Any copy-editors or proofreaders out there?

[PlanetEarthIsBlue]

Not sure if this is the right place to post, but here goes. I'm looking for a change of direction job-wise, and am considering whether to try copy-editing/proofreading. I understand that there are correspondence courses out there for training, but don't know if these would be useful. I could also do with knowing whether this is really a job-field worth exploring? Any observations/advice would be appreciated.

Punk - sorry you were't the OP. I think you don't like your mistakes being pointed out!

Planet - just had a really quick scan through the other replies and I'd reinforce the following:

1. Do you potentially have the skills to extend beyond proofreading to writing (or similar)?
2. A USP eg within a particular sector? It can make all the difference.

Good luck.

I am a journalist who does some paid by the day editing. I charge a reasonable day rate, but it is gruelling and maddeningly nit-picky.

Thank you all for your observations and very honest advice. I was never under the illusion that this would be an easy option! I'm now clearer on what to do in terms of further research. Believe me, if I do decide to take the plunge it won't be a hasty decision.

But you didn't point out my mistakes, Perma - you invited someone else to do so, which was not a particularly pleasant thing to do and rather patronising. The only error in my previous post was that I should only have bracketed 'but thorough' and not 'proofread'.

However, I can spell 'weren't'.

Mother, you are so right. I am glad I don't do it all the time! It can make your head explode!

Punk, you're right (and thanks for pointing out my own typo!) it was not, with hindsight, the most pleasant thing to do so my apologies. It wasn't patronising though.

I would point out, then, that as the SfEP is singular it should be "its courses" not "their courses".

Good luck OP - I'm leaving the thread now, rarely come on MN :)

So OP - unless you have been completely put off by our pedantic scrapping (all friendly, honest!) - this is the world of nitpickery. I once spent time that I will never get back, discussing one comma in a sentence with my page designer. Oh yeah, it's so rock 'n roll!

Actually, the only people being pedantic and arguing about grammar have been Perma and Punk - everyone else has been helpful.

And, OP, in case you've been put off, I never waste time worrying about the placement of a comma - I don't get paid enough per job to worry about things like that. There is more to proofreading!

I think I have been helpful as well, Cocktail. I have, for example, given the OP the details for the SfEP. I rate them quite highly. Perma simply truly got my back up on a day when I was foggy from chemo, rather ill and not in the mood. My bad, as they (apparently) say.

I agree in part about the ridiculous pedantic nature of commas for some people and yes, some proofreading can be relatively simple. But I edit a magazine and it has to be perfect. However, I have also enjoyed helping foreign students with their dissertations - it feels rewarding to help them and just adjust some of the language to make it more readable. As a proofreader, you will also learn a great deal about subjects you never knew and meet some interesting people.

I think proofreading, particularly combined with creative writing, journalism and maybe even copywriting, can be a rewarding and profitable profession.

I recommend too that you have a look on Elance, Planet - to get an idea what people are looking for, but also how much each job should be costed. There is also business networking, if you get yourself established. Lovely way to meet people but also to find work.

Perma's got more errors than Punk for anyone else playing along. Em/en dashes and ellipses for a beginning.

OP good luck. I basically gave up on it.

I'm a copywriter (run my own agency) that also proofreads and for me, being successful in this industry is about bringing extra skills to the table. The proofreader I outsource to is also a translator, I am great at the creative consultancy which leads to interesting briefs, a writer I outsource to is also a journalist and so on.

I don't know anybody making a living from just one thing. I'm sure it is possible but for me, a portfolio career is the way to go.

Oh and my posts on Mumsnet are shit but my client work is shit hot

Do you know anything about geophysics, sampling theory or linguistics? All fields where it's hard to find a copyeditor.

One thing I'd say is that you sometimes have to swallow your instinctive, outraged feeling that something is 'right' or 'wrong'. If the in-house style manual says you hyphenate 'under-way', treat 'prior' as a verb, use Oxford commas, or bung in very, very long dashes, then you do it.

If you work in an academic field, be prepared to check an awful lot of references and lose the will to live.

That's interesting Bird - I have a Masters in linguistics and have never been able to find any proofreading or editing work related to it! Where would I find this gold dust?!

Academic presses, Rally! (But possibly I'm extrapolating wildly from the one book they despairingly offered me because 'nobody else would agree to do it'. There may not be that many being written each year!)

Punk - you have, you're quite right. Sorry. Perma started it!

And I agree - google some linguistics books and see who publishes them! Then contact those publishers :) (but also be warned that academic presses can be poor payers...)

I hate those words 'poor payers'! Oh those references too...I shudder at the thought of them. It's like picking daisies with a certain amount of petals out of a lawn.

But be careful. I have a friend who referred to herself on Twitter as a 'poofreader'. Cue a lot of jokes in her direction.

lol at poofreader!!! You might not get quite the right kind of clients ;-)

But I quite like a nice pile of references to sort through and check - nice mindless stuff.