Proofreading Case Studies

Louise Harnby

Louise Harnby, a freelance proofreader from Norwich, undertook the Basic Proofreading by Distance Learning course in 2005. Having graduated from university in 1989, Louise went on to work for STM publisher Williams & Wilkins for three years, and then SAGE Publications for 14 years. Her roles in both organizations were on the marketing side of the business. The birth of her daughter and a move from London to East Anglia promoted a serious rethink.

“I loved working in publishing but Norfolk isn’t exactly the centre of academic publishing – in-house work really wasn’t an option. Furthermore, I wanted to be around to look after my daughter, making an office-based job unattractive to me. Freelancing was the obvious choice. I was well aware of The Publishing Training Centre’s (PTC) courses, and had attended several as part of my in-house continuing professional development over the years. I’d had to proofread promotional material as a function of my roles at Williams & Wilkins and SAGE, and I’d always worked closely with production editors so I knew what I needed to do to get myself career-fit as a professional proofreader.”

Louise signed up for the Basic Proofreading by Distance Learning course in 2005 and completed it, with distinction, seven months later.

“The course was excellent. Colleagues in the production department SAGE had recommended it, and the PTC was already a known trusted external training provider – I had high expectations, and I wasn’t disappointed. I loved the fact that I could do it in my own time, but more importantly it gave me both competence and confidence to go to prospective clients in the hope of securing work.

“My years in publishing, in particular my knowledge of marketing within publishing, helped me hugely. I developed a business plan that included a solid marketing strategy focused on how to attract clients. Training was the foundation to this – absolutely key. It underpinned everything that followed.”

Following completion of the PTC course in 2006, Louise identified her core strengths and used these to determine who she would approach. She considered her options: businesses, independent authors, marketing agencies, project management agencies, self-/custom-publishing companies, online editorial-service bidding sites, and students.

“I had a degree in politics, 14 years experience in publishing, working primarily on social science journals, a couple of in-house contacts, and a certificate from a trusted training provider. It seemed obvious to me that I should focus on publisher clients, and social science presses especially. I understood the language of the social sciences; I understood the language of publishing. I thought these things would give me an edge.”

That was six years ago and things have gone from strength to strength. Louise now has a core group of publisher clients who commission her to proofread their books on a regular basis.

“This is important to me because it means I don’t have to spend time acquiring work – I can focus on actually doing the work and let the offers come to me. I’ve also picked up new clients as my in-house production contacts have moved jobs.

“Interestingly, I recently surveyed a number of my clients for a blog I was writing about proofreading training. The overwhelming conclusion was that training was a key element in considering whether to give a new proofreader a chance, and the PTC and the SfEP’s (Society for Editors and Proofreaders) proofreading courses were mentioned time and again.

“I honestly don’t think I’d have a successful proofreading business if I hadn’t done the PTC’s distance learning proofreading course. It demonstrated to clients that I was up to the task of doing the job to the standards that publishers demand, which is so much more than having a good eye for spelling mistakes. They know they’re less likely to have to hand-hold you, that you can follow a brief, that you understand the importance of house style and editorial deadlines, and that you can mark up a manuscript according to industry-recognized standards. This is what the course gave me and it’s proved to be the backbone of the portfolio of work that I can demonstrate today.”

Visit Louise's website at http://louiseharnbyproofreading.weebly.com/

Phil Sanders

Phil Sanders, a freelance proofreader from Coventry, combined part-time work with a distance learning course, and gained a job which utilised both his interest in editorial work and his legal training.

A few years ago Phil was working part-time in the transport section of his local authority. “This allowed me time to tackle some of my various on-going creative writing projects, including a collection of verse I was about to publish. Proofreading this ignited my interest in the proofreading task itself, and as a result I joined the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP).

“After attending their Introduction to Proofreading course, I decided to do the Publishing Training Centre’s Basic Proofreading by Distance Learning course. On completion of the course, I wrote many letters to publishers in search of that first job, which eventually came in the shape of a job from a leading law publisher. I couldn’t believe my luck, as I had hoped to put my legal training to use. Since then I’ve undertaken several assignments for the same publisher.”

“I found the PTC course challenging” said Mr Sanders, “it exposes your strengths but, more importantly, it exposes your weaknesses. Recognising them and giving greater attention to them is necessary if your technique is to be strengthened. In that regard, the feedback from the graded assignments that comprise the course is invaluable – as is the telephone contact with your tutor to resolve outstanding queries.”

Marjorie Clarke

If you can offer a potential client some expertise in a subject it certainly improves your chances of finding work with a publisher, but as Marjorie Clarke (pictured) from West Sussex found, with the right training – and perseverance – there are opportunities for those without a specialised field.

“A locally based international medical marketing company were advertising for editors, and the advertisement also mentioned that they wanted a freelance proofreader who would be available locally to work in-house or at home on an as-and-when basis. They gave me a test piece to do, and although the content was very specialised and technical, in a field that I know little about, I did well in the test and they took me on.

“That was last May, and since then I've been working regularly for this client. I feel that the Publishing Training Centre’s course had prepared me well for what has turned out to be quite demanding work.”

The Basic Proofreading by Distance Learning course takes the student through the whole process of correcting texts using the British Standards Institution symbols. In addition it covers topics such as house style and design specifications, the processes involved in producing books or journals, and how to avoid problems that can arise from changes and corrections.

Regular exercises and assignments chart progress and the estimated study time for the course is around 35 hours. There is no entry qualification, but you do need an eye for detail, a good command of colloquial English grammar and accurate spelling.