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The many benefits of being a member of the CIEP

Once again it’s that time of year when we’re asking CIEP members to renew their membership. If you’re a CIEP member who can’t quite decide whether to renew or not, perhaps the five editors below can persuade you it’s worth it …

Laurie Duboucheix-Saunders

I have been a member of the CIEP – back then it was the SfEP – since I started freelancing in 2008 and I have never considered not renewing. With no professional editorial experience, I found out about the Institute when looking for a training course. Being a member allowed me to gain the skills I needed to become a good proofreader and editor, but remaining a member has allowed me to stay at the top of my game. Even though I am an Advanced Professional Member, I still benefit from doing courses with the CIEP, to refresh what I know or to keep up with an industry that keeps changing.

That’s not even what’s best about the CIEP. Being a member is not just about having the CIEP’s ‘seal of approval’ (read ‘logo’), it’s about belonging to a community that supports you and challenges you. The forums are a great place to go when you’re stuck and need the hive mind’s input. There’s always someone who can help you find the answer you need or point you in the right direction. The CIEP’s knowledge pool is vast, and chances are someone will be able to answer your questions about martial arts or architecture or nuclear fusion, as well as help you locate an obscure rule in a style guide so large you wonder what sort of mind it takes to come up with so many different rules about commas and full stops.

The CIEP is part of my daily life. Thanks to it, I have met people, online or in real life, who have become colleagues and friends I interact with every day. Being a freelancer can be a lonely business and the CIEP’s support (legal helpline, suggested minimum rates) is invaluable, but its members are what makes it indispensable.

Pedro Martin (Sanderling Editorial)

Renewing my CIEP membership is a no-brainer. I ended up getting my biggest client so far – both in terms of repeat work and total billable hours – from the ‘marketplace’ forum, so my membership definitely paid for itself.

I really appreciate how useful it is for people who are new to freelancing. I joined as a Professional Member with in-house experience, so I felt confident on the editorial side of things, but I was so clueless about transitioning to freelancing! Navigating your first few months as a freelance copyeditor and proofreader is especially tricky, so it’s great having access to so many knowledgeable and experienced editors who are happy to help with your questions.

And that’s on top of all the other membership benefits (like free guides for members, discounts on editing software and subscriptions, and the forums in general). I look forward to another year of advice, training, CPD, discounts, collegiality, resources and support for copyeditors and proofreaders with the CIEP!

Janet MacMillan

There are so many reasons why I’m renewing my CIEP membership: the vibrant forums where you can get an answer to what’s on your mind day or night, the highly respected training and continuing professional development, the enquiry- and work-producing directory, the helpful guides and fact sheets, the mentoring and the standards, among other things.

But the fundamental reason for me is the community. The CIEP community has helped me through thick and thin, especially in the last couple of years when we’ve all been struggling through plagues, war/political conflicts, earthquakes, blizzards, fires and even loo roll shortages.

The fact that I have so many lovely colleagues all over the world is a true joy, and that I can see and chat to at least 20+ of them every week is an incomparable pleasure. I see community members boosting each other up, both professionally and personally, taking pleasure and pride in each other’s successes, supporting one another in all that the world throws at us, and doing gentle kindnesses for each other.

The gorgeous card someone sent me earlier this year, the gratuitous offers of help with work and CIEP commitments when I faced trying caring responsibilities recently, the unexpected, but touching, comment on my first haircut in over two years, the entertaining GIFs someone likes to send, the ridiculous jokes and banter among members on social media, members travelling long, long distances to meet up, so many members working so hard for the common good, are all part of the CIEP community. To paraphrase a mid-2021 comment by a colleague in an international Cloud Club West Zoom meeting: the fact that I retain any semblance of sanity is, to a huge extent, thanks to the CIEP community. I wouldn’t be without it!

Caroline Petherick

I’ve subscribed to CIEP since the early nineties, and right from the start – even before I managed to access the infant internet – I found the sub worthwhile, because by being a paid-up member I got relevant training, hence confidence in what I was doing, combined with the expertise of some experienced editors one to one. That helped me start my business, even though for the first few years it was slow. Then, since around 2000, with the developing range of resources and support that the CIEP has provided, membership has been intrinsic to the success of my business and (particularly with the forums) to my enjoyment of life at the laptop. I can’t imagine being without the CIEP.

Alex Mackenzie

In a face-to-face conversation recently I found myself describing why our virtual CIEP network is so valuable to me. No, we’ve never met in person, but we are in weekly (some of us daily) contact. Our online video meetups – Cloud Club West (CCW) – is where (mostly) international members meet for professional support and online company.

Working from home is isolating anyway, and in this profession things can get pressurised and tense, with moments of complete loss and mind-boggling confusion. (The usual culprits: misbehaving tables, testy authors, a slow month, quirky layout, low motivation, time management, technology bugs, scope creep, grammar, ethics and copyright, to name a few). We need to reach out to like-minded people sometimes.

Two years ago, CCW spawned another smaller accountability group comprising seven members who spur each other on to market ourselves and get more clients. Both groups share personal and professional stories (even displaying our pets, children, artwork and knitting) – the CIEP membership makes this possible. (Read more in our blog post.)

