Specialist subjects
Bothersome Words offers a range of editing and writing services to a diverse selection of clients and we enjoy working on just about anything that takes the form of the written word. But there are some areas of editing and writing that require particular skills, interests or passions that not all editorial services can offer. We know that matching the right editor to a particular publication can make the world of difference to you and your work.
We specialise in the following areas:
Fantasy and science fiction (speculative fiction)
Academic and education texts/Social and critical theory
Fantasy and science fiction
If you’re looking for someone to edit your science fiction novel, fantasy tome, paranormal romance or horror manuscript, you’ve come to the right place.
Although we love and edit all types of fiction, we particularly specialise in anything that falls under the speculative fiction banner. In fact, we’ve been jacking in to alternate realities ever since we were old enough to clamber through the back of a wardrobe. We’ve got a pretty good idea of what sort of things go bump in the night; and with years of experience behind us, we’ve learned to make sure we know where our towel is and how to deal with dragons and vampires no matter what lore is behind them.
If you’re just getting started, we can provide you with a manuscript assessment, separate to, or in conjunction with, an edit of your manuscript. We have worked closely with a number of independent authors beginning their writing journey, and their works have included science fiction serials spanning time and space, as well as epic fantasy novels depicting medieval realms.
For publishers and established authors, our freelance editing and proofreading services are ideal. We work with a number of publishers, and with HarperCollins in particular in this genre, often on the HarperVoyager fantasy/sci-fi speculative fiction imprint. We have worked on titles for authors including Karen Miller/K.E. Mills; Fiona McIntosh; Kim Westwood; Bevan McGuiness; Duncan Lay; Tony Shillitoe and Rhonda Roberts.
Of course, we also work on other genres, including crime, romance, children’s (age 9 and up) and general fiction. All our edits come with detailed reports.
Academic and education texts/Social and critical theory
From Plato to Piaget, Freud to Foucault, we have particular interest in philosophy, psychology and critical theory and have edited texts for University-level political/social science and psychology courses on subjects including developmental psychology and policy analysis for Pearson Australia.
If you’re looking for someone to edit textbooks rich in philosophical concepts and critical theory, look no further. Because we have background, experience, knowledge and interest in these subjects, we are able to offer a superior editing and proofreading service. Our understanding and passion for the topics and concepts explored in these texts means that we are able to pick up details that other editorial services may miss.
Law and business
When it comes to legal documents, you need someone with the right editorial training who knows the language and the tools required to research and check the accuracy of legal content. You need a legal editor.
With our strong legal publishing background, we are familiar with all manner of law publications from legislation to commentary to tribute works and newsletters. We have worked with companies and organisations including LexisNexis, CCH and Law Access NSW to produce loose-leaf legislation publications, legal commentary, newsletters, online material, guide books and presentations. 
We are on the Editorial Panel for the NSW Attorney General’s Department, and we continue to work with LexisNexis on various projects, including books and presentations. We recently worked closely with a High Court Judge to produce The Restraint of Trade Doctrine for LexisNexis.
If you’re more business-minded, we have a lot of experience working with corporations and editing corporate material. We know that it can often be hard to convert business documents into publications that make sense and we also know that it can be difficult to make business concepts interesting to other people. That’s where Bothersome Words comes in.
We can edit or rewrite your business documents into plain English for the general public, or we can even put together magazine or brochure content that explains your corporation’s concepts in easy and interesting terms.
We’ve edited educational business texts for Pearson Australia on subjects including human resources, market research and policy analysis and we’ve edited and proofread corporate material for Telstra, The Institute of Chartered Accountants, The Junction Works and more, converting jargon into simple, easy-to-read English.
We have also written business articles for Virgin Blue’s Voyeur magazine and subedited business and building magazines such as The Commercial Property Gazette; Master Builder Australia and others. We got our start in copywriting and we spend most of our time now reading other peoples' words. We've got the skills and we know exactly how important it is to put a document together in a way that other people will want to read it and so that they'll understand it when they do.