Fine LineAcademic Agency

Academic Editing · Journal Compliance · AI-Literate

Your science is ready.
Let's make sure your writing is too.

Expert manuscript and grant editing from editors who have worked inside AJE, Cambridge Proofreading, MDPI, KGL, and Elsevier — with the STEM domain knowledge to understand your field.

Get a quoteSee how we work

Editorial standards developed working with

AJE·Cambridge Proofreading·MDPI·KGL·Elsevier

10 years of publisher-side editorial experience · MSc Computer Science · AI/ML · Biomedical · Computational research

Why Fine Line

The gap between a desk rejection and an acceptance is usually not the science.

Publisher-side credibility

Our editors have held positions inside major academic publishers, not simply edited manuscripts for them. That means we know how editorial decisions are made, what gets flagged at the desk, and what signals a well-prepared submission. This institutional knowledge is not replicable from a style guide.

STEM domain expertise

Editing a biomedical informatics paper or an ML systems paper requires understanding the field, not just the grammar. Our editors bring genuine STEM literacy — including computational research backgrounds — so your technical argument remains intact and accurate throughout the editing process.

Transparent AI use

We use AI-assisted tools at the consistency-checking stage, under close human supervision, and we disclose every instance in writing. You receive a full AI disclosure statement with every project. Transparency about AI is not a courtesy — for journal compliance, it is increasingly a requirement.

Journal compliance

Every manuscript we edit is checked against the target journal's author guidelines — formatting, reference style, section order, word count constraints. We have worked inside submission systems at five major publishers and know exactly what creates friction at the editorial desk.

GDPR-compliant storage

Your research files are stored with geographic separation and access controls that meet GDPR requirements. For projects requiring additional confidentiality, we offer a local-processing tier with no cloud-assisted tooling. Your intellectual property and your participants' data are protected at every stage.

Async-first workflow

No intake calls, no intake questionnaires that take longer than the project briefing. You submit your manuscript and requirements in writing, we return a quote within one business day, and editing proceeds without scheduling overhead. Built for researchers in different time zones with different deadlines.

Services

Every project. Every field. Every deadline.

01

Journal Manuscripts

Line editing, structure review, clarity improvements, and journal-compliance checking. We work at the level of argument and paragraph flow — not just surface grammar — so your case for publication is as clear as your data. Formatting to author guidelines and reference checking included.

$240 – $625

02

Grant Editing

Substantive editing and compliance review for NIH R01, NSF, SBIR, and equivalent funding mechanisms. We work through specific aims, significance, innovation, and approach sections with attention to reviewer criteria and scoring rubrics. Cover letters and budget justifications available as add-ons.

$650 – $3,800

03

Dissertations

Chapter-level substantive editing through to full-document proofreading for STEM and computational research dissertations. We understand the conventions of thesis argument structure across disciplines and can work to institutional or departmental style requirements as needed.

$1,950 – $4,800

Proofreading from $0.030/word · Copyediting from $0.045/word · Substantive editing from $0.065/word · ESL STEM polish from $0.055/word · Minimum fee $150 · Hourly consulting $125/hr

The Workflow

Three stages. One deliverable package you can act on immediately.

01

Consistency Pass

We run a systematic consistency check across your entire document — terminology, abbreviations, citation formats, and internal cross-references. This stage catches the errors that accumulate invisibly across long documents and multiple revision cycles.

02

AI-Assisted Editing

Under direct human supervision, we use AI tooling to accelerate the detection of language-level issues — sentence structure, passive constructions, wordiness, and register inconsistencies. Every AI suggestion is reviewed and accepted or rejected by a human editor.

03

Human Judgment

The substantive editing pass is entirely human. Argument flow, framing of results, section transitions, and discussion of limitations require editorial judgment that AI cannot provide. This is where publisher-side experience becomes most visible in the output.

04

Delivery

You receive a complete deliverable package formatted for immediate action. Everything you need to submit is included and clearly labelled. No follow-up emails required.

Tracked-changes document

Clean accepted copy

Style sheet

Editor memo

AI disclosure statement

“We know what the editor on the other side of your submission is looking for. That is not something you can learn from a style guide.”

Fine Line Academic Agency

Who we work with

Built for researchers who take both the work and the stakes seriously.

Postdocs

Postdoctoral researchers

STEM, AI, and medical researchers navigating the submission cycle alongside lab responsibilities and career milestones. We deliver journal-compliant manuscripts without requiring calls or back-and-forth.

ESL researchers

ESL researchers in US STEM labs

Researchers writing in English as a second language, particularly in US-based STEM and computational biology labs. Our ESL polish service preserves your technical precision while lifting the language to native academic register.

PIs / Faculty

Principal investigators

Faculty managing NIH R01, NSF, and SBIR grant cycles who need substantive editing and compliance review under tight deadlines. We understand scoring rubrics and reviewer psychology — and we work to your timeline.

PhD candidates

PhD candidates

STEM and computer science doctoral students preparing dissertations and first-author papers. We work chapter by chapter or on the full document, to institutional requirements, with clear tracked changes so you understand every edit.

Your manuscript deserves an editor who understands the field.

Get a quote in under two minutes. No intake call required.

Get a quote