This document compares and contrasts academic editing versus business editing. For business editing, editors should ensure writers use simplicity, informality, convenience, and action. This means using short, simple sentences and vocabulary. The writing should be informal using "I", "we", contractions and addressing the reader directly. It should also be easy to read using bulleted lists and assume the reader is scanning. The writing should use active voice and action-oriented language focused on results. Academic editing, on the other hand, should ensure complexity with longer sentences, scholarly vocabulary and clauses. The writing style should be formal without "you" or contractions.

1. Academic Editing Versus
Business Editing
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2. Business Editing
Business writers take as their audience non-academics and
often non-practitioners. Therefore, those who offer business
editing must attend to four principles: simplicity,
informality, convenience, and action.
Simplicity
Those who offer business editing must ensure that writers
use short sentences that express their ideas clearly and with
simple vocabulary.
Short sentences
There are four sentence types.

3. Simple: Subject + Verb (expressing a complete thought)
Compound: Two simple sentences combined using a coordinating
conjunction (and, but, so, or, etc.)
Complex: Two simple sentences combined using a subordinating
conjunction (since, after, when, although, etc.)
Complex-Compound: A complex sentence combined with a compound
sentence using a coordinating conjunction
Business writers should use mostly simple sentences with a few complex
and/or compound sentences. They should avoid complex-compound
sentences.

4. Writers craft more complicated sentences by using clauses that offer non-
essential information. For example, appositives are clauses in which a writer
describes an already stated noun in different words (e.g., the film, a
Hollywood blockbuster, won three Emmys). Business writers should avoid
such clauses.
Simple vocabulary
Don’t use a 50-cent word when a 5-cent word will do. Instead of comprise or
compose, prefer make up. Instead of utilize or employ, prefer use.
Informality
Those who offer business editing must ensure that writers use informal
language. Business writers should use I and we (when talking about
themselves or their company) and you (to talk directly to the reader), as well
as contractions.

5. Convenience
Those who offer business editing must ensure that writers use language that’s
easy to read (for example, bulleted lists). Business writers should assume
readers are scanning the article.
Action
Those who offer business editing must ensure that writers use the active voice
and action-oriented language.
Active Voice
The active voice is direct language beginning with whomever or whatever is
doing the action (e.g., the saxophonist played the song). The passive voice
begins with whomever or whatever is being acted on. You form the verb by
using be + the past participle (e.g., the song was played by the saxophonist).

6. Action-Oriented Language
Business writers should focus on action and results, using specific details
and numbers (when possible), as well as the most descriptive, action-
oriented verbs, avoiding have and be. Instead of increase, use boost or ramp
up.
Academic Editing
Academic writers take as their audience academics and practitioners.
Therefore, those who offer academic editing must use strategies that are
almost the exact opposite of the strategies for those who offer business
editing.

7. Simplicity
Those who offer academic editing should make sure writers use scholarly
vocabulary and sentence structure (i.e., many complex, compound, and complex-
compound sentences, few simple sentences, and many clauses providing non-
essential information).
Informality
Those who offer academic editing should make sure writers use I or we, but
sparingly, and never you or contractions.
Convenience
Those who offer academic editing should make sure writers use bulleted lists
infrequently.
Action
Those who offer academic editing should make sure writers use the active voice
as often as possible. But their verbs need not be action-oriented.

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