What I value is the breadth of experience in editing and proofreading, from newbies to Advanced Professional Members. Being reflective about language is what many of us have always enjoyed (we speak close to 20 languages, from Afrikaans to Luxembourgish). But we come at it from all angles (history; environmental and social sciences; role-playing games; politics; law; economics; education; maths and statistics; chemistry, as well as English literature and linguistics). And we are spread across the globe – in diverse personal contexts – with fascinating stories to tell.

This means there’s always someone to offer advice, answer a query or point towards an alternative approach. This is an excellent professional resource and I always have a running list of queries for the next meeting. As we all value investing in high-quality CIEP training, we recommend courses to each other, and sometimes buddy up to work through them together too. And it’s nice to put faces to names when they pop up in the forums.

I know I speak for many in the CIEP when I say, the professional network is a major pull for continuing our membership.

About the CIEP

The Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) is a non-profit body promoting excellence in English language editing. We set and demonstrate editorial standards, and we are a community, training hub and support network for editorial professionals – the people who work to make text accurate, clear and fit for purpose.

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Photo credits: woodland by Larisa_K on Pixabay.

Posted by Harriet Power, CIEP information commissioning editor.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

Curiosity or destiny? The different routes to the CIEP

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A diverse group of over 20 proofreaders and editors meet up weekly online for professional support through the CIEP’s Cloud Club West. But what do we actually know about each other? Alex Mackenzie asked in a recent meeting: ‘What was your route to the CIEP? Where were you workwise when the proofreading/copyediting penny dropped?’

Here’s what the group discussed:

Are proofreaders and editors born or is it a process of discovery?
Is an English literature degree or a Master’s in publishing a must-have?
Can family life or challenging health conditions accommodate the job?
When did you switch to proofreading and editing?
How did the CIEP come into your life and what do you enjoy about it?

My ‘ah-ha’ moment

Did my itinerant life lead me here? Perhaps copyediting was my way of joining up the dots when our international life abruptly halted: COVID-19 meets Brexit. It was the CIEP training, discovering the humble dialogue between professionals in the forums and our ‘e-local’ weekly video meet-ups that grounded me in this fascinating profession.

My question for Cloud Club West (CCW) began an entertaining and revealing round-the-table storytelling that lasted four weeks.

It’s in the blood

‘From an early age I knew – then I learned it was a job!’

Some were students of English literature or creative writing, others hold a Master’s degree in publishing. Isn’t that how real editors are made? Whether fresh out of university or experienced in-house editors with high-profile publishers, we are all now freelancing proofreaders and editors.

Loving the detail

‘I want to do something with books.’

Writing up references for her third thesis – enjoying the rigorous detail of italics and comma placement – one member wanted to put this body of knowledge to use. After writing to 50 publishers, she found work as an assistant with a reputable one. Her CIEP membership number is in the low hundreds, and her editorial life spans the digital revolution: marking up on paper before kids, on-screen after.

Teachers turned editors

‘After decades helping multilingual students find their voice – this was a natural transition.’

For the rest, there was a delayed ‘ah-ha’ moment of discovery. Teaching was the starting point for many. Some changed direction during the training, others resigned with a health condition or burnout; for one fantasy fiction lover and gamer, COVID-19 showed them they weren’t quite in the right place. Though teaching made sense at some levels, we are happier now – a clue? One of us has never missed a CCW meeting!

I need to leave – but now what?

‘After numbers, words – it’s what I should be doing.’

For those editors who arrived through maths and science, there may have been a clear moment of recognition. One left a health-threatening, high-pressure job in a civil service payroll department where, in her ‘spare’ time, she was copyediting multi-author reports and writing how-to documents. The required attention to detail crossed seamlessly into scholarly editing, but now she dictates the work on her terms and the ulcers have healed.

A serendipitous escape from the macho world of finance

‘Do I know a proofreader? … err … me?’

Several of us were economists – proofreading financial reports with 24-hour deadlines. A financial crash prompted retraining as an English teacher, another tired of the male-dominated office and moved countries every 18 months thereafter. One catapulted herself forward answering the question ‘Do you know a proofreader?’ with ‘Err … yes, me!’

Globetrotter slowed down

‘I’m thankful to be working from home near my very elderly mum.’

Our former lawyer had understandable burnout after 20 years dealing with international commercial litigation, with commutes between the UK and Brussels (twice in one day, even!), as well as Canada, the US and other EU countries. A significant domestic violence practice in her latter years in the law added to the burnout. Though she was a guinea pig for the functionality of the online interface for joining the SfEP (as it was then), she welcomed the friendliness and support of the face-to-face Norfolk group and is now much appreciated, steering our Cloud Club steadily from Canada (… for now!), where in non-COVID-19 times she enjoys the lively Toronto group face to face, and now via Zoom.

A change of heart

‘I’ve grown into the job – I’m doing the right thing in life!’

Another economics graduate left the sector after questioning their calling. An ad offered editorial training in using their expertise for academic research. Later, after moving to Canada, he enjoyed a warm welcome from the CIEP local group, and the 2020 conference ‘sealed the deal’. He is now an in-house editor.

Academic detour

‘I was always checking others’ words.’

