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Freelancer of the Month June 2013 – Paul Sensecall

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Hi, Paul! Can you tell us a bit about the nature of your business?

I copy-edit and proofread primarily STM (science, technical, medical) books, journals, posters, and reports for publishers and medical agencies in the UK and overseas. When I started out in publishing in the early 1990s, my work was all done on paper. When I went freelance in the mid-1990s, it was about 40% hard copy:60% on-screen. Now, in the 21st century, it’s about 1% hard copy:99% on-screen. My specific areas of expertise are food science, nutrition, and environmental issues, but I’m confident working in most subject areas of STM publication matter. I’ve also worked on quite a broad range of other subject matter from children’s novels to UN reports.

I pride myself on providing the human touch in my work while also utilizing the best modern tools available to maximize accuracy, efficiency, and, ultimately, high-quality output. For these reasons, several years ago, I invented and co-developed ReferenceChecker (www.goodcitations.com) to automate one of the most arduous and time-consuming tasks in on-screen copy-editing: that of checking references and citations in Word documents. I co-developed ReferenceChecker with a colleague, a professional linguist and computer programmer, over several months, to produce a highly efficient, time-saving, and affordable piece of software that anyone could use with minimal previous knowledge of using add-ins in Word. I have calculated that for the average full-time on-screen editor, ReferenceChecker will save up to 174 hours per year: a saving of almost 5 working weeks!

Tell us about your journey to becoming a freelancer.

After graduating from Oxford-Brookes University in 1992, having cancelled the idea of being a dietitian, and having been keen to start earning, I found work as a full-time in-house science journal production editor for Pergamon Press in Oxford. My work there included many hands-on steps in the production process, from receipt and copy-editing of manuscripts for publication, to supplier liaison, issue compilation, artwork checks, and checks/approvals of the printed copy. Pergamon later became an imprint of Reed-Elsevier, and in 1996 I took the decision to become an independent freelance editor. Helpfully, my old employer was happy to send me work for a good couple of years, helping me to establish my services with other publishers. The business has gone from strength to strength as I’ve built up a steady list of clients and work projects. Occasionally, I’ve worked in-house for a publisher but realized how much more productive I can be from the home office.

What do you enjoy most about running your own business?

In no particular order: being in control of my work and general business operations; choosing the volume and type of work; always knowing I can take time out of the working day/year without needing to seek approval; having a flexible work pattern (albeit usually quite long hours); not having to commute.

What are the downsides to working for yourself, if any, and how do you overcome them?

The biggest downsides are not having the personal and social interactions that one normally has in an office. Also, knowing that the buck stops with me: I take full responsibility for my work and business operations. Finally, I am my own software/hardware support technician! If I have a software/hardware problem with any of the equipment in my office, it’s down to me to get it fixed. Thankfully, the information age helps greatly in solving technical problems.

How do you go about promoting your business/finding clients? 

The business website is the 21st-century “sign outside the shop”. I also have a directory entry in the Society for Editors & Proofreaders’ (SfEP) online members’ directory and several other relevant local/online directory listings and promotional websites (paid and free).

Have any particular developments occurred within your business sector that have affected the way you work or the way in which you are taking your business forward?

Less a development, more a retrograde step: some copy-editors and proofreaders from non-native English-speaking countries, who profess to provide professional English-editing services, are causing problems in the profession, in that not only are they taking work away from highly experienced native English-speaking in-house and freelance copy-editors, but also they are introducing poorly edited (sometimes plain erroneous) text into the public domain. Astonishingly, some highly reputed British publishers have chosen this route to cut costs, and in the case of medical text matter that provides unclear or incorrect information, the implications can be serious.

What is your most treasured work-related possession?

ReferenceChecker. Over the years, it has saved a huge amount of time … and my sanity.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working with words?

Long walks, and visiting interesting and beautiful places.

What’s your favourite book?

Strunk & White’s “The Elements of Style”. It’s small size and simplicity belie its importance to anyone who wants to know how to use words effectively.

Have you got any advice for aspiring freelancers?

Consider very carefully your reasons for going freelance.

Get a good accountant.

Network.

Paul Sensecall, freelance editor and proofreaderPaul Sensecall is a freelance editor and proofreader based in Somerset, UK, and the inventor/co-developer of ReferenceChecker. His website is www.pseditorialservices.com. ReferenceChecker can be downloaded and tried free at www.goodcitations.com

28/06/2013 |

Freelancer of the Month April 2013 – Samantha Rawson

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Hi Samantha! Can you tell us a bit about the nature of your business?

