Literary & Academic Editing

My main objective when editing and translating literary work is to preserve the author's voice. I use a light hand wherever possible. Sometimes small adjustments can improve the flow in English while also echoing the Arabic text.

I can also delve a bit deeper and assist in places where the work may need some extra help. Where needed, I can pick up on and gently point out places where the translation may have drifted from the original. Being able to reference and access the original work in Arabic allows me to provide suggestions and solutions to help resolve tricky issues.

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In addition to working to preserve the author's voice and address translation issues, I edit with an eye to the internal consistency of the narrative and flag potential conflicts.

I am comfortable performing general copyediting cleanup procedures and creating or referring to a stylesheet to record editing decisions and style choices. This is done while also gently ensuring that the manuscript follows the specific house style.

I understand the constraints often involved in literary and academic publishing and do my best to keep services within budget.

For examples of projects I have worked on see here.

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Service Levels

My services generally fall into three levels:

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Request a Quote

Send me your document by email at mhenjum@mkhlanguageservices.com and I'll get back to you within 1–2 business days with a fixed quote and turnaround time based on length, complexity, and deadline.

Have questions before sending a document? Happy to talk through the project first. Reach out the same way or by using the contact form below.