In fact, academics across the subject range were thrilled to learn there were paying jobs outside educational institutions, where subject knowledge was valued. After internships, redundancy and shrinking budgets affected many. For one, a chance trial proofread of Voltaire’s complete works meant learning BSI symbols on the job!

A friend of a friend

‘I needed courses and, possibly, mentoring.’

A third party introduction is often a catalyst. One lockdown encounter across a stream led to editing pharmacy documents. A knitting club friend with a maths degree recommended a course that led on to proofreading and later indexing. A holiday romance with a proofreader ended happily: get trained, quit the UK job, move to the States, take over his job, marry him!

Midlife crisis?

‘Well, it all worked out beautifully.’

Health scares, marriage, kids, home-schooling, a partner’s career move, empty nest, divorce, volunteering in a bookshop, retraining as a translator or teacher – many and varied are the circuitous routes to the CIEP, even joining the RAF at the age of 49!

But life’s complicated

‘Is that really a thing I can do?’

Our Cloud Club members tend to be a transient, globetrotting lot, with a UK-based element. A number of us have limited mobility for reasons that include challenging medical conditions (quietly mentioned, though in no way diminished because of that), such as Ehlers-Danlos and cerebral palsy. Proofreading and editing provide a flexible, compatible livelihood when life (or our partner’s decision) takes us off course.

Anyone out there?

‘Cool – there are people doing this on their own!’

Looking for like-minded freelancers, many of us came across the CIEP through online research, often after relocating to a new country. One of us left a publishing house job in India (having succeeded in a walk-in interview alongside 5,000 candidates many years earlier!), but others, not surprisingly, discovered the network more recently during COVID-19.

Wrapping up

‘It felt like everything fell apart all at once – my health, my work, the world – but I was able to get through it thanks to the support and warmth I found in the CIEP community.’

CIEP members joined up their formative dots through:

childhood internal drivers
serendipity
self-awareness and a moment of realisation
continuing curiosity about words and the reader experience

One regret was voiced: not joining CIEP sooner!

The CIEP’s 40+ local groups, ranging across the UK and including virtual groups with international reach, offer spaces in which members who live locally to one another or outside of the UK can gather, regardless of the stage at which they find themselves in their professional and membership journey.

Find your local group

About Alex Mackenzie

Alex Mackenzie is a British copyeditor and proofreader living in Asturias, Spain. She moved into editing from a 30-year career in international schools across nine countries. Alex is a published English language teaching (ELT) author with a Master’s degree in education. Areas of specialism are ELT, education, sustainability and meditation, adding creative non-fiction and fiction. She is a Professional Member of the CIEP.

About the CIEP

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Photo credits: woodland paths by Jens Lelie; detour by Jamie Street, both on Unsplash.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

The 2021 CIEP conference: Blog round-up

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The CIEP conference took place online in September this year, and, as usual, before long there was a fine crop of blogs reviewing the event. We read them to see how conference newbies, veterans and session presenters experienced #CIEP2021. This round-up post covers:

The newbie view
Veterans’ verdicts
Presenters’ perspectives
What next?

The newbie view: ‘I was unprepared for just how much I got out of it’

‘When I joined the CIEP in January, lots of people told me about the value of their annual conference,’ says Philip Ridgers in ‘My first time attending the CIEP annual conference’. ‘I expected to pick up some tips and maybe meet a couple of new people. However, I was unprepared for just how much I got out of it.’ Starting with the networking sessions, Philip said: ‘The most valuable thing I took away was that others struggle with the same things I do.’ Far from meeting ‘a couple of new people’, at one point Philip found himself plunged into a Wonder room with some of the CIEP Council: ‘For a few minutes I was the only other person there! This could have been terrifying, but they were all so welcoming.’ He went on to describe his team’s performance in the quiz (‘we placed last’) and concluded that ‘the conference made me feel like I belonged. It made me want to further my knowledge and get more involved with the editorial community.’ We think he means his editorial knowledge, but who knows, maybe next year Philip will return armed to the teeth with all the quiz-related facts necessary to blow the other teams out of the water.

Eleanor Bolton had a lot in common with many other newbies – she was joining us from somewhere far from the UK: in her case, Houston, Texas. She says: ‘As it was online this year, it was easy to attend despite the time difference … I came away from the conference with a renewed sense of energy, plenty of ideas about future training and business development, and a long list of book recommendations to add to my reading list.’

Alison Gilbert, who had been to last November’s online conference, but not (yet) to an in-person one, translated her own learning points directly into action, by blogging about blogging, specifically ‘Blogging: Making it work for you and your business’, presented by Kia Thomas, Liz Dalby and Claire Bacon. As Alison, inspired by the session, observed: ‘Blogging is as individual as each person’, and with her maths degree and her love of lists, her blog, a list of top-ten blogging tips, testified to this.

Veterans’ verdict: ‘I really felt at home’

Among those who had been to CIEP (or SfEP) in-person conferences, some of them on many occasions, a word used to describe the event was, well, we’ll hand over to Sue Littleford: ‘a triumph. Full stop. How Beth delivers such fabulous conferences year in, year out, I don’t know. Hats off to her and her team!’ Jill French used the same word: ‘it was a triumph’.

