Manuscript Editing for Speculum Journal Articles
Founded in 1926, Speculum was the first North American journal devoted to the Middle Ages. It is open to every discipline and method that studies roughly 500 to 1500 CE, including European, Arabic, Byzantine, Hebrew, and Slavic studies. The University of Chicago Press publishes it quarterly for the Medieval Academy of America, and its editorial office is at Northwestern University.
Articles run no more than 15,000 words, counting notes, tables, and appendices. Citations follow the Speculum style sheet in footnotes, with the Chicago Manual of Style, 18th edition, for anything the sheet leaves open. Manuscripts are cited by city, library, and shelf mark. Short foreign-language quotations are followed by an English translation in square brackets. Review is double-anonymized after screening by the editor and board. Generative AI may not be used to write text or notes, and authors wait five years after publishing before submitting again. Off the Grid Editing applies the style sheet and checks each shelf mark. Submissions go through Editorial Manager.
Our Promise
We will ensure that the final draft you receive is completely ready to submit to Speculum. We work with you until it is ready or refund your payment in full. That commitment has held since 2002.
Our editors do not have access to your manuscript until an order is placed. Your draft is secure until you decide to proceed.
Manuscript Editing and Proofreading for Speculum
We offer three levels of manuscript editing depending on what your manuscript needs. Each is described below so you can choose the service that fits where your draft is right now.
Grammar and usage, awkward phrasing, repetition, and passive voice corrected, then clarity, concision, sentence structure, transitions, and tone, with your style manual applied throughout and a final proofread. For authors whose argument and structure are settled.
Clarity, emphasis, and paragraph structure: topic sentences, transitions, and sentences reordered within a paragraph, with every fact and claim kept as you wrote it. Includes copy editing and a final proofread.
Spelling, punctuation, typos, capitalization, grammar, and usage corrected with minimal wording changes, for manuscripts that have been edited and need a last check before submission to Speculum.
The Press's instructions for authors cover length, footnotes, and translation. If you have reviewer comments from an earlier submission, send them with your manuscript and we will address each one. If you have questions about which service is right for your manuscript, contact us directly. We respond to every inquiry the same day during business hours.
Our journal article and essay editing page explains how we edit medieval scholarship, and academic proofreading is the final pass. If English is your second language, see English language editing for researchers. For books, see University of Chicago Press manuscript editing. We also prepare articles for the Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies and Renaissance Quarterly.
Instant Manuscript Editing Invoice
Ready to prepare your manuscript for Speculum? Use our secure portal to generate an immediate, word-count-based quote and secure your delivery deadline.
Our editors do not have access to your manuscript until an order is placed.
Direct Support
Reach our editorial team directly to discuss your manuscript, your Speculum submission timeline, or which service is right for your project. Initial consultations of up to 15 minutes are complimentary.
608-535-6324
editors@offthegridediting.com