I worked with Pete Symons for a period in 2015 when he was contracted to edit a book that I had authored, titled Suburbs at War (City of Stonnington, 2015). Pete was always careful and thorough, paying close attention to consistency in the text. He also had a good grasp of the subject matter, which was particularly helpful in matters of accuracy and flow. Pete’s fine editing skills contributed to the quality of the overall publication, with the book winning the ‘Centenary of World War I Award’ at the Victorian Community History Awards in 2015.

Pete worked on this manuscript to a tight deadline and was reliable in his delivery of the edited manuscript. While working independently on the Suburbs at War manuscript, Pete was very amenable to discussion and problem-solving, showing that he can also work cooperatively as part of a team.

I found Pete to be a cheerful and enthusiastic person who was always a pleasure to deal with. I would certainly recommend him for any future editing work. 

Dr Helen Doyle
Historian
Context

I hired Pete Symons in 2016 to copy edit our academic publication for Routledge, an edited collection of chapters on the theme of ghost signs. Pete was great to work with. Our book was complex and demanding to complete, with both authors and editors distributed around the globe. Pete rose to the challenge by effectively deploying not only his technical editing skills and professional approach, but his writerly sense of what makes an interesting story. This combination of technical and literary capabilities proved crucial to the delivery of a work that all involved can feel very proud of. Pete’s services are highly recommended.

Dr Stefan Schutt
Senior Lecturer,
Learning Design (ICT/Digital)
School of Education
La Trobe University

I first met Peter Symons in 2013 when I worked with him on a project called ‘Journeys Within Our Community’, where he helped to coordinate discussions between refugees and migrants who have been living in Australia for many years. From these discussions, he supported these people to write poems and stories about their lives. Peter edited these pieces that were subsequently published in a small book. In my role as academic lecturer at The MIECAT Institute, I have overseen a 10,000 word Masters research thesis edited by Peter. He has also edited another 20,000 word research thesis through MIECAT. I have employed him to conduct a workshop on essay writing for MIECAT students where he taught students how to structure essays, ensure they answer the questions that are asked of them and explained how to improve their grammar. In all of these projects Peter was professional and clearly highly knowledgeable about language and the craft of editing. He was always willing to discuss his thoughts and communicated very well. He has the skills and knowledge to edit a range of texts and I strongly recommend him for any editing work you have.

Amanda Woodford
MA ECAT, AThR