Difference between "proofreading" and "editing"? and other Qs

[lljkk]

Am trying to find a WAHM job.

I have a background writing technical scientific papers and publications (university researcher, specialist areas). I'm thinking to send out my CV to academic publishers (I've published with many) trying to get a job as a freelance proofreader. But I don't have a background as a copy editor.

1. What is the difference between proof-reading and "editing"?

1. Do you think my CV would get binned if I don't have a qualification / certificate in proof-reading (e.g., SfEP)?

1. When "they" send out a document to be proof-read, is it always electronic? Or do they send paper copies? I have a vision of my wages being reduced to pennies by the cost of printer cartridges.

[elsieanjoanne]

proof reading is checking for mistakes
editing is changining paragraphs etc.
can you not read it on comp?

[Smaug]

Proofreading is checking for mistakes, sometimes against the original edited copy. Editing is what happens when an author submits their manuscript to a publisher and it is prepared for press which includes: spelling and grammatical errors, rewriting badly written stuff, marking up for the typesetter, some fact-checking, depending on the subject matter.

It's a very competitive field to get into, because it is so convenient. I'd be very surprised, to be honest, if you got work without any prior experience, rather than a qualification. Experience is much more important in this area.

Material can arrive either way (depends on subject/publisher). if they send it electronically it's because they want you to do it electronically. if you have to print stuff out then you would include cost of cartidgese in your expenses by way of a flat rate, I would think. But if they want you to work on hard copy, that's what they should send you.

HTH. And good luck.

[Smaug]

Excuse typos . I'm a better proofreader than typist, honest!

[edam]

As Elsie said, proof reading is checking for errors, editing is shaping copy - changing, re-writing, cutting copy to fit the page etc. etc. etc.

Dunno re. quals.

'They' - guess it depends but in my line of work it's electronic so you have to cover the cost of paper and ink in your rate.

[rabbleraiser]

Proof reading is a hugely competitive field. My advice is to get a qualification before going any further.

A course will set you back about £450/£500 - and you will need to get a distinction to have any chance of going forward from there.

They often send out paper copies because there are specific 'squiggles' that a proof reader uses that tells the type-setter what needs to be amended. These marks are usually placed in the left margin of the manuscript.

Good luck!

[edam]

Ah, Smaug clearly knows more about book publishing than I do (I'm a journalist so edit copy for magazines and reports).

I think book publishers pay quite badly, tbh, they take advantage of the fact there are lots of freelance women who want work that fits around children.

[Mercy]

My mum's friend was a proof-reader. SHe started as a publisher's reader (at Penguin) and went on to become a freelance proof-reader.

It can be quite dull but needs lots of attention to detail. I remember her showing us an index of Welsh place names she had to proof read for a text book. It wasn't just about spelling, she also had to check that the page nos. and other references were correct against the original copy.

Another friend was a proof-reader for the results in a sports newspaper!

[bearsmom]

Before I went self-employed I ran the editorial department for an academic publisher and one of my responsibilities was recruiting freelance proofreaders, copy-editors and indexers. We got at least 10 applications a week and I'm afraid most of them didn't get onto our list of recommended freelancers, even those with qualifications and experience, simply because we already had so many people on our lists. BUT you've got a technical/scientific background so you have a definite advantage over people who only have experience in "softer" areas like the humanities simply because there are far more people who can handle humanities work than there are who can confidently deal with scientific and technical material. If you want to have a chance of getting taken on by academic publishers I'd say you definitely need a recognised qualification in proofreading. The SFEP are good, as well as The Publishing Training Centre at Book House. I can't vouch for some of the companies who advertise (those adverts that say "Errer" etc) but as an in-house person I never trusted their "qualifications", so it's best to stick with the well-known ones. There's a fund called the Paul Hamlyn Foundation which gives grants to people wanting to train in publishing-related fields, and that would definitely be worth a try if you need help paying for training.

Obviously different companies work in different ways but most of the copy-editing I do (for two main academic clients) is on screen, and documents are exchanged electronically, so there's no printing involved. Proofreading, for the companies I work for anyway, is still done on hard copy (sent out by the typesetter, so again no printing involved on the freelancer's part), though we do send authors pdf files to check. Oh, and ways of working in journals and books usually differ, with journals, especially scientific journals, working, I believe, almost exclusively electronically, with hardly any paper-based work.

Hope this all helps and sorry it's so long. I'm a publishing bore!!

[Mercy]

Sorry, lljkk that wasn't very encouraging was it

I think it's worth a try given your academic qualifications. Good Luck!

[roisin]

lljkk - it may be worth contacting specific academic publishers in your area and asking if they're short of freelance staff.

I used to work in publishing and had a few contacts, and found a publisher who paid the fee for the Book House editing course for me as an advance against future earnings: i.e. effectively I did the first job 'for nothing' - which makes sense in a way because it takes you a few jobs to get into the swing of things.

The electronic age means that many documents need less proofreading than previously, and many publishing houses (especially academic ones) will only pay for one freelance/external check, and it is all done electronically.

Having said all that, when I did the sums I found that proofreading just wasn't worth it. I found I had a strong need to get out of the house (esp as dh works from home); but also when you're self-employed you get no holiday pay, no sick pay, no pension, no perks....

[slowreader]

Have worked in publishing for 15 years. You need to get a Writers and Artists Yearbook and look up the proof reading section at the back. Imn my experience the actual proof reading is done on paper (and the publishers send out the paper copies) and is minutely detailed and includes a great many number post-its! Often done twice on a manuscript- before and after it has been back to the author. The final proofs before going to print will be electronic though.
Editing is a whole different thing. If you are trying for a job do not even HINT that you ever wondered otherwise...

Good luck. My sister still does it for pocket money now and then. It is quite good fun in a complicated-knitting kind of way. Proof readers get the blame for everything though... You will need a thick skin.

[lljkk]

Thanks for feedback. Would hurt my eyes to edit many hours on computer screen, and always feels physically impractical. Editing and proofing using paper copies is much nicer and easier to do a good job.

Would love to get out of the house, Roisin, but I need something that allows for many children who get sick unexpectedly.

I guess I'm surprised that anyone can do freelance editing, because surely you have to have a very strong relationship with the publisher, to know how they like things edited, to get it right? I would probably be quite good at it, if I knew how far I was allowed to hack other people's words around.

I am used to proof-reading (squiggles in the margin) my own pieces before publication. Also compiled a book index once.

Not sure if the costings work out... if you have to pay £500 to get a qualification, and the average pay is less than £10/hour (some sources say more like £4.50/hr), that's 50-100 hrs+ hours of work before recouping just the basic cost of getting the qualification. Not much left for childcare, electricity, printer cartridges...

[lljkk]

Almost forgot, Typesetting!! Now that is something I know can be done from home, too, and is related to this discussion -- has anyone on MN done typesetting from home?

I once hand-delivered proofs for a journal based 200 miles away, to a lady who lived 10 miles from me, obviously a WAHM.

[Lilymaid]

What about indexing (Society of Indexers runs courses) or preparing abstracts. Again I have done this and it is generally rather poorly paid. You need to contact publishers of learned journals/online abstracting services and use any contacts you have had in the past from your research.