by Anneline du Preez and Adrienne Bartl
Standing on the brink of your editing career is exciting, but also daunting, so for most of us, any tips from experienced editors are welcome. Jenny Lass, a medical writer, editor, and best-selling author, joined Editors Toronto in September for an Editing 101 crash course. It was a valuable session, even for experienced editors.
Presenting her tips in a countdown-style, Jenny started with Tip 10: Know your worth. This means considering several factors when you calculate your rate, including the full amount of time working with your client – from briefing to research to second passes – the value your editing work brings to their project, and the industry you are working for. Jenny recommends using a minimum acceptable living wage as your baseline. The Editors Canada website gives recommended rates, and the Editorial Freelancers Association has both a chart of recommended rates and a rate calculator. Checking in with industry averages will ensure that your rates keep up with inflation, allowing for cost-of-living increases.
With Tip 9: Know who you are editing for, Jenny grouped an editor’s audience into three important categories. There are (1) the readers, who have particular expectations (such as entertainment for fiction, and information in the case of non-fiction). Particular reader requirements for plain and inclusive language should also be considered. There are (2) the subjects of the writing, who should be represented properly and respectfully, whether they are specific individuals or general groups of people. And then there are (3) the clients – the people who pay your bills.
Speaking of clients, Jenny gave her crucial Tip 8: Know how to compromise. She focused on the two areas she considers the most important: deadlines and style. How can editors be flexible in those areas? For deadline conflicts or tight deadlines, it’s wise to set standards upfront and communicate clearly about deadline expectations. This may mean educating clients on your editing process and reasonable deadlines. Although you can negotiate timelines, Jenny advised you may occasionally have to work overtime, such as when you are committed to jobs that have short turnaround times or when you have multiple projects with conflicting deadlines.
When a client’s timeline or requirements are truly unreasonable, she suggested you can agree to do a “disaster edit,” or partial edit. This means you scale back on the quote in some way, such as by only editing certain sections, decreasing the number of editing rounds, or only identifying egregious errors. Keep in mind, however, that this has the potential to risk your reputation, since people may not know or remember the circumstances of the editing job.
With respect to style choices, Jenny suggested you make sure to have an agreed-upon style guide or language standards in place at the outset, before a disagreement arises. Review examples of other similar documents with your client before agreeing on a style. If they have certain style demands, it may be possible to combine ideas to find a workable, and often better, style solution. If a style choice causes issues but cannot be changed for whatever reason, you can flag it for improvement in a future version or different document. But if the client is not open to suggestions and the style serves the purpose of the document and works for your audience, Jenny’s advice is to “let it go!”
Continuing with the theme of client-editor relationships, Jenny gave her Tip 7: Know how to collaborate. This tip applies equally to freelancers and in-house editors and was helpfully summarized with the four C’s of collaboration: Compromise (discussed above), Clarity, Communication, and Collegiality. Jenny explained that being clear about the roles and accountability of everyone involved in the project is important for a strong start. This is especially true regarding the scope of the work you need to do. For example, what type of editing and additional tasks, such as proofreading, are expected from you. Communicating with clients about your needs, preferred working style, standards, timelines, and agreements on style should also be done at the start of the project. Most importantly, collegiality means you and your client trust each other’s abilities and that you both create a safe space for feedback. It’s important to maintain a positive and respectful collaborative relationship.
In her Tip 6: Know how to query, Jenny provided three easy-to-remember acronyms to guide editors on when and how to query.
Because editors can’t query every little thing, the NEAR acronym reminds of reasons for querying:
- Note: Noting an issue (such as contradictions) to ask the client about.
- Explain: Explaining some of the changes you made if you think they may cause confusion.
- Ask: Asking questions to get clarity on the content.
- Request: Requesting the client to make a universal change.
When writing queries for any reason, Jenny suggested VAIN language should be avoided – a great reminder when you are overwhelmed, rushed, or tired. VAIN queries would include those that are Vague, Angry, Insulting, and Non-professional.
To avoid VAIN queries, take a break before you start a read-through, and review your queries. With fresh eyes, write queries that will make sure your client SOARS:
- Specific: Be specific about why something is an issue, or where you need clarifications.
- Optional: Treat most queries as suggestions, and confirm whether you might have misunderstood something.
- Actionable: If you need the client to do something for you to complete the edit, be clear about their next steps and what needs to be done.
- Respectful: Be respectful and supportive.
- Solution-oriented: Try to solve the problem for them – if it’s possible, write out a few options for changes.
No matter the query, it’s extremely important that if there is a bigger overall issue with the document you’re reviewing, you flag it early on, long before the deadline.
With her Tip 5: Know your brief, Jenny pointed out the importance of outlining all the parameters and details of a job before you commit to it. Without a clear brief, you risk not meeting client expectations, wasting time and money, and ruining relationships and your reputation. To reduce these risks, she suggested having a comprehensive conversation about the project beforehand, or supplying a thorough briefing document for the client to fill out. It’s always a good idea to also ask for a sample of the document you’re being asked to edit before you commit to a deadline or fee.
When you’re not actively editing or working with clients, Jenny recommended her Tip 4: Know how to stay current. It’s not enough to stay updated with editing best practices; business best practices and technology skills are just as important. Some ideas on how to stay current include:
- attending and volunteering at events such as conferences, networking events, and editors’ associations meetings,
- reading blogs, journals, and books, and watching videos related to editing, business, and technology,
- stretching yourself by taking on new topics or applying new skills,
- consulting other organizations and experts, and
- taking courses to expand your tech skills.
Jenny encouraged editors to set boundaries with her Tip 3: Know when to say “no.” Though it can be fatal to your career if you keep saying no (possibly showing an unwillingness to learn or an inability to manage your time), sometimes accepting work can do more damage to your career than declining it. She suggested it’s wise to turn down work if the client makes an unreasonable ask, or you risk your reputation, jeopardising other projects, or your health or finances. If you have to say no, try to be helpful and suggest how the client can find another editor, such as through the Online Directory of Editors, or through your own referral to a colleague with the right skill set.
Jenny summed up the importance of soft skills for editing success with her Tip 2: Know how to maintain relationships. While editors are often introverted, you can train yourself to be more comfortable with interacting with clients, networking, running meetings, and giving presentations. Stay connected with people – make an effort to meet or talk regularly and ask a little bit about them (safe questions!). Network with other editors, writers, and designers too, and not only clients. When deadlines or other aspects of projects change, be flexible and stay professional. Respond to people in a reasonable time and, if responding will take some time, let them know you will respond when you can. Respecting clients’ boundaries, and conversely, setting your own (healthy) boundaries for the people managing you will keep professional relationships in good shape.
Finally, after all her guidelines for professional success as an editor, Jenny gave her Tip 1: Know when to break style guide rules.
Sometimes, to help achieve the goals of the project and help your client achieve their goals, it’s necessary to break established style guide rules. Consider breaking a rule when it is outdated, could cause confusion or inconsistency, is offensive or not inclusive, is disliked by the client, risks libel or a privacy breach, or affects functionality. As always, communicate with your client when you are suggesting changes and you will develop a great working relationship. By following Jenny’s Top 10 editing tips, you will be setting yourself up for success.
This article was copy edited by Jasper Segec (she/her), a student editor who is currently enrolled in the editing certificate program at Simon Fraser University. Jasper is a volunteer for Editors Canada’s Mentorship Program Committee.
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