Some of you on this site know that I've started up a "publishing hut" for children's books. I have recently been reading loads of already-published books (including classics and best-sellers [e.g. The Time Traveller's Wife]) and surprising myself with noting how many "bloopers" make it through to the bookshelf stage. (In the case mentioned, some of the dates just don't match up.)
Being a pedant (both with grammar and inconsistencies) doesn't make me very popular with my friends, but it might be useful in an editor. But how to break into the market?
Anybody interested in giving me a try? It would have to be a book that awakes my interest (see http://la-granota.com/crazy.htm for some guidelines) but wouldn't have to be a book for children.
In the case of a short book for children, I'd even be prepared to do the work for free, in order to get some work experience and build up a CV.
I don't want to get in trouble with the editors' union by REALLY undercharging for longer works, but I'm sure that we could work something out that would give you a good deal and me some practice.
This also goes for translations, especially from German, Catalan, or Spanish. I often catch details where the (professional) translator didn't capture the real meaning of the original.
Any takers?
Can anybody warn me of the dangers from established editors / their union? Lorraine?
Not sure how successful you will be if you will only read books that 'awake your interest'. Anyone involved in publishing - editors, copy-editors and proofreaders - have to be able to read what their clients' have written. You won't get far if you are too picky.
Have you thought about offering to beta-read books? That would gain you experience.
Entrusting a book to an editor is such a big deal. Authors need confidence in the red pen being handled carefully and with skill. Most will have publishing experience and be aware of trends. Editors are savvy creatures.
If you're able to spot errors in already published books - successful books - perhaps copy-editing might be for you? That's more fact-driven and follows on from structural editing.
I doubt you'll be smote by the jawbone of an ass, Jimmy. There isn't a union per se - editors can be self-employed or they can work for publishers. There is the Society for Editors and Proofreaders, which is a UK professional body* one can join, and they have rates which they suggest are fair, and which they recommend you don't undercut; but it's up to you what you charge and whether it's per hour/page/word.
*Other countries have their own professional bodies.
There is a lot of unedited work out there, and much of it is poor as a result. If people want self-published authors to be properly edited, however, so that their books are the best they can be, one should consider that they probably can't afford professional rates, and may in fact be horrified by what such services cost, possibly because they have no idea of the work involved. Just don't shoot yourself in the foot by undercosting: this is your time and effort that you're selling.
It takes a long time to edit a book: 12-15 hours is normal, but it could be much more or much less, depending on the skill of the writer and of course the length of the book. I do one annotated edit, then go back over the whole book again, and then possibly a third time, just to be sure, if I've made a lot of changes. It's hard, focused work that will ruin your eyesight, give you tennis elbow, and remind you that you will always miss something (especially when you are working with visible annotations that might conceal a comma where you want a full stop).
Put it this way: how long does it take you to read a novel? Now add in the time it would take to consider every sentence, to check spellings, to look up a grammar point in a reference book, to correct punctuation, to spot flaws in the plot, to note that a man arrives on a horse and leaves in a carriage he hasn't got...
Hope this helps.
Lorraine