Yeah Write — So you want to be an editor?

anodal asked:

Do you have any resources, advise, or tips on how to pursue a career in editing? I’ve done some research already but it’s still pretty confusing…

Aaaaahh, the young person who dreams of being an editor. I have so much advice for you!!

First I have to start out with all of the usual disclaimers:

1. Keep in mind that editorial isn’t the only department in publishing–there’s also acquisitions, marketing, sales, PR, production, design, and often now publishing houses are building up digital departments. Editing is the hardest department in publishing to get hired into, the hardest department to move up in internally (there may be 20 entry level editorial assistant positions but only 1 spot available for someone who wants to move up the next rung of that ladder), and usually pays the least of any department.
2. Editors also have a ton more responsibilities than just bettering the content of authors’ books. If you’re an acquisitions editor, it’s your responsibility to look out for manuscripts, sent to you by agents, that are sellable (not necessarily just books that are good and/or that you love–you’ll likely have to turn a lot of those away because they wouldn’t sell). Often, editors are also instrumental in seeing the book from manuscript to published book, so they also do a lot of overseeing of how the book moves through those other departments (how it’s marketed, how it’s designed, etc.).
3. At my first publishing internship it was made extremely clear to me that editorial is the “Cinderella department” that every young person interested in publishing wants to work in, but most people end up in other departments because they want more money and thought they’d be sitting in an office with a red pen pouring over the next bestseller, instead of doing a job that requires a lot of organization, business savvy, and assertion. So I always try to pass that information on to people who ask about being editors.

But don’t be discouraged! If you’re aware of all of the above and being an editor is still your dream, I highly encourage you to go for it. Here are some things you can do to prepare:

Find ways to edit others’ writing, now

The great thing about writing and editing is that they’re things you can start practicing immediately, without having to, I don’t know, sign up for a class or buy any equipment. Do your friends write stories? Offer to read and edit them. Are you currently in any writing classes? Take the editing portion very seriously (we have some good posts under our editing tag that may help you). If you’re familiar with grammar structure and give good feedback, you’ll have no problem finding people who want their writing edited, whether it’s as simple as emails or copy for social media posts, or entire novels/stories/articles.

A great way to start editing work is to become a Peer Workshopper on Yeah Write, which will sign you up to edit other Tumblr writers’ works. You can submit a workshopper profile here (just make sure to read the instructions). And there are tons of other peer editing and beta writer resources on Tumblr, if you look around.

Editing others’ work will not only give you experience, but it will make you a better editor–one who can give concise, constructive, meaningful feedback to her authors.

Edit the types of work that you’d want to edit for a living

Departments in publishing houses, especially the bigs ones, are usually parsed down pretty small into imprints that specialize in mass market, women’s lit, scifi, educational books, and so on and so forth. Are you dead set on being a fantasy editor? Then read a lot of fantasy. Read what’s selling in the mainstream, but also be aware of what people are reading on Tumblr and in the rest of the growing internet stratosphere.

That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t edit all kinds of work (as more than likely you’ll start out at an imprint that doesn’t publish your “dream genre”), but it’s important to be knowledgable of the market for what you’re editing, so it also helps to…

Know what’s currently “hot” in publishing

Remember when I said you’d largely be reading books and deciding what would sell, if you become an editor who’s involved with acquisitions? Be aware of what’s happening in the current market. Read blogs and websites and magazines that have publishing street cred (these are pretty easy to find via the Google). When you start to apply for jobs, you’ll look like a rockstar if you’re familiar with current bestselling titles.

Don’t rule out business or marketing as a major

I say this all of the time, but the only connection between being an English major and working in publishing is that you like to read. At least in my experience, nothing I learned as an English major taught me anything about publishing. Publishing is a business, and I left college about as prepared to work in the publishing business as I did to work in the cat toy business. In hindsight, I realize that business and/or marketing would probably have benefited me more (had I gone into publishing, I actually work at a tech company now, more on that here). 

Intern intern intern!

The best way to get into publishing these days is to have internships. You can start as young as you want–my first internship was at my local town magazine, while I was in high school. I basically called them up and asked if they wanted some free help. Our internships tag has TONS of resources, as does the site I mentioned earlier, publishingtrendsetter.com (where I interned!).

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Okay, if anyone has any advice to add to this, let me know and I’ll tack it onto this piece, as always!

This article will be indexed on our Writing Advice page.