I mainly offer my proofreading and editing services to students, academics and businesses, although I have also worked with self-published fiction authors. My copy writing services are quite varied; I’ve drafted documents ranging from executive summaries for business plans to online copy and creative texts.

Tell us about your journey to becoming a freelancer.

I’ve always loved reading and writing, so having a job where I do just that every single day really makes me enjoy my work.

When I was 15, I started doing some voluntary proofreading work for the Project Gutenberg e-books archive. This exposed me to a very wide variety of texts and demonstrated to me that I had the attention to detail needed to be an effective proofreader.

I pursued my love of language academically, completing my BA (Hons) English Language and Literature at the University of Sheffield in 2009. Whilst looking for a permanent job following my graduation, I undertook some proofreading work for a local proofreading company.

I was then offered a job at a local communications firm as a project manager. I later became a senior project manager. My work there did involve some proofreading and writing, but not as much as I would have liked! As a result, in early 2011, I made the decision to become a full-time freelancer under the trading name Proofreading Works. I’ve never looked back!

What do you enjoy most about running your own business?

It makes me genuinely happy to create engaging, new texts or to help people improve the clarity or language of their documents. I also love reading new documents every day.

I also appreciate being able to be there for my family members when they need me, which I could not do when I worked on a non-freelance basis. If I have a spare moment between projects, I take the opportunity to work on my novel.

Have you got any advice for aspiring freelancers?

I think testing your ability is vitally important before making the leap into any freelance industry. I have received so many emails from people looking to undertake proofreading work that have been littered with errors!

You can gain some experience and test yourself whilst still pursuing full-time work or education. This might involve asking your employer or educational institution for relevant projects; for instance, I edited a creative writing magazine for my university and proofread audit reports whilst working at the communications company. You can also ask friends, families or charities for any work that you can do for free.

If you have decided to make the leap into freelancing, I would advise connecting with other freelancers. Not only will chatting with others remove some of the isolation that is associated with freelancing, but you may also develop opportunities to pass on work to one another.

What are the downsides to working for yourself, if any, and how do you overcome them?

The irregularity of work can be quite worrying when you start out as a freelancer. In my first few months, I alternated between quiet periods and hectically busy periods. You need to look ahead and continuously market your business, even in busy times.

How do you go about promoting your business/finding clients?

Most of my clients find me through word of mouth, through my website www.proofreadingworks.co.uk or through business directory websites like Find a Proofreader or FreeIndex.

What is your biggest proofreading pet hate?

I don’t really have any particular hates, as I know that everyone makes mistakes. I’m particularly sympathetic to non-native speakers, having tried to learn German myself for a number of years.

However, any errors that are in the public domain and that have the potential to create confusion or distress are quite worrying. One recent example of this is when the BBC updated their mobile website with the headline ‘Reaction as former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher dies following a strike’, which some have called the most inappropriate typo ever.

What do you enjoy reading when you’re not working with words?

A book collector friend of mine sends me his old copies of novels once he upgrades to first editions, so I have quite a collection of literary fiction. In terms of genre fiction, I particularly love dystopian novels like A Clockwork Orange, The Handmaid’s Tale, 1984, Brave New World, The Road… mostly bleak novels!

Samantha Rawson is a freelance proofreader and copy writer based in Belper, Derbyshire, UK.  HSamantha Rawson - Proofreading Workser website is www.proofreadingworks.co.uk

 

29/04/2013 |

Freelancer of the Month March 2013 – Wendy Monaghan

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Hi Wendy! Can you tell us a bit about the nature of your business?

I provide editing (copyediting and substantive editing), plain-English rewriting and proofreading services to individuals, businesses, and government and non-government clients. I don’t edit fiction. My major client is a large non-government organisation. Many are academics or PhD students, but I also work with authors of general non-fiction. I have edited a wide range of documents: government reports, annual reports, magazine articles, journal articles, scholarly books, theses and dissertations, marketing material, training manuals and website content. I have in-depth knowledge and experience in human rights, immigration and refugee policy and community development, but I am certainly not limited to those subject areas. I’ve edited texts on sociology, history, the media and health to engineering, economics and sports medicine.

Tell us about your journey to becoming a freelancer.