It was Annie Deakins’ fifth conference, and at the end of her blog post she helpfully included links to her reviews of a couple of previous conferences, useful for those who wanted to compare the online and in-person events.

The comparisons by our veterans were favourable. Kia Thomas spoke for many, in ‘A post about CIEP2021 and also not entirely about CIEP2021’:

The conference team did a fantastic job of making sure we got as many of the best bits of the ‘real’ conference as we could – brilliant speakers, opportunities to learn things, the famous quiz and, best of all, the chance to catch up with colleagues and make new friends. There were plenty of opportunities for video networking, and the virtual space meant that many were able to attend who wouldn’t have been able to make it in person.

Louise Bolotin* singled out Wonder as the tech aspect that made the conference so conference-like for her:

The one thing that made the conference as near a replica to being there in person was the Wonder platform. Browser-based, it allows you to join or form circles with others within a dedicated ‘room’ and chat via webcam. Chatting to colleagues is always one of the best things about attending a conference – the only thing missing was buying each other a drink, but otherwise Wonder ticked an awful lot of boxes.

Sue Littleford enjoyed the international feel:

One clear advantage of an online conference is that far more delegates can attend (we had plenty of members staying up very late indeed, or getting up painfully early, depending on their time zone), but the second advantage is that speakers can also be spread around the world – we had contributions from Canada, the US, Thailand and Australia, as well as from all around the UK.

The ability to catch up later through recorded sessions was invaluable to many, particularly Louise Bolotin, who described herself as ‘frantically rushed off my feet’ with work at the time of the conference. Jill French appreciated this too:

There was the added bonus of staggering some of the delivery beyond the conference with materials including not just digital handouts but hours of recordings to watch back.

Jill also discovered the benefits of networking from home:

As a mainly introverted soul, used to working alone, I did wonder whether the networking side of an online conference could work at all, but it did. I even found that, as I was sitting in my normal work place (true for most delegates I suspect), this was conducive to relaxed interactions where I really felt at home, wait – I really was at home.

There was one final benefit to holding the conference online, something we might call the ‘Hugh Factor’. Jill French explains: ‘Hugh Jackson, a most capable, self-effacing and amusing chair, made entertaining introductions, talks and commentary through the whole event.’ This sort of ubiquity wouldn’t have been as possible in person, and there was something about Hugh’s warm ‘fireside chat’ style that translated particularly well to the screen. Plus, online no one else need see us blubbing. Sue Littleford says: ‘Last year, [Hugh’s] closing words reduced a great many of us to tears … This year, we were ready with our tissues, fortunately: he did it again, dammit.’

Some things don’t change, whether the conference is online or in person. On her Facebook business page, Nicky Taylor talked about ‘Fizzing with energy and new ideas, but aware I need space and time to formulate something coherent and meaningful.’ Many of us can relate to that.

Presenters’ perspectives: ‘It was genuinely fun’

How did the experience compare for the speakers? Although Liz Dalby didn’t relish the prospect of delivering her session on Zoom, she said yes when Beth came knocking, and (in a post entitled ‘Learning to say yes’) she says:

I’m so glad I did say yes, because the session went well – in fact, it was really enjoyable – and we received positive feedback from the people who came and watched and asked questions. I enjoyed it just as much as I’ve enjoyed taking part in panel sessions in the past in real life, or giving short talks and presentations. Which is to say, it was genuinely fun.

Sophie Playle, who ran a session on guiding principles for development editing, found she enjoyed presenting on screen more than when she’d done it in person, describing it in her Liminal Pages letter as ‘the perfect middle step between having little presenting experience and presenting confidently in-person. Talking to my laptop in my own living room is far less daunting than standing in front of a crowd! I was still nervous, but nowhere near as much as I was before.’

Jill French was another session leader, presenting on Word styles, and her short mention of the event was notable in its emphasis on the distances all but cancelled out by the online format: ‘A big thank you to Janet MacMillan from Canada who graciously introduced the session I ran from Hampshire.’

What next?

Based on the reviews of this year’s conference, it feels like it hardly matters whether next year’s, scheduled for 10 to 12 September 2022, is online or in person. And the good news is that it’ll be both. There’ll be an in-person event at Kents Hill Park near Milton Keynes, and a virtual element running alongside. After #CIEP2021 there must be many people who feel the same as Annie Deakins, who, looking forward to next year, wrote: ‘If real life isn’t possible, I’ll be just as pleased to see you all online.’

#CIEP2021 on the CIEP blog

Summaries of all of the 2021 CIEP conference sessions are now available on this blog! Don’t miss Hugh Jackson’s opening remarks or Dayita Nereyeth’s heartwarming summary.

* Louise Bolotin died in October 2022; her contributions are much missed.

About the CIEP

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Photo credit: group call by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

The 2021 CIEP conference: A surprising journey

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This year’s CIEP conference was held online, from 12 to 14 September. Attendees from all over the world logged on to learn and socialise with their fellow editors and proofreaders, and a number of delegates kindly volunteered to write up the sessions for us. It was Dayita Nereyeth’s first conference, and she didn’t know quite what to expect.

