It’s that age-old conundrum: if you don’t have editing experience and all the editing jobs require experience how do you get experience? First, and most important, almost any kind of job you have or have had almost certainly has transferrable skills if you think about it in the right way. So, for example, if you’re…
If you’re interested in learning how to become a freelance book editor, you’re probably wondering what kind of person thrives in the environment—what kind of skills and aptitudes are needed. Freelance editors have some characteristics in common. For one thing, they’re self-starters: no one is going to be watching over your shoulder to see whether…
Editing, developmental editing in particular, is not an entry-level position, especially for a freelancer. You can’t just announce that you’re open for business and expect to do well and gain clients. To succeed, freelance editors typically need a bachelor’s degree in English, journalism, communications, or a related degree along with writing and editing experience. However,…
I know aspiring book editors are curious about how much money a book editor makes but almost no one directly asks me this question. The answer, of course, is it depends. Developmental editing (DE or dev), which is often called story editing when referring to fiction, is a type of editing that focuses on the…
Recently a newsletter subscriber emailed me and said, “I would have taken this class, except you made a mistake in the course description.” I sent a polite email in response and immediately unsubscribed her from my email list. It sounds like I can’t take criticism, doesn’t it? But that’s not the reason I unsubscribed her….
Developmental editors frequently talk about how authors can decide when a ms is ready for professional editing. They make good points about fixing obvious errors before paying for an editor’s attention. I mean, if you know your ending is weak, why are you sending your manuscript to me? Fix the ending, then send the manuscript…
In developmental editing of fiction, most editors, including me, follow a three-part process: we do a first read-through, taking notes about problems we’ve encountered, then we do the main editorial pass(es), then we do a final review before returning the ms to the author/client. The first read-through is generally intended just to help you understand…
The other day in a writers’ group I belong to we had a conversation about the novels we’re reading now. And the most common description of what the group members were reading included the word slog: “I’m slogging through TITLE.” “I’m reading TITLE but it’s a slog.” “I’ve slogged through fifty pages of TITLE; does it…
It’s very common for newer editors to LOVE IT love it love it when they start booking clients far in advance. It’s March and they’re booked through to September! That is fantastic news, isn’t it? They know they’ll have money coming in for the next six months and they can breathe a sigh of relief….
In my previous post on setting work priorities, I closed with the point that once you know what’s important, the rest is just getting it done. Of course it’s not that simple. If it were, editors wouldn’t be asking me how to juggle everything. Defining the Tasks The first thing to remember is that there…