How do I become a Proofreader & Copyeditor?

Kristen King

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Hey there,

It's hard to answer that question without knowing a little about your background, your education, your skills, etc., but ideally you want to have a rock-solid grasp of grammar and punctuation, great attention to detail, and the ability to adapt to and apply varying style rules to a wide variety of document types.

If you Google "online editing course," you'll get some hits. Take a look at the options out there and see if anything feels like a good fit.

Hope that helps as a starting point!

Kristen
 

Namatu

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Also familiarize yourself with some of the writing styles out there (for non-fiction copyediting and proofing), such as Chicago and APA.
 

bluejester12

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And prepare for a low salary and lots of competition. I was looking at a position for a top gaming magazine that wanted 5 years experience for a part-time position. And I think it was entry level.
 

mayday

Kristen--I read your blog article & it was full of great information, but I am still left wondering...is a BA in writing/English a must?
 

Jamesaritchie

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BA

Kristen--I read your blog article & it was full of great information, but I am still left wondering...is a BA in writing/English a must?

A BA is not a must, but most of those who are trying to get the same job will probably have a BA, or its equivalent.

The trouble with jobs such as editor, copy editor, proofreader, etc., is that credentials often override skill. If you were the employer, who would you take a chance on, a person with a BA in English, or a person without a BA in English?

The best way, I think, is to do your best to put yourself at the right place and the right time, start small, and volunteer your services at every opportunity. The one thing that can beat out a BA is experience.
 

Kristen King

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May, are you the one who left a comment on the entry yesterday? :] A writing degree isn't mandatory, but it does help. At the end of the day, though, it doesn't matter where you get the skills so long as you have them. You can have a master's degree in English and still be a crappy proofreader, and you can have a GED and be an amazing proofreader. It depends on your motivation and your willingness to learn.

kk
 

Jamesaritchie

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May, are you the one who left a comment on the entry yesterday? :] A writing degree isn't mandatory, but it does help. At the end of the day, though, it doesn't matter where you get the skills so long as you have them. You can have a master's degree in English and still be a crappy proofreader, and you can have a GED and be an amazing proofreader. It depends on your motivation and your willingness to learn.

kk

Very true. It's getting the experience without a degree than can be troublesome. At least getting the kind of experience employers will count higher than a degree.

This is just my experience, but I think the problem often comes from setting a specific goal right off the bat. Just get around the business. Don't set your sights on being an editor, a proofreader, or anything else right at the start. Get around the business, do whatever you can find to do, take whatever position you can find, and use that position, even if it's working in a mail room somewhere, as a stepping stone to a higher position.

But I will say this; proofreading is seldom a position. Most often, a copy editor does the proofing. At most places, one of the copy editor's prime responsibilities is proofing, so there's no need to hire a second person as a proofreader. It would just be a waste of money.

There are courses in copy editing, and such courses can replace a degree. You must, of course, have impeccable knowledge of grammar and punctuation to be a copy editor.

My favorite copy editor site is http://www.theslot.com/ Bill Walsh is one of the best, and the Sharp Points section of the website gives a good idea of the kind of knowledge a copy editor, and a proofreader, must have.
 

mayday

Here's the deal....I have many areas of interest (editorial, writing, etc.). I also have my BA in English half-way completed. Now, I'm trying to weigh the benefit of actually finishing that degree (had to take time off when kids arrived).

From a financial point of view, it doesn't make much sense to complete the degree b/c pay scales seem to be on the low end for all of the above (even though I just read an article claiming that copywriters are in the top 7 lucrative jobs on the market for 2007). Part of me says to pursue something totally different b/c I will always be able to write if I take the time to do it.

Then there's the fact that I live in The Middle of Nowhere (yes, it's an actual location-lol!), so any job that I would be able to consider would be freelancing anyway.

Sorry for the ramble. Just trying to sort things out.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Here's the deal....I have many areas of interest (editorial, writing, etc.). I also have my BA in English half-way completed. Now, I'm trying to weigh the benefit of actually finishing that degree (had to take time off when kids arrived).

From a financial point of view, it doesn't make much sense to complete the degree b/c pay scales seem to be on the low end for all of the above (even though I just read an article claiming that copywriters are in the top 7 lucrative jobs on the market for 2007). Part of me says to pursue something totally different b/c I will always be able to write if I take the time to do it.

Then there's the fact that I live in The Middle of Nowhere (yes, it's an actual location-lol!), so any job that I would be able to consider would be freelancing anyway.

Sorry for the ramble. Just trying to sort things out.

Copywriters can be paid extremely well. Most are not, but it can certainly be a lucrative profession.

My view of degrees is simple. Do you want to spend your life making lots of money in a job you hate, or perhaps less money in a job you love? It's a decision we all have to make, and I'm not sure there is a right or wrong, just a what can you live with best long term.