Hesitation

I’ll be honest. When I signed up for the CIEP conference I hardly knew what to expect. Before this, I had never attended a conference for editorial professionals. I was interested in some of the talks, but at face value, it was another commitment, another series of hours in front of a screen, another bunch of Zoom calls, another three points for my CIEP upgrade, another …

On hearing CIEP chair Hugh Jackson’s opening remarks, something in me shifted. He spoke about the community’s resilience and welcomed us home. I then let go of my initial hesitations and opened myself up to an experience unlike any other. In a place I never would have imagined – a symposium of editors – I found connection, balance, power, joy, and hope.

Connection

At the networking events, I was probably the youngest person in every breakout room – I gathered this from anecdotes about careers that had begun before I was born. I had much to absorb. In most cases, I chose to listen. While spectating was useful, I also discovered that a good way to break the ice was to ask a question.

Still, networking is never easy. And the Zoom format had its own challenges – the added constraint of the screen and the awkward dance of unmuting and beginning to speak only to hear someone do the same, followed by sheepish apologies and an uncomfortable pause before the conversation could continue.

Any awkwardness from Zoom networking dissipated on Twitter. Tweeting up a storm via #CIEP2021 was a fun way for delegates and speakers to connect. As I listened to talks, I tweeted what I resonated with, quite aware of my editor-proofreader audience.

Balance

A theme that emerged in many sessions and my personal approach to the conference was to find balance: in considerations of right and wrong, in prioritising the author’s voice, and in life.

‘Isn’t language amazing? Even when it’s wrong, it’s kind of right.’ With this, Ian McMillan summarised what it means to work in this profession. When we impose preference or style, we risk losing an author’s intention and charm. But precision in language is everything, so we traverse a middle way between the rights and the wrongs. In the same vein, Erin Brenner reminded us that there is no single correct way to teach editors.

Sophie Playle’s approach to fiction editing was eye-opening and applicable to any genre. One message stood out: what you edit is not yours. This is fundamental because it helps to weed out ego and personal preference from the editing process. Like Ian and Erin, Sophie invited us to find a working method rather than giving us a singular recipe.

Similarly, on marketing, Malini Devadas emphasised taking small steps, sitting with discomfort to understand it, and redirecting negative energy towards productivity. She also urged us to find a work–life balance, which I’ve been interested in for a while now.

I got creative with discovering this balance during the jam-packed conference. To be kind to myself (my eyes, in particular), I looked away from the screen during talks and took the opportunity to colour. I also attended some off-camera sessions horizontal, from bed. Still, I slowly yielded to Zoom fatigue. I didn’t follow speakers or other delegates into ‘Wonderland’ after presentations; I took breaks to recharge. No doubt, it was easy to make these choices because I knew that all the sessions were being recorded. I had to live with missing the more ephemeral interactions.

‘Fish fish fish fish fish.’ – Ian McMillan

Power

Several sessions emphasised the power that English speakers have. And as editors, we are responsible for shaping not just the what but also the how, of words. From making language accessible using Cathy Basterfield’s Easy English to incorporating Crystal Shelley’s invaluable insights on conscious and inclusive writing, we can effect change in many ways.

It’s easy to take literacy for granted. Before listening to Cathy’s talk, I hardly considered the amount I read every day; even a grocery bill or signpost can seem like a reading test to someone with low literacy. Importantly, as editors, we are gatekeepers, working on prevention rather than cure. ‘If we’re waiting to follow, we’re never going to catch up,’ Crystal told us. This is crucial. We are change-makers – we can discourage harmful trends (‘died by suicide’ instead of ‘committed suicide’) and encourage inclusive writing (using the singular ‘they’ to embrace all genders).

Joy

In addition to educational and profound moments during the conference, there was lots of good fun.

A highlight was the quiz, orchestrated by Beth Hamer. Despite knowing the answers to only four of the 60 questions, I ended up on the winning team (my teammates can take all the credit). I had heard great things about the quiz so even though I’m not a night owl, I stayed awake until about 3am to play (I definitely spent the last couple of rounds asleep with my eyes open).

The lightning talks were fun, bite-sized presentations, a refreshing change from the longer ones. It was incredible how much information the speakers packed into five minutes. Each one’s interests and personality echoed Ian McMillan’s words about the joy and excitement in language.

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how happy Jill French’s play-by-play presentation of Word Styles in action made me. I’ve only recently begun to automate certain aspects of editing, so it was extremely satisfying to witness her logical process and put it to immediate use.

Hope

Listening to Benjamin Dreyer in conversation with Denise Cowle was an excellent way to wrap up the conference. On revealing that Penguin Random House has no house style, so each manuscript is dealt with on its own terms, Benjamin touched on these themes of connection, balance, power, and joy in editing. He encouraged editors to listen to authors rather than going in with expectations (exactly how I should have approached this conference). As other speakers did, he also reminded me about the people behind the words. It’s easy to forget about the humans when all we see are tracked changes, comments, emails, and tweets.

At the end, Hugh gave a moving speech that took us back to the CIEP of the past and offered hope for its future. Before I knew it, the conference had flown by. I stayed on Twitter for a while longer, unwilling to leave this space that I was initially reluctant to enter.

