.png)
How To Be A Freelance Editor
An editor works on an already written content to modify it. Every content is subject to review and modification to achieve the best outcomes. Therefore, most blogs employ the services of editors to help them proofread their contents and make corrections before they are posted to the public. Working as a freelance editor is very easy when you understand the simple concept of editing articles and acquire the required skills. The opportunities are enormous as there are many startups who require quality and standard contents free from plagiarism. Plagiarism has become such an unwanted menace today that people pay huge sum of money to have original articles. This is where freelance content editors have huge roles to play. They are armed with the right knowledge, experience and expertise to edit contents and make them original while maintaining quality and standard.
Recommended:How To Create An Outstanding Freelance Profile
Table Of Contents
- Who is a freelance editor?
- How to be a freelancer editor
- Overcoming challenges in freelance editing jobs
- Opportunities available for a freelance editor
WHO IS A FREELANCE EDITOR?
To edit simply means to work on an already existing write-up, making relevant corrections where necessary, adding missing information and removing information, words or phrases that are either not necessary or not rightly used. Therefore a freelance editor is a professional who proofreads and makes necessary changes to a write-up. Almost every write-up needs a third-party to assess it, make changes and make it better. Most bloggers ensure that their articles are thoroughly scrutinized either by themselves or other people before they are published. If you are observant, you'd notice that most printed books recognize those who helped to proofread and edit the manuscript before they became printed works. That's how important the job of a content editor is.
It's been proven overtime that it is a lot better to have someone else proofread and serve as an editor for your works than to do it yourself. This is what led to the surge in the demand for freelance editors. Having a freelance editor work on your article or any form of writeup at all gives it a different and unique touch. It helps make your writeup more interesting and less boring to read because the freelance editor comes with his or her own ideas, use of words and phrases and writing pattern. A freelance editor works from home and can edit just about any kind of writeup at all ranging from academic works, blog articles, freelance articles to social contents.
HOW TO BE A FREELANCE EDITOR
A freelance editor has to be armed with some relevant knowledge in order to succeed as one. Let's look at what one must know and do in order to become a freelance editor. They are as follows in no particular order:
- Have a good command of the language in use
- Be a good and fast typist
- Learn to use tools that aid writing
- Research
- Don't plagiarize
- Proofread again
1. Have A Good Command Of The Language In Use
Without being told, you should know that the first step to becoming a freelance editor is to have a good command of the language in use. You can't possibly edit a write-up written in Spanish when you have very little knowledge of Spanish. You can't edit a write-up written in English when you are just a new user of the English language. If you must work as a freelance editor, you have to have a great knowledge of the language used in the work. That means you can only go for jobs that are within a language or languages you understand and can use perfectly. And of course, a freelance editor can have a mastery of different languages like German, French, English, Spanish, etc. This gives you better opportunities.
2. Be A Good And Fast Typist
You must be able to type very well and be fast in typing too. This means that your typing speed should not in any way make you prone to typographical errors. You have to avoid typos even while being a very fast typist. A good typist minimizes errors and a fast typist delivers jobs on time. A freelance editor should be both a good typist and a fast typist. Being a good typist helps you make less and less typing errors and a fast typist is able to deliver on time. These two qualities make you stand out and a sought-after freelance editor.
3. Learn To Use Tools That Aid Writing
There are certain writing tools online that can help you as a freelance editor. These tools are applications that can offer services in the form of helping you make corrections in words, spelling and phrases, enable you type faster and as well as monitor your progress. Some of these tools are:
- Google docs
- Translation apps
- Grammarly
- Spell checkers
- Online dictionaries
- Editing apps
You need to find tools that can aid your editing work and have them handy.
4. Research
While working as a freelance editor, you are going to come across many write-ups that are about areas you know little to nothing about. How can you possibly edit a write-up that you know nothing about? That's where research comes in. You should be a student of research as a freelance editor.
You must always be willing to do research and find out everything you need to know about any subject before you can successfully edit the writeup. You have the internet, make good use of it.
5. Don't Plagiarize
Don't copy what you see online and paste it verbatim. Your job is to study, understand and then interpret it in your own words. Avoid plagiarism completely. A good freelance editor comes up with unique words and phrases of their own without having to copy others.
6. Proofread Again
When you are done editing, go back and read the writeup again. This gives you the chance to make spot errors that were overlooked and make final corrections. You have to do this consciously and religiously to ensure that no stone is left unturned. This is the final phase of the editing process.
Recommended:The Most Important Freelance Tips You'd Ever Find
OVERCOMING CHALLENGES IN FREELANCE EDITING JOBS
The challenges in freelance editing jobs come in the form of plagiarism, spelling challenges and usage of words that are relevant to the subject of discourse. To avoid these challenges, you must:
- Use plagiarism checkers
- Use spelling checkers
- Study the words that are common to the subject of the writeup and know how to use them
OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE FOR A FREELANCE EDITOR
A freelance editor can work for just anyone or any firm provided there's something to write. Every organization has writeups in various forms ranging from adverts, agreement contracts, job description to employment terms. All these write-ups are subject to editing. Academic works and blogs are also good areas that need freelance editors. New startups, websites and social media handles too will always need freelance editors. The list is endless. Opportunities for freelance editors are prevalent at UpMyChain freelance marketplace.
Easy Answers
- Have a good command of the language in use
- Be a good and fast typist
- Learn to use tools that aid writing
- Research
- Don't plagiarize
- Proofread again
If you found this article helpful, do well to leave a comment using the comment box below.
Trending Articles