ㅤ

[Deleted member 89995]

ㅤ

 

[Motsu]

for any (paid) editors out there, how did you start? any tips on becoming a (paid) editor?

Git gud.

 

[Daitengu]

My best guess: edit someone's chapters as a sample. Use those samples to show your skill and ask to join a translator group as an editor. Then use that work in your resume to advertise for hire work on Fiver to get contract work?

 

[Motsu]

help

Y'know, it ain't even a question of "how". An editor understands an author's best interest and wishes to assist them to polish their stories. And you probably have informally criticized or scrutinized someone's work before, and that's a part of it.

I decided to become an editor because I realized I was good at English and has a good grasp of the fundamental of writing.

 

[Ilikewaterkusa]

for any (paid) editors out there, how did you start? any tips on becoming a (paid) editor?

What kind of stuff do you plan on editing?

 

[WinterTimeCrime]

First, you have to ask yourself what're you providing as an editor.

I thought I didn't need one for my first works. Mainly because of my personal process of self-edits, proofreading, alpha-readers, and AI writing assistants were all I thought I needed. Then, I met one of my readers who understood what I was trying to say but made it increasingly better with the same flow. I hired them as an editor, and I feel the work I'm putting out for my paying audiences is much greater with a second pair of eyes with the same mind peering through the lenses.

My advice, as an author who's now a firm believer everyone needs a personal editor rather than someone random and only good due to reviews - Go work with someone's book in a genre or scope you're genuinely in love with and interested; Then put your passion on display so potential buyers can get a general idea as to who you are and what you're offering.

You can be the best editor in the biz, but if all of your editorial pieces are about romance, and I see you correcting kisses/smooches, sex scenes, etc., when I don't have the need, I won't be interested. Then, a double-no if I write in genre and I don't see anything special going on with your suggestions (pacing, characters, plot, etc.)

I was talking to several author buddies who were also looking for editors, and these are some of the stripes we had from a consumer's standpoint. To be honest, this website is probably your best starting point. Go to some books that interest you but are missing a particular aspect. Then re-write them, and send them to the author. If they like it, you have some business; If they dislike it, you have source material for other clients.

 

[RepresentingCaution]

Go to university with plans to become an environmental lawyer. Along the way, you'll have to take a UWP (University Writing Program) course. Your professor will tell you that you earned the only A in his course all year and offer to write letters of recommendation for you. After getting your BS, you decide you've had enough school for now and you'd rather get a job than go to law school. You'll spend a few months writing for money and then realize you can't write fast enough because you are too much of a perfectionist. The economy is in a recession, so you browse various job sites for several more months until you find a small press that looks interesting.

 

[Fritzer]

I would never hire anybody from Scribble Hub to edit my work.

 

[Motsu]

I would never hire anybody from Scribble Hub to edit my work.

Makes sense why your stories sucks.

 

[Fritzer]

Makes sense why your stories sucks.

I know bro, but people keep reading them

 

[BearlyAlive]

You either git gud, work for free to get your portfolio ready enough to impress or just leech off a friend/enemy/random dood that hit it big.
So either you work/sleep/blackmail your way up or you just luck it.

I'm a semi-professional editor and let me tell you, unless you really like your job or really hate the writer/translator you won't stay in that field for long. I lucked out since I can hit both boxes xD

 

[J_Chemist]

So it's kind of similar but I worked as a Proofreader for some manga scanlator circles a little while back. Typically when you start out the team will ask you for either examples of your own written work to see your skill level or give you something like a test to see how well you do. If they like your work, they pick you up. Then you just develop your portfolio.

Being an editor is similar. Offer your service, show some examples or request to sort of "prove your worth" and hope someone nibbles on the bait.