The links to recordings of the conference sessions arrived the following day, as promised, releasing me from my conference withdrawal. I now have the chance to revisit talks and dig into those I couldn’t attend live.

For now, I’ve gone (relatively) quiet on Twitter, and my engagement with editors I’m not directly working with is dormant. But my participation in this vibrant community will continue. I initially thought this conference would be a ‘one and done’ affair. But after attending, networking, tweeting, learning, listening and sharing, this time around, I think I’ll return. If only to listen to one of Hugh’s calming speeches, colour another sea creature, give a lightning talk, or win next year’s quiz (so long as Beth includes a ‘musicals’ section).

Dayita Nereyeth is an editor, a dancer, and an Alexander Technique teacher trainee based in Bangalore, India. She is a senior editor at The Clean Copy, where she has worked since 2017. Dayita primarily edits academic manuscripts in the arts, humanities, and social sciences.

She is passionate about making text simple and clear. You can find her on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Photo © Heui Song Son

About the CIEP

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Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

The 2021 CIEP conference: Don’t get left behind: Career development for freelancers

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This year’s CIEP conference was held online, from 12 to 14 September. Attendees from all over the world logged on to learn and socialise with their fellow editors and proofreaders, and a number of delegates kindly volunteered to write up the sessions for us. Umber Khairi reviewed Don’t get left behind: Career development for freelancers, presented by Suzanne Collier.

Suzanne Collier is both a Careers Adviser as well as somebody with many years of experience in book publishing, so this was a very useful conference session for CIEP members – particularly those who are new to freelance work or who have recently set up their own businesses.

Suzanne said that most of the freelancers who contact her for career advice have one main question: how can we keep up to date? She said that this is a major concern because of the ‘overwhelming speed’ with which the industry is changing and technology is advancing: ‘Publishing almost got dragged into the twentieth century and is now sort of speeding through the twenty-first.’

She pointed out that freelancers can often feel isolated and invisible, so it’s easy for them to feel hard done by and get left behind. However, the key thing is to remind yourself that this is a job, your job, and you have to make an effort to update skills and keep abreast of developments within the industry. Suzanne emphasised the importance of taking responsibility for your development, and with the availability of many free resources, this does not have to be an expensive proposition.

She said that social media – despite sometimes being a ‘cesspit of hell’ – is a great resource, adding that you need to make it work for your business by finding the right people or organisations to link to. Suzanne advised that you follow publishers, individuals and organisations who are relevant to your business and then stay informed of what they talk about or do.

Suzanne also spoke about the importance of LinkedIn and gave some very clear advice on things that do not work on this platform. These include what you write in your bio: for example, she said you should not put in vague terms like ‘publishing professional’ or write ‘I help people to …’ but instead be specific and focus on keywords and skills. And don’t just wait around till people contact you via LinkedIn, but engage with others on the platform.

Suzanne reminded freelancers that they need to make an active effort to remain connected to their industry by joining networks and by knowing what is happening in their field. She recommended signing up for free news updates relating to their relevant industry, so for example, for book publishing she mentioned Bookseller, BookBrunch, Publishers Weekly and Publishers Lunch.

Another way of keeping abreast of what’s happening in your field is by attending events; this, she said, you should regard as CPD. At this point in the talk, we learned that many years ago Suzanne was a certified aerobics instructor and she cited the example of being required to have a certain number of hours of training/teaching to keep her aerobics accreditation updated. Freelancers, she said, should use this same logic and invest the time and money needed to attend events like book fairs or conferences – in other words, treat this as part of keeping their ‘accreditation’ current. She said book fairs were a great place to see ‘what was going on and who’s who’ and to meet people in the profession. She mentioned that the Frankfurt Book Fair might be partly virtual this year, so that may be a good opportunity for many people who might otherwise not be able to attend.

Suzanne also pointed out that being thorough in one’s work should extend to researching potential clients as well as industry trends. She said freelancers need to know what is happening in, say, a particular publishing house or genre and suggested making regular visits to bookshops and libraries to see what’s being produced, what it looks like in the finished form and how it’s being marketed.

In terms of free resources, Suzanne mentioned Google Digital Garage (where you can get free online certification for Google products), Codecademy and Coursera and said it was a good idea to check what was available in terms of Adobe training and also to check out the Independent Publishers Guild (IPG) Skills Hub. Here, she also said that although the LinkedIn training, Lynda is paid-for training, free trials of this are often available so it’s worth checking on this.

The main thing that Suzanne stressed throughout this conference session was that keeping up to date is not just about updating your tech skills, it is about keeping informed and aware of what is happening in your industry – of the trends (whether in terms of tech or genre), debates, products and other developments – and looking for resources and networks that can inform and educate you. She also identified podcasts as a very useful resource and gave the example of the Extraordinary Business Book Club as one such podcast. Suzanne herself has a weekly careers podcast on her website Bookcareers.com and she recommended that, as an editing and proofreading professional, you should look for, and identify, podcasts that are relevant to your work.

Later on in the session, she answered a question many of us ponder: ‘How important is having a niche area to one’s career progression and opportunities?’ Suzanne’s view was that while this could help you in some ways it could also hinder you and that it was probably better to ‘have some niche areas but also to keep editorial skills transferable’.

