November 25, 2009
I want to talk TO editors about BECOMING an editor – are there any copyediting or publishing forums?
I’m getting rather frustrated…
I’ve been thinking about becoming a copy editor for a year or so. I’m 18 and planning to major in English, and then I want to copyedit, preferably for a publisher, so I have a steady income while working on my own books.
I have taken an online community class in copyediting, but there weren’t many resources, or places to talk with other editors.
I’ve been searching the whole world wide web for a community where I can talk to other editors or publishers who might be able to give me some answers on how to get started, the benefits of working for a publisher rather than freelance, locations of reputable publishers that have copyeditors in-house… etc. The only one I found was ACES, which wouldn’t let me join even the forum without a membership, which costs money.
Does anyone know of any other places I can ask questions? There just doesn’t seem to be a lot of copy editors out there. My chances of finding enough here on Yahoo Answers to give me the answers I need, and confirm what others have said, are slim.
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This may not be what you want, but I recently read a book called “How’d you score that gig?”
http://www.amazon.com/Howd-You-Score-That-Jobs/dp/0345496299/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1245383451&sr=8-1
and it actually details how to become an editor. It also gives several websites to look at:
Association of American Publishers (www.publishers.org)
Book Jobs (www.bookjobs.com)
Book Wire (www.bookwire.com)
Copy Editor Newsletter (www.copyeditor.com)
iHire Publishing (www.ihirepublishing.com)
Publisher’s Lunch Newsletter (www.caderbooks.com)
Publisher’s Marketplace (www.publishersmarketplace.com)
Publisher’s Weekly Magazine (www.publishersweekly.com)
I haven’t been to any of them yet, but they may help. I want to work in Marketing/Public Relations in a publishing house (I’m a marketing/creative writing major) or as a Literary Agent and I understand how difficult it is to find information on jobs.
editred.com has actual editors, published writers, and amateur writers.