It seems many freelance editors begin their career as in-house editors, but my journey has been quite different. I began as a publishing sales representative with Penguin Books Australia in the late 1980s after studying journalism at RMIT. It was three months before Christmas—the busiest time of the year for the sales team. I took over responsibility for the Melbourne city territory, including the largest and most successful independent booksellers in the inner suburbs. My first list to sell in was the Christmas list. The sales manager later referred to those early months for me as a “baptism of fire”.

In the years to come, I worked in Sydney and Canberra for Penguin Books and later in the same cities for Melbourne University Press. I learnt so much and loved everything about publishing – the excitement of the new lists, visiting booksellers, talking about books, reading books, meeting authors, networking with the publishing in-house staff and attending sales conferences and book fairs. It never felt like ‘selling’.

I stopped working for a few years when my children were little, but once the youngest was at pre-school, I started to get itchy feet; I wanted to work again, but not full-time. I started to think about editing as a viable new career. A colleague who knew about my interest in editing invited me to edit the first edition of a new magazine for the non-government peak body FECCA (Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia). FECCA liked what I did, and we signed an agreement. I managed everything related to the magazine: commissioning authors, picture searching, editing, proofreading, liaising with the designer and printer, and managing advertising and subscriptions. I edited the first 16 editions. During those years, I completed a Certificate in Professional Editing and Proofreading and attended a number of workshops run by the Canberra Society of Editors of which I was a member. Four years later, my family moved interstate to the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, and I started to build my own business. I joined the NSW Society of Editors, kept up my professional development, and, in 2011, I achieved accreditation as an editor via the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd). My first clients were contacts through my work with FECCA, but since then my client base has grown a great deal.

What do you enjoy most about running your own business?

I’m quite particular about how things should be done and how clients should be treated. I don’t like cutting corners, so I love the autonomy of running my own business – being able to do things my way. I can choose which jobs I take on. I can also be available for my children, who are now teenagers but seem to need their mum just as much as they did when they were little!

Have you got any advice for aspiring freelancers?

Try to get some experience in-house before attempting to freelance. This will give you some contacts to get you started, not to mention the skills and experience. Connect with other freelance editors, join your local or national editing association, attend relevant workshops, talk to an accountant for financial advice before you take the plunge, and consult a tax agent who is knowledgeable about the tax implications for freelancers. Invest in good-quality ergonomic office furniture and equipment. You will need to be willing to spend time and money on marketing your services. Establish a professional-looking website. In addition, be aware that you will often work extremely long hours to meet deadlines, and you won’t have co-workers to fill in for you if you are unwell, have a family emergency or just need a break.

What are the downsides to working for yourself, if any, and how do you overcome them?

Working for oneself at home can be isolating and lonely. I have time with family and friends, but I do miss the daily face-to-face contact with customers and co-workers – sharing experiences and ideas, supporting each other. I overcome this by networking via social media, especially Twitter and various forums.

How do you go about promoting your business/finding clients? 

Most of my clients find me via my website www.wendymonaghan.com.au, my listing in the NSW Society of Editors’ freelance directory, or the listing of accredited editors on the IPEd website. I also have a Facebook page, and I use Twitter and LinkedIn. I have tried a few other methods of advertising: fliers in conference bags, donating my editing time to charity auctions, and listing my services on business directory websites. All of these methods have paid off to some extent.

Have any particular developments occurred within your business sector that have affected the way you work or the way in which you are taking your business forward?

The competition from countries such as India and Malaysia appears to pushing down editing rates internationally, which is affecting clients’ expectations of how much they should pay for quality editing. I think this is affecting the editing rates more in the US than in Australia, but it does mean that I’m always investigating ways of improving my productivity.

What is your most treasured work-related possession?

May I mention two? The first is my IPEd Certificate of Accreditation. The second is my first edition of The Macquarie Dictionary, which I purchased in 1982. I no longer use it because it’s out of date, but I couldn’t possibly part with it.

What do you enjoy reading when you’re not working with words?

I enjoy reading investigative journalism and analyses of contemporary issues, particularly politics, human rights, social justice and so on. However, for sheer indulgent pleasure, it has to be fiction.

What’s your favourite book?

What a tough question to answer! May I list more than one? Peace by Richard Bausch, The Speckled People by Hugo Hamilton, Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy, Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. I could go on.

Wendy Monaghan Editing ServicesWendy Monaghan is a freelance editor and proofreader based in New South Wales, Australia.  She edits all types of non-fiction and her website is www.wendymonaghan.com.au.

30/03/2013 |
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