Editing is usually a shorthand for proofreading and copyediting. Many writers proofread and edit their own work, but when it goes to a publisher, then either an in-house editor who specializes in the subject or genre that you are writing in or a contracted freelance editor will further edit the writing to fit in with the house style.
Copyediting involves more than just reading and correcting punctuation and spelling. When a person acts as a copyeditor, they will be concerned with the way sentences are constructed and the proper use of language. If they find syntactical errors along with the usual typos, spelling mistakes, and incorrect punctuation, then they will rewrite sentences to read correctly.
Generally speaking, you will need at least a bachelor’s degree in English to apply for an editing job, and when it comes to specialist editing, you may be expected to have a masters’ degree in that particular subject. You will certainly be expected to have an eye for detail and to be able to concentrate on large amounts of text for long periods of time. Editors often work in publishing houses where they edit books, and they may work for a research agency and be expected to edit research reports, or they may work as a newspaper, radio, television, or film editor. Each of these top editing careers requires different approaches and particular areas of expertise.
A large number of editors, even those working in specialized fields such as science editing or psychology, work on a freelance basis. Don’t think that because you have all of the right qualifications and many of the qualities that are needed in top editing jobs that you will get a position with regular pay and benefits. The publishing world is changing just as rapidly as other areas, and the rise of the Internet has led to a new wave of online freelancers, many of whom set themselves up as editors with little or no qualifications at all.
Most newspapers, research agencies, and publishing houses will expect you to have some knowledge of a particular editing style — e.g., Chicago, Harvard, AP, or APA. Chicago and Harvard may be used in publishing houses, and these are rules that dictate how bibliographies are written, how material is referenced and whether the use of footnotes or endnotes is permitted. These editing styles are particularly relevant if you are editing academic texts or research reports. AP is the style guide used by many newspapers and may have different punctuation rules to other style guides. The APA is the American Psychological Association style guide and this is favored for journal articles and is also used in American Universities.
Editing Jobs
There are a number of different ways in which editing jobs are advertised, some of them may be ‘in house’ i.e. a publishing house, film company etc may wish to promote assistant editors to the job of editor. In some cases companies may train an existing member of staff rather than advertise for someone new.
A good way of finding top editing jobs in any number of fields is to subscribe to a site that does all the research for you and lists all the editing jobs in one place. With a site such as this, it is easy to search for jobs as a technical editor, or if you want jobs in a particular location, then you could, for example, put “editing jobs Los Angeles” in the search box.
Depending on your experience and areas of expertise you may decide to search online for freelance editing positions. Many authors and people who are making films or television programs may want the services of a freelance editor for a short period of time e.g. while a film is being made or until a book or journal article is completed.
Many top editing jobs are highly specialized; technical editing for example may require knowledge of a certain industry such as engineering. Technical editing may also refer to editing research reports. Music editing is another area that requires special skills such as the ability to read and write music and in some cases the ability to play at least one instrument. Film and television editing often require a bachelor’s or more likely a master's degree in media studies. Most people start out as assistant editors and may spend hours pouring over different takes and screen shots and putting a coherent film narrative together.
The Qualities of an Editor
Along with any academic and professional qualifications an editor should have certain qualities or characteristics. The most important quality in any type of editing job is minute and almost obsessive attention to detail and the ability to write in direct, understandable language wherever possible. If you edit academic texts, then you will need to be conversant with academic language referencing requirements, along with having a specialty in a particular subject.
As an editor, you should also be able to work well with other people. If you work as a freelance editor, then don’t expect that every client will bow to your expertise; the best editors learn to work with their clients. Most companies prefer their editors to have had at least some professional or industry experience; if you don’t have this, then try freelancing for a while to gain some experience.
Applying for a Job
One of the worst things that you can do when applying for an editing job is to send in a CV or resume that has typos or grammatical errors within the text. An employer will gain some idea of how attentive you are to detail, just by looking at your resume and covering letter. No matter what qualifications you may have, if you don’t present a pristine and error-free application, then you won’t get the job. Make getting your CV and letter of application absolutely right an integral part of any job search if you want to work in this field.