This was an inspiring session as it was a reminder of the many advantages of being a freelancer – you get to design and direct your CPD and develop your networks with no office politics or annoying boss being involved! However, as Suzanne Collier made clear in her talk, you do need to be proactive in this and not let yourself become complacent.

Umber Khairi is a new CIEP member and has a background in journalism (print, then news websites, then radio). She took early retirement from the BBC in 2018 and she is co-founder of the independent, journalist-owned magazine, Newsline, in Pakistan. She is a compulsive proofreader. Areas of interest include South Asia, Islamic culture, the news media, current affairs, new fiction and health and nutrition.

About the CIEP

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Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

Wise owls: Where do your clients find you?

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We asked our parliament of wise owls, all Advanced Professional Members, where new clients have found them, and where they focus their marketing efforts.

Liz Jones

My clients mostly find me via word of mouth, repeat business, the CIEP Directory, my website, LinkedIn and Twitter. Repeat business is probably the most important one from a financial point of view, and it’s one reason that I make sure to treat all my clients the way I would want to be treated – by offering clear communication, reliability and dedication to the work. Twitter can seem like a massive distraction at times, but I’ve forged some good working relationships on there.

I’ve also found clients in person, by approaching them at local networking events or at the CIEP conference. The thought of marching up to people and asking for work can seem intimidating, but when approached as more of a conversation around shared interests, it’s less scary. Since I rebranded at the end of last year, with a new website, I’ve had more enquiries that way – and blogging helps with this, by making me more findable.

Finally, I try to keep in touch with clients and former work colleagues via LinkedIn, which means that even if they move jobs, we remain connected. The key to all of this is that I don’t expect my clients to find me in just one way – there need to be lots of possible ways, to ensure a steady flow of work.

Sue Littleford

The short answer is through two main routes: my CIEP Directory entry cropping up in their searches, and people asking their friends for recommendations. Seriously – work towards upgrading to at least PM level as your directory entry will be worth its weight in gold. Or it will, once you’ve tweaked it. You’ll easily notice on the forums those members who have a steady stream of the work they like to do – check out their directory entries to see what’s working for them, especially those in the same kind of market as you. Keep your directory entry updated – put a recurring appointment with yourself in your diary to make sure you do!

I take the view that my work is an advert in itself. I’ve had people recommending me to their friends and colleagues up to five years after I worked for them. So always treat each job as having the potential to win you new clients, as well as making the immediate client a happy bunny.

Shameful confession time: I’m a reluctant marketer, and I’ve also let my website get old and tired. This summer it’s getting a complete overhaul, so I hope that I will be able to drive more traffic through the site and convert that traffic into interesting new clients. I’m also pants at social media, but I’ve set my sights on putting more into LinkedIn to get more out of it, as I reckon that’s where my kind of client is most likely to be hanging out.

Louise Bolotin*

I’m a strong believer in making it as easy as possible for clients to find you, either deliberately or by happy accident, so I spread myself widely across the internet to facilitate that. Apart from my website, I have listings on six professional databases – including the CIEP’s (which brings in a reasonable amount of work). Two of those have never produced even an enquiry, but that’s OK – I maintain the listings as they help keep me visible across search engines. One database has produced only one enquiry over a decade – in January this year, resulting in a two-year project after one phone call (a happy accident).

Then, of course, there’s good old word of mouth. I’m lucky, I get a lot of referrals. In the past six months alone, I’ve had three clients come to me via recommendation. One of those came via a previous client; the other two were from colleagues in a related profession.

But I don’t like to coast, so I keep my website updated (with the occasional blog post to push me up the search rankings), ditto my database listings, and I try to network on various platforms. My current best client did a shout-out on Facebook and, one Zoom call later, I got a long-term job. I’ve had other jobs via Facebook groups plus a couple via LinkedIn and I once landed a client via Twitter. I’m not very active on Twitter but in a quiet spell I’ll tweet to say I have some spare capacity. Eighteen months ago, I joined two Slack groups – one of those also generated a regular client.

Lastly, I started a newsletter in September 2020 – it offers advice and writing tips, among other things. While it’s yet to generate any work for me, it’s another place to find me and I see it as one more way to connect with people generally.

Nik Prowse

I have a website, a profile on LinkedIn and a CIEP Directory entry. Those are the three places my clients will find me. My website acts like an online CV, and it’s where people look once they’ve found me to get more information. I keep it up to date and fresh-looking. I’ve just had it rebuilt, and it’s now easy to view on a mobile device (my old site wasn’t) and is more visible on Google as a result.

My profile on LinkedIn points to my website, as does my CIEP entry, and this arrangement brings in offers of work. In terms of searching, a CIEP Directory search will probably put me in front of more potential clients than if they search ‘copyeditor’ on Google, and I’ve had plenty of work via the CIEP/SfEP over the years. So the Directory is my most lucrative marketing tool. But the combination of the three promotes my visibility online, and if people are trying to find me, they can.

I’m also on Twitter, but my potential clients – academic/educational – aren’t likely to be looking for editors on Twitter, so it’s more a social thing and for networking with other editors.

