Testimonials

“Pat Sumner at ‘Cilan Proofreading and Editing’ was a great find when I was in the final stages of completing my debut novel. I had my ‘ideal’ list of skills for an editor to possess and I now know Pat possesses each one in abundance.
Through fair and honest criticism, she has taken what I thought was a good story and developed it into an excellent novel. Not only has she worked on the traditional editing process but she has helped me develop the storyline and structure as well.
Finally she looked at the elements needed to submit the novel to agents or publishers, including a covering letter and synopsis, which again she did perfectly.”
Chris Moran, new author

“I found working with Pat incredibly useful. She has an holistic approach to texts. As a practising poet, Pat is very sensitive to the nuances and weight of words and how they play out in narratives, and she is able to combine this with high-level, eagle-eyed skill in proofreading. This was backed up with an efficient and professional care of myself as a client.“
Terry McCormick

“Not only did Pat help me with her excellent proofreading and editing service for my new picture book series, but also with various aspects of the storyline and character development! I would highly recommend Cilan especially if you are a new author who may need a little more help and guidance in getting your books to market.“
Lee Harrison, graphic designer and author of the Wee Wurri series of books

“Pat was a pleasure to work with, conscientious, diligent and efficient. I presented her with a long and complex manuscript that had been read and reread many times, and yet she still picked up on inconsistencies in syntax, spelling and even some narrative holes that I thought had all been ironed out. I found her advice extremely useful, so much so that I included her in my acknowledgements and would most certainly work with her again.”
Henry Chancellor, author, film-maker and scriptwriter

“Pat is absolutely wonderful! I have worked with her on my last three books and I have loved every experience. She not only is accurate with grammatical rules, but has an artistry with words that enriches the text to a more professional and seamless style. Thank you so much Pat!”
Laura Henderson, author of the Knookerdoodle series of books

“I’ve known Pat since 2009. In that time Pat has supported every single university student that I’ve worked with. To date over 400 university students have got to their first choice university as a result. Hands down the most talented proofreader and creative editor who continually delivers on time and within deadline. I’d highly recommend Patricia.”
Richard Riddell of Exam Confidence

“I have used the proofreading and editing services offered by Pat Sumner for the last five years. As a self-employed consultant whose work entails a lot of interpretation for museums and heritage venues, it is critical that any work I produce is thoroughly proofread prior to printing and display. I have found Pat’s services invaluable in this process and I now commission her for all contracted work and recommend her services to colleagues in Local Authorities and voluntary sector organisations. Pat’s experience of developing information for a range of different audiences, including a knowledge of accessible text for people with additional support needs, has been of particular benefit to my work. For me in my line of work, it has been a relief to find Pat and work with her on numerous projects, because it removes that niggling concern about accuracy or ‘missing something’ that one always has when producing work for publication.”
Suryiah Evans of NCompass Consultants

“Pat Sumner is an outstanding editor. She possesses the rare combination of attention to detail and technical expertise alongside the ability to intellectually engage with, and sympathetically contribute to, a text. I cannot recommend her highly enough.”
Adam Steiner, author and founder of Ptolemy Publishing

“We highly recommend Pat’s services. She is super professional and trustworthy. Always works to a high standard and meets all deadlines. Pat is a pleasure to deal with and she is willing to go the extra mile to offer creative ideas and alternatives. Pat has the ability to work with all kinds of different texts and has helped us with our children’s books as well as complex academic documents. Running our own business means we need a reliable team of people to work with and Pat is definitely now part of our team and we will continue using her services.”
Noam and Louise Lederman, jungle-jam.com and the Academy of Rock, Singapore

“Widely experienced as an editor and proofreader and much more, Pat gives an outstanding service in every way when it comes to making sure that a manuscript is in perfect shape in readiness for printing. Grammatical and punctuation errors don’t escape her eagle eye! Her expertise as an editor comes to the fore with regard to her making suggestions that will best reveal the meaningfulness of the text as appropriate to the overall tone – this applies to poetry as well as prose. She is an accomplished poet herself and I was delighted to publish her collection of poems: Beyond the Glass. She is creative as well as pragmatic. She is exceptional in working closely and tirelessly with writers in order to produce not only satisfactory results but the very best possible.”
Christine Michael, publisher

“Pat provides the most accurate and attentive editing with her outstanding sensitivity for individual diction, while always retaining the personal traits of the author. I felt entirely confident about her work, benefitting from numerous appropriate suggestions to improve my text. Here, I especially enjoyed her rare gift to provide carefully selected options at tricky spots in my manuscript, interacting when necessary, instead of delivering a ready-made choice. I would recommend her unhesitatingly to my closest collaborators and friends.”
Ramin Tavakolian, playwright

“Pat is an exceptional and thorough professional, which is an absolute must when working with text as there is no room for error… There are times in business when you need something done like yesterday… It is at times like these that you are grateful for someone like Pat! As a proofreader Pat was efficient, thorough and detailed in the way she went about the work. I have worked in publishing for 16 years so I know how to spot those who have it and those who don’t. I felt safe leaving the work in her hands and would definitely recommend her to others.”
Denise Roberts, Editor’s Chair

“Pat was a great help to me when writing my Personal Statement, ensuring it met a high standard. Not only did she help to perfect my use of English and my grammar, she also advised me on how to lay out my Personal Statement and prioritise my points. Pat would be the first person I would go to for any help with my work and I would have no hesitation in recommending her.”
Sixth Form student

“As an author, choosing the right person to perform editorial work is not only essential; it can be the difference between an ‘average book’ and a ‘best seller’. In my case, I was fortunate enough to come into contact with a literary gem, namely Pat Sumner. Her expertise in transforming my manuscript from a typewritten submission into a professional presentation was outstanding and unbelievable.”
James Stanhope-Brown, author