Now, I will say this. A BA in English is not a great degree all by its lonesome. It can be turned into money, and it can certainly lead to a job you would enjoy, but a BA is, in my opinion, a starting point. To really make an English degree pay off, I think you need to move on to an MFA, a Masters, a Ph.D, something that separates you from all the BA holders.

And what are you minoring in? Minors are extremely important and highly underrated. The right minors can make any degree much more valuable.
 

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You also need to consider if there's subject area you're more interested in working in terms of copy editing and proofing. Some publishers (non-fiction) like to use freelancers who have subject-area knowledge, if not expertise. They may also offer copy editing or proofing tests, which may help you out if you don't have a lot of experience yet.

In my opinion as an editor who contracts with freelancers, I don't care what your background is so long as you are: good (good with the general and with the substantive copy editing), thorough, ask questions when you have them, and let me know if you're going to miss a deadline and offer to give work back rather than do a crappy job of it. I love those freelancers.
 

Jamesaritchie

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You also need to consider if there's subject area you're more interested in working in terms of copy editing and proofing. Some publishers (non-fiction) like to use freelancers who have subject-area knowledge, if not expertise. They may also offer copy editing or proofing tests, which may help you out if you don't have a lot of experience yet.

In my opinion as an editor who contracts with freelancers, I don't care what your background is so long as you are: good (good with the general and with the substantive copy editing), thorough, ask questions when you have them, and let me know if you're going to miss a deadline and offer to give work back rather than do a crappy job of it. I love those freelancers.

That's a good point. Freelancing is a pretty good way to get a foot in the door. As an editor, I tend to have reservations about hiring freelancers to do copy editing and proofing work unless they have a pretty good resume, especially if I can't test them face to face, but it's still a good way to break in.

But given my druthers, a degree of some kind is almost always better than no degree at all, and there's no shortage of freelancers with a degree.
 

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Mayday, you can always go back to school or take courses online. It doesn't have to be overbearingly expensive. You can find tons of scholarships and apply for grants and financial aid. Mothers tend to get a lot of money for aid. You can still go for a degree and be able to be financially stable. But, of course, it's a decision you have to weigh out and decide what's best for you.
 

Lauri B

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Lots of English majors have lousy proofing skills (I'm one of them). I think one issue about not having some kind of degree, whether it is in English or anything else, is that employers look at a college degree as the basic qualification for a professional level job. Most editorial assistant positions require a college degree of some kind--most don't specify the degree but usually prefer English or communications. The general corporate (magazine, newspaper, publisher) job ladder for inexperienced hires is editorial assistant, copy editor/associate editor, and then up from there. Depending on the size of the company, proofing and copy editing can fall to any number of editors, regardless of their title. I have been the marketing director at Nomad for years, but I also do a lot of content editing. I hate copy editing and proofreading and would never want a career in it.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Degree

Lots of English majors have lousy proofing skills (I'm one of them). I think one issue about not having some kind of degree, whether it is in English or anything else, is that employers look at a college degree as the basic qualification for a professional level job. Most editorial assistant positions require a college degree of some kind--most don't specify the degree but usually prefer English or communications. The general corporate (magazine, newspaper, publisher) job ladder for inexperienced hires is editorial assistant, copy editor/associate editor, and then up from there. Depending on the size of the company, proofing and copy editing can fall to any number of editors, regardless of their title. I have been the marketing director at Nomad for years, but I also do a lot of content editing. I hate copy editing and proofreading and would never want a career in it.

That's the thing. A BA degree is usually just entry level qualification.

But I will say this. What that English degree holder did in college is important. One that actually worked for a college magazine, or for a college publisher, is a standout. It means they bring skills to the job beyond English.

But I'll also say this. If you don't have an appropriate degree, being a selling writer can make the difference. If you sell widely enough, that is. I've known quite a few writers to move straight into an editor's chair based solely on their writing careers.
 

Namatu

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What that English degree holder did in college is important.

This is true. Time spent earning a degree is also an opportunity to network and get experience in university newspapers, journals, and writing groups. Regardless of whether you need an English degree per se, the consensus seems to be that a[/a] degree is a good thing.
 

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This is true. Time spent earning a degree is also an opportunity to network and get experience in university newspapers, journals, and writing groups. Regardless of whether you need an English degree per se, the consensus seems to be that a[/a] degree is a good thing.


A degree is a good thing. First, it's a filter, a gatekeeper. There must be some basic criteria to weed applicants, or too much time is wasted on those who simply are not qualified. But a degree also says something about an individual. Here's a person who found a way to go to college, and who was willing to stick to college until he had a degree in hand. This means a lot.

Then you weed further by looking at the things that person did while in college.

For me, a journalism degree is just as good as an English degree, partly, of course, because English courses are usually part of a journalism degree. But any degree is better than none, and any degree says something important about the person who holds it.