Sue Browning

Where do my clients find me? Snowballing, that’s where! What on earth do I mean by that? Let me give an example. Back in December 2015, I began editing for a Japanese linguist. It wasn’t a huge amount – around half a dozen journal/conference papers a year – but on some of those papers she had a co-author, who subsequently became a client in their own right. And they recommended me to others, so over the years, my client base of specialist Japanese (and now Korean) linguists has snowballed to eight, all over the world. And I’ve found that this is typical, particularly of academics in specialised fields – once they find someone they trust, they stick with you and recommend you to their colleagues.

So, I’ve been trading for 16+ years and have the luxury of being able to fill my schedule with work from repeat clients or recommendations. Where does that leave you, the person who has come here hoping to learn how clients might find you? Well, how did that Japanese client find me?

A fellow CIEP (SfEP then, of course) member passed my name to her when they retired. They had scoured the CIEP Directory (hint 1), and I stood out because I’d listed the required specialism (hint 2), and they recognised me from my forum presence (hint 3). My website also brings me enquiries (hint 4). Although it is woefully passé looking, its very personal nature (hint 5) obviously strikes the right tone with some people, many of whom are ideal clients that complement those I get from more academic circles.

Oddly enough, in a world where I often work globally, the local seems to be important too (hint 6). A fiction author whose fifth book I am currently editing explicitly mentioned keeping his money in the local economy when he first got in touch, and a new business client I gained last month chose me because I was ‘over the hill’, referring not to my age but to the fact that I live on the other side of the Malvern Hills from him!

The importance of an online presence

Perhaps it’s no surprise that each of the wise owls above has a strong online presence. A CIEP Directory entry, a LinkedIn profile and perhaps a Twitter presence sit alongside a professional website. And once those clients have tracked down an editor they like working with, recommendations can really expand that editor’s reach, and the demand for their services. Where do potential new clients find you? Let us know in the comments below.

Starting out or keeping going

Whether you’re just starting your editorial business, or you’re well established, there are plenty of CIEP resources to help.

Fact sheet: Getting your first clients
Guide: Going Solo
Fact sheet: Sustaining your editorial business
Guide: Pricing a Project
Blog posts: Flying Solo
Guide: Marketing Yourself
Fact sheet: Negotiating business contracts

*Louise Bolotin died in October 2022; her contributions are much missed.

About the CIEP

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Photo credits: owls by Zdeněk Macháček on Unsplash.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

Forum matters: Developing as a professional

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This feature comes from the band of CIEP members who volunteer as forum moderators. You will only be able to access links to the posts if you’re a forum user and logged in. Find out how to register.

In this article, one CIEP forum moderator looks at how we can improve our professional practice by:

networking
learning
reading
communicating
relaxing.

Start with networking

We all know the basic things we need to be an effective editor:

Training? Check.
Membership of a professional organisation? Check.
A sparkling website? Check.
Social media profiles? Check.

But there’s another, more nebulous side to improving our professional practice. Learning, reading and communicating are all ways to develop, although they may not be measurable on a balance sheet. The CIEP forums offer various suggestions, once again underlining the value of networking. If you have a question, however obscure it is, post it on the forum. You can bet that someone will know something (while others will offer a different perspective), and you will learn a lot from the helpful, supportive and knowledgeable answers posted by CIEP members.

Learn

You could consider mentoring – see ‘Advice on website and mentoring’. This doesn’t have to be editorial mentoring. Do you want to learn how to raise your rates and have more time to do things other than work, but you’re not sure how to go about it? Then business mentoring could be for you.

Form an accountability group – the blog ‘Accountability groups: What? Where? Why?’ talks about finding like-minded colleagues for support and encouragement.

Take up voluntary work – this could be related to your editing business, but it doesn’t have to be. CIEP members responded to ‘Tell us about your volunteer work!’ with their experiences of a wide range of organisations, including a church, a zoo and a nature reserve. You can make a genuine difference to a charity or not-for-profit organisation by, for example, removing typos, errors or repetition from their website, or by rewriting a funding letter. Volunteering doesn’t just give you a warm, fuzzy feeling; it also helps your communication skills, as you may be working with people who don’t usually use editorial professionals.

Read

I know, right? We spend all day reading other people’s words, but reading is the best way to find out more and to make yourself more attractive to clients (see the suggestions all over the forums).

You can go at your own speed and choose what you want to read. If you’re thinking about branching out into fiction editing, how about How Not to Write a Novel (Mittelmark and Newman, Penguin, 2009) or John Yorke’s Into the Woods (Penguin, 2014)? If you work on children’s books, then how about Cheryl B. Klein’s The Magic Words (W. W. Norton & Co., 2016)? Want to find out about self-editing tools to help your fiction authors? Then Self-editing for Fiction Writers (Browne and King, Harper Resource, 2004) ticks the box. History, with a feminist slant? A History of Britain in 21 Women by Jenni Murray (Oneworld, 2016). To generally improve your writing style: Steven Pinker’s The Sense of Style (Penguin, 2015). Whatever you’d like to know, there will be a book – or hundreds – to help, and I bet that everything you learn will come in handy during editing – one day.

Still on the topic of reading, if you don’t have time for a book, then how about a blog post? Almost a year ago, Melanie Thompson started ‘Blog post corner’