Overview
Currently, I am an Acquisitions Editor for Arc Humanities Press, an academic-led press that specialises in the global Middle Ages. In this position, I oversee a number of series (Gender and Power in the Premodern World, CARMEN Visual and Material Cultures, Companions and References, East Meets West: East Asia and Its Periphery, Jewish Engagements, and Mesoamerica, the Caribbean and South America, 700-1700, and the Medieval Islamicate World). I commission scholars to write manuscripts and work intimately with them throughout the publishing process, from initial discussions and contracting, to offering editorial advice and feedback on submissions, as well as advising authors on various particulars like how to obtain images and permissions for publication to indexing. I also oversee peer reviews.
Through Arc Humanities, I am the Executive Editor for the Encyclopedia of the Global Middle Ages, which we produce in partnership with Bloomsbury Academic. I commission academics and scholars to write articles on agreed themes and subjects and issue contracts. I am the sole copyeditor for all article submissions, ensuring they are stylistically standardised using the Chicago MLA system.
My editorial and copyediting experiences also extend to the trade sector. I am a series editor and copyeditor for Medieval History and Women's History with Pen and Sword Books who specialise in history books for general readership. Similar to Arc, I commission authors to write books for each series. As copyeditor, I work directly with authors offering advice and suggestions for improvement and editing to Pen and Sword house style.
Needless to say, I'm constantly looking for new authors to commission and maintain a close working relationship with those already on board!
I have also worked as a copyediting and indexing freelancer with publishing houses such as Routledge, Brepols and Palgrave.
On the rare occasions I haven't spent all my brain power editing, I continue to carry out research and writing on my own specialisms, particularly Welsh queenship before 1282 and women and gender history.
Services
Non-Fiction
Languages
Certifications
- PhD, Medieval Welsh History
- MA, Late Medieval Studies
- BA, History/Women's Studies
- AA, Humanities and Social Sciences
Work experience
Arc Humanities Press/Bloomsbury Academic
Arc Humanities Press
Self-employed
I was commissioned to catalogued the family and estate papers for Baron Middleton and the Birdsall Estates Company, 16th-20th centuries, to International Archival Standards.
• Created and managed archival database • Consulted on grant opportunities and preservation issues • Packaged and boxed archives
Pen and Sword Books
I designed the publishing spec for both individual series and am the primary copyeditor for both.
•Create series objectives and overall themes to be covered • Network with established and up and coming authors • Commission authors for books • Facilitate and monitor the production of titles and book proposals • Copy-edit all manuscripts for series • One-to-one collaboration with authors to produce clean edits for publication
Royal Studies Journal, Winchester University Press
I worked collaboratively with the Copyediting and Proofreading Editors to ensure academic quality is met for each issue. More importantly, I manage a team of assistants spread across the globe, monitoring assignments and supervising final edits.
•Managed international Layout Team for bi-annual academic journal • Delegated and monitored team and individual assignments • Supervised and proofed final edits for all articles and reviews before publication • Oversaw online journal system • Collaborated with international colleagues • Created guidelines and online help resources for editorial board and assistants • Promoted journal using Royal Studies Network webpage and social media
Brepols Publishing
I carried out preliminary edits on manuscripts, which primarily involved templating the manuscripts following house guidelines.
•Proofread and templated academic manuscripts using Microsoft Office • Identified and resolved problems that might later delay copy-editing and type-setting process • Edited FTP files of manuscripts to conform to MHRA style guidelines
Borthwick Institute for Archives, University of York
The Borthwick Institute for Archives is the largest archival repository outside of The National Archives. As an assistant, I managed the searchrooms, answered reader equerries and carried out research requests.
• Supervised and trained new staff • Supervised visitors, answered research queries by email, phone, post and in person • Catalogued and indexed archival material • Delivered required results for commissioned research on time and within specified budgets • Consulted and transcribed a wide range of sources, 12th–20th centuries • Developed public pamphlets and teaching aids related to archival material • Conducted tours and organised exhibitions for schools and history groups Committees
Self-employed
Monographs:
Forthcoming, 2023. English Consorts: Power, Influence, Dynasty: Normans to Early Plantagenets, eds., Aidan Norrie, Carolyn Harris, Joanna Laynesmith, Danna R. M. and Elena Woodacre, Palgrave MacMillan
2020. Joan, Lady of Wales: The Power and Politics of King John’s Daughter, Pen and Sword Books
Peer-Reviewed Articles and Chapters:
2022 (article). 'Briouze, Eva de [neé Marshal] (c. 1203–1246), noblewoman', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, Oxford University Press
2022 (article). 'Briouze, Isabella de (1222-1247), noblewoman and princess', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, Oxford University Press
2022 (article). 'Emma of Anjou (d. 1214), princess', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, Oxford University Press
2022 (article). 'Ferrers, Elizabeth de (1238?–1285?), noblewoman and princess', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online, Oxford University Press
2020 (article). ‘A Model of Welsh Queenship: Joan of England and the Medieval Court of Gwynedd’, Special Edition on Medieval and Early Modern Queenship, Women’s History Review, 30:4, 754-65
2019 (article). 'Welsh Queenship in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries', Encyclopedia of the Global Middle Ages, Arc Humanities/Bloomsbury Academic
2018 (chapter). ‘Impressions of Welsh Queenship in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries’, in Elena Woodacre, ed., Global Queenship, ARC Humanities Press/CARMEN
2018 (revised article). ‘Joan (d. 1237), princess’, Dictionary of Welsh Biography Online article, University of Wales Press
2017 (article). ‘Eleanor de Montfort (c. 1258–1282), princess’, Dictionary of Welsh Biography Online, University fo Wales Press
2007 (article). ‘Medieval Monarchs, Female Illegitimacy and Modern Genealogical Matters, Pt. 3: Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmorland, 1379–1440’, Foundations: Newsletter of the Foundation for Medieval Genealogy, 2:4, 235-40
2004 (article). ‘Medieval Monarchs, Female Illegitimacy and Modern Genealogical Matters, Pt. 2: Joan of England, c.1190–1236/7’, Foundations: Newsletter of the Foundation for Medieval Genealogy, 1:4, 294-8
2003 (article). ‘Medieval Monarchs, Female Illegitimacy and Modern Genealogical Matters, Pt. 1: Sybilla, Queen of Scotland, c.1090–1122’, Foundations: Newsletter of the Foundation for Medieval Genealogy, 1:2, 99-103
2003 (article). ‘Filia Notha or Filia Regis?: Kinship and the Acquiescence of Royal Illegitimate Daughters, c. 1090– 1440’, Foundations: Newsletter of the Foundation for Medieval Genealogy, 1:1, 51-3
Book Reviews:
2017. A. King, ‘Edward I: A New King Arthur?’, Penguin Monarchs Series (Allan Lane, 2016), for Royal Studies Journal, 4:2, 238-40
2015. D. d’Avray, Dissolving Royal Marriages: A Documentary History, 860–1600 (Cambridge University Press, 2014), for Reviews in History, Institute for Historical Research
Self-employed
I carry out archival research on all aspects of history (from medieval to modern times) and produce tailored research reports for clients. I also offer a series of classes on how to read old handwriting and how to carry out historical research.
• Research of original archives commissioned by professional, amateur, family and local historians, societies and authors • Analysis of quantitative and qualitative research datasets and outputs • Consult historical documents,11th–20th centuries • Undertake palaeographic transcriptions and translations from medieval Latin and Middle English • Project management • Manage expense accounts • Provide research and palaeographic training courses for history and museum groups: • Training outputs catered to specialised needs and interests of individual groups • Courses and workshops interactive, based on overall level of group experience with project-based learning • Attendees equipped with the practical skills and knowledge needed for undertaking successful research
• Clients include: Birdsall Estates, East Yorkshire; Cambridge and Newcastle Universities (Wellcome Trust Funded project); Castle Howard Estates, North Yorkshire; Prison and Police Museum, Ripon; Bradford Police Museum; Wakefield and North of England Tulip Society (Heritage Lottery Funded project)
Portfolio
