Inspired by our recurring blog “What’s on Your Editing Bookshelf,” we now want to peek past editors’ bookshelves and into their workspaces. “What’s in Your Editing Workspace” will explore everything from our day-to-day stationery to furniture, from hardware to sources of inspiration, and everything in-between. If you have something you’d like to share, let us know. We want to see what’s in your editing workspace.
Amanda Goldrick-Jones is a freelance editor whose workspace is in Victoria, British Columbia.
I’m not that special someone who can dive into a pile of books, papers, and coffee cups and magically find the one item I’m looking for. But I’m not a minimalist either. However much I depend on my 2021 Mac M1 and APA 7th edition style manual, other items are indispensable in my workspace for productivity, comfort, and partnership (see Echo speaker and spider plant).
As seen in the photo (above) from roughly left to right:
- Pen-and-pencil cup. My favourite pens are Pilots (0.5 mm fine point) in multiple colours.
- Spider plant: a silent partner, currently trying to devour the pen-and-pencil cup.
- The Scream-themed sticky notes. Tiny ticky boxes offer choices like “Oh, no,” “Quaking with angst,” “To do,” “To dread,” and “Trembling with fright.”
- A Moleskine weekly notebook (one for each year starting 2020) to record new client inquiries, begin-and-end dates for editing projects, progress, payments, and editing-related volunteer work. I track hours electronically and keep other e-records, but yearly notebooks are a surprisingly quick and easy way to track the ebbs and flows of one’s editing life.
- A Merriam-Webster tear-off calendar with a daily word, sometimes delightfully obscure (have you heard of duende?).
- Ember e-mug: keeps coffee hot for well over an hour. Essential!
- Echo speaker: a background partner. Classical music helps me focus.
- A compact desktop hub for USBs and plugs. No more scrabbling around on the floor.
- Flower-decorated paper holder. My M-W Official Scrabble Players Dictionary (indispensable for Wordle) lives there because there’s no more room on the bookshelf.
On my bulletin board (not in the photo) a quote reads, “Freelance is like having every day off but having to work on all your days off.” Words to live by.
Alicia Chantal (she/her), the owner of Fresh Look Editing, is a copy editor and proofreader whose workspace is in Edmonton, Alberta.
My favourite planners by far are from Clever Fox. They come in an array of colours and sizes and are undated so I can start them at any time during the year. (My preferred start date for a “new year” is September 1.) I love their quality and have embraced the ones that have space for me to plan by the hour. You’d think I was a spokesperson for them with how much I talk them up to my colleagues!
Speaking of things that make me happy, I love colourful pens and highlighters. My go-to implements are from Pilot’s Frixion series. They’re erasable, which makes them perfect for time blocking and consulting my schedule at a glance!
And what’s a workspace without your favourite mug? When the handle of mine broke, it became the home for my writing tools. Win-win!
Raya P. Morrison is a freelance editor whose workspace is in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
I recently learned how important it is to have a proper ergonomic setup in your home office . . . and so I got an ergo-cat! Joking.
For years, I thought that having a standing/sitting setup was enough to keep my back happy. What I didn’t realize is how often I would choose a couch instead of my very sturdy office chair (or standing, for that matter). Especially after I got Cersei (my cat) last year. The back pain wasn’t sudden, but it slowly built up and spread to my thighs until I couldn’t ignore it. I couldn’t walk it off, and I needed help. Eek. Don’t do that to yourself!
After multiple trips to a massage therapist in the course of two weeks, I had had enough.
I got an ergonomic chair (Razzor Ergonomic Office Chair), a keyboard separate from my laptop (Logitech Wave Keys), and put some books under my monitor to prop it up to my eye level. I measured all the angles and distances. I might still need to get a footrest, but for now I’m using a floor pillow. It’s working. My lower back is slowly healing, all the other pains are gone, and I’m way more mindful about how I sit and if I need to take a break.
Don’t skimp on a home office setup that works for you. It’s definitely worth the investment!
Vilma Indra Vītols is a freelance editor and opera singer whose workspace is in Toronto, Ontario.
My editing workspace is a moveable beast. I used to do everything only on my laptop and would move around my apartment depending on the time of day: mornings in the bedroom, where I have a small east-facing table; afternoons in the kitchen or living room, where the windows face south and west. The common element is a window—I must be able to look out at the trees in my neighbourhood.
Lately I’ve been using a second monitor, and it is a game changer. I’m more likely to stay at my bedroom workstation, though I do still occasionally move to the living room to catch the late afternoon sun. If ever I get a third monitor, I will have to set up a more permanent workspace in another part of the house, but I’m not there yet.
I always have a pile of scrap paper at hand on which to scribble notes while I edit and to keep track of time. I’ve heard of editors using all kinds of digital time trackers, but I find writing down the time I start and finish editing works just fine for me. I also use a music stand as extra desk space; it’s where I keep my reference binder for the project I’m currently working on. Other editing books are just a few steps away on my bookshelf.
My chair is a hand-me-down from someone (maybe it came with the house?)—it’s not fancy, but it’s quite comfortable and I love the green colour. I considered buying an ergonomic office chair, but I think I’ll stick to my bright green, cheery chair.
This article was copy edited by Erin Della Mattia.
BoldFace 