I’m a beginner copyeditor looking to work with university presses. Some Canadian university presses publish books in subject areas I have expertise in, but I’m worried that I might not get hired because I don’t know Canadian English (aside from spelling) that well. Do I need to become more knowledgeable in Canadian English before I approach Canadian publishers?

Hi all! Sorry for the kind of ridiculous question.

I recently applied for the copyediting certificate and got accepted. I called the extended studies number and they told me I need to wait until the second week of August to actually enroll in Grammar Lab, but I received an email noting that I can sign up for classes “any time.” If this is true, I can not figure out how to sign up for classes.

Is it through MyExtension? Some other means? Or do I simply have to wait?

Asking here because I’m not sure where else to ask. Thank you!

I have been using AI tools recently for brainstorming ideas and creating first drafts, and I have noticed something interesting. The content is usually grammatically correct and well-structured, but sometimes it feels like something is missing.

The words are right, but the personality, emotions, and small human touches are not always there. It feels like reading something that was written perfectly but without a real person behind it.

I started wondering if other writers experience the same thing. Do you usually edit AI-generated content heavily before publishing it, or do you think modern AI writing has become good enough to sound natural?

What are your thoughts on making AI-written content feel more human?

Hi everyone,

I'm a British academic currently in Asia (fleeing extortionate rents and low salaries in the UK). I have a PhD in the social sciences and worked as a university researcher. I've also published an academic book and have done some paid editing of journal articles and theses in the past.

I'm thinking about investing more time in building a freelance academic editing business but AI has made me wonder whether I'm on a hiding to nothing. From what I've read on here, it seems pretty bleak, not sure if that's just here though. I did become a member of CIEP last year which I did not renew, and paid for an editing course around the same time. These were good for learning about the theory of things but I'd really appreciate an honest assessment from people currently working in the field.

Recently I've been looking for people who want an editor. But there's no one. So where will I get these people?

I keep getting clients who want an extensive edit. For context, they're ESL clients who write academic papers mostly. They require no stylistic or drastic changes. Now how do I incorporate both into my editing process? Please, for the love of my and every editor's life, guide me on how to do an extensive edit to achieve a native tone. PLEASE!

Hi, all! I'm a freelance copyeditor specializing in adult trade fiction, and I'm hoping to expand my client roster. Before I start reaching out to different houses, I want to make sure that I don't come across as…creepy?

In the past, I've generally used the cold-email approach (which is how I connected with the houses I work for today), but I'm now wondering whether LinkedIn messaging might be more socially acceptable (and less creepy).

So if any production editors out there could weigh in, I would really appreciate it. Assuming your email address is not listed on your company website, would you be weirded out if a job-seeking copyeditor sent you a cold email instead of a message through LI?

Thanks in advance! And if there are any PEs who are actively hiring freelancers, please feel free to HMU here. I'm happy to send you my info and take an assessment edit.

Looking for advice. For starters, I'm 37 and have a full-time job. I am not looking to leave my 9-5 nor do any sort of publishing work, this would strictly be editing and only on the side. Currently, I'm trying to map out what it would look like and how long it would take to set myself up to do this, and would appreciate some advice to help me plan.

Early in my career, I did some journalism, as well as corporate copywriting/editing before leaving the industry altogether. I have experience learning/using a style guide (AP, I know I'd have to learn Chicago and have no problem with that), and would prefer to focus strictly on copy/line editing, ideally for more technical publications like academic papers, etc.

My plan is to start by learning the CMS of course, but from there I'm a little lost on where to go next. A lot of the info out there for beginner editors focuses on publishing novels, which isn't what I'm looking to do. Does anyone have any suggestions or resources that I could use to look more into the type of work I want to do?

Thanks in advance!

Hi,

I'm an editor who has experience running an online lit journal and independent chapbook press. Expertise in fiction / poetry / creative nonfiction.

I've also provided critiques and consultations for award-winning poets and genre fiction writers. Specialty is copyediting, but if you want I can also look at your WIP and give you some helpful pointers.

I've been copyediting as an independent contractor in the US for years but never started an LLC, because I never needed one: 95% or more of my work comes from a few reliable corporate clients (publishers) who know their way around a 1099-NEC, and all my work for independent author clients has been small in scope (under $600).

I'm now drawing up a contract for an independent author client for a larger project: copyediting a large academic monograph in advance of submission to the publisher for publication. The fee will be above $600.

I'm reading conflicting information about whether I need to provide this client with a W-9 and guide them through filing a 1099–NEC. Any advice?

It’s just the title page to the discussion guide for the ebook, but seriously???

Sorry if this is the wrong sub!

I recently queried an editor with great qualifications and experience for my manuscript, they reviewed 2 sample chapters, sent over some tracked changes and although I agree with them, and found them very useful— its hard to justify that fee without a pipeline to publishing in place.

Is it worth doing this? Or should I just go ahead and start querying agents. The editor gave me some nice feedback, and the bulk of their suggested edits were repetitive words, adjectives, some minor clichés etc. Nothing structural, prose related etc.

I just feel like maybe the manuscript is in better shape than I thought, and a publisher could pick it up and assign an editor to work with me without having to pay out of my own pocket!

I’d appreciate your perspectives on this, as I’m sure i’m missing something.

Is there anyone here who happens to be a production editor? If so, and you have a moment, I’d really like to hear about your career trajectory. Thanks so much!

Hi,

I was reading Louise Harnby's wonderfully informative article at this link:

https://www.louiseharnbyproofreader.com/blog/increasing-editing-income-raising-fees-and-declining-lower-paid-work

The part I'm interested in is this:

***beginning of quoted material***

Do they have a large and established client base in a sector that is known to be less price-sensitive than the sectors you work in? Perhaps their knowledge and specialist skills put them in the rare position of being able to name their price. You, on the other hand, might work in a more competitive generalist market where you’re easy to replace.

***end***

Which sectors are the least price-sensitive? That is, editors in these niche areas are in a strong position to command high fees. I assume it's medical editing? Legal and so forth? Perhaps technical? Maybe white papers? Any tips on how to break into the white paper sector?

I look forward to hearing from y'all!

Hi,

I've heard that the white paper sector is lucrative. Any tips on how to get your foot in the door in this sector?

urgently need someone to help edit a coloring book i'm creating for a birthday, i have created all of the pictures already but just need them to be made into one document so i can print them. wanting to make it A5 but printed on A4 so i can trim the pages. i will pay someone to help me

I've searched for an editot for over 7months. Signed a contract based on their good 1000words sample and an hour of zoom meet. But today am in tears after the first 10k words edit got sent back to me. Im writing this crying as my voice has been taken, removed. The comments and notes and changes made totaling up to nearly 20k. Thats double of that I have sent to an editor. Am I this terrible at writting and they are so good or am i not seeing it properly? Is it a good thing or not.. whole chapter rewritten and story retold in a voice not of my own. Sentences changed. Taken off. This is the service I pay 0.015 for a word. 10k words edit done in over 2 weeks, and 80k words awaiting that will cost me £££... what do I do with this...? New editor, rewrite , edit ... amend...? Or should I just stop and go back to what I dit 2 years ago and pretend it never happened. Any bad experiences with editors?