiny detail.

I had thought I was good; however, you punched up the quality and accuracy of my work! Thank you for the extremely rapid turnaround.

Prompt, friendly, helpful [communication].


I have over 30 years’ experience in publishing and education worldwide, particularly working with multilingual authors.


I offer a free sample edit to help you see the different levels of copyedit I can provide. Together we can decide how much you want me to change and how much you are prepared to rewrite after my suggestions. We could follow up with a chat about your writing on Reedsy messages or a video call if you prefer.

Services
Non-Fiction
Art Earth, Space, & Environmental Sciences Education & Reference ELT Self-Help & Self-Improvement Writing & Publishing
Fiction
Contemporary Fiction Contemporary Romance
Languages
English (UK) English (US)
Awards
  • ELTon 2019 & 2022
Certifications
  • Master of Education: distinction
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE)
  • Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Visual Arts, Theatre and English
  • Word for Practical Editing (CIEP)
  • How to Mark Up PDF Page Proofs (Denise Cowle)
  • Copyediting 1 & 2 the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading
  • Proofreading 1 & 2 the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading

Work experience

Self-employed

Aug, 2012 — Present

Copyeditor and proofreader of print and digital English language learning materials
Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading
Qualified teacher with a Master’s degree in education.

ELT clients: The Modern English Teacher; Grupo SM; Pearson; Oxford University Press; Compass Publishing; British Council; Lingoda
Academic clients: British Council and Buró Buró, Mexico; Academic proofreading agencies; international students across the world
Fiction clients: numerous creative writers and bloggers.

Self-employed

Sep, 2006 — Present

Writer of English language learning materials (student books, workbooks, digital worksheets, teacher guides) for adults, secondary and primary learners.

Clients include: The Modern English Teacher, UK; Grupo SM, Spain; Oxford University Press; University of Dayton Publishing, Mexico; Cambridge University Press, Italy; Richmond Publishing, Mexico and Spain ('Brain Juice' was awarded an ELTon in 2022 and 'Compass' was awarded an ELTon in 2019); British Council and the UK's Department for International Development (DfiD), Sierra Leone and Myanmar; National Geographic Learning, Cengage Learning, USA; Myanmar Community Academies Programme; McGraw-Hill publishing, Spain.

British Council

Jan, 2017 — May, 2019 (over 2 years)

Delivering 21st century skills training to Mexican state school teachers and leaders
Online coaching of teachers for subsequent lesson planning and classroom research
Moderating online forums and live webinars for teachers across Latin America
Writing sample lesson plans that incorporate 21st century skills for the online platform.

Self-employed

Sep, 2012 — Jan, 2017 (over 4 years)

I conducted needs analyses, then wrote and delivered English language training for:
IELTS (International English Language Training System) scholarship students, British Council, Myanmar
Australian Aid programme for the Ministry of Finance, Myanmar
Pact microfinance (non-government organisation), Myanmar
Gender Equality Network, Myanmar (non-government organisation), Myanmar.

St George's International School, Rome

Sep, 2008 — Aug, 2012 (almost 4 years)

Supporting students from all ages, across all curriculum areas
Designing and delivering in-class support with partnership teachers
Teaching withdrawal classes
Designing and delivering continued professional development to staff and management on language learners' needs.

Portfolio

Doesn't anybody speak English?: Learn how to speak English on the telephone

Bartlett, Mr. Christopher John

Independently published

Copy Editing
Made with Reedsy
Secrets of the Autistic Millionaire

Dave Plummer

A successful and optimistic Autistic Multimillionaire chronicles his journey with Autism and reflects on how the disorder has helped and hindered him as he went from high school dropout to suc... read more
Copy Editing
Deepest Aqua

Nixon, Trudy

Copy Editing
Endless Turquoise

Nixon, Trudy

Copy Editing
Copy Editing
Copy Editing
Copy Editing

Alex has 3 reviews

Professionalism

Quality

Value

Responsiveness

Hilra G.

Hilra G.

Oct, 2024

Pinned
Working with Alex was extremely smooth and professional. She did a great job and her communication was also excellent. Having her proofreading my work (and even providing some editing tips) gave me confidence to get my book out. Highly recommend her services. Thank you!
Alex M.
Thank you for the super review, Hilra, I do appreciate this! Best wishes for the book and any future projects you choose to do helping the ones who too often get overlooked. It was a pleasure worki...
Read more
Monique D.

Monique D.

Nov, 2021

Pinned
Alex, is very helpful and provides a wonderful service.
Jacqueline O.

Jacqueline O.

Nov, 2021

Pinned
I'm still working with Alex on my fiction manuscript, but have been really enjoying working with her and appreciating the quality of her input. Her insights have raised things I never considered, and I think my manuscript will be much stronger because Alex's help. Thank you, Alex!
Alex M.
Jacqueline, you have been an absolute pleasure to work with. Your manuscript arrived in a very good state (well written, almost error-free and crafted with intelligence ) then, following my edit, y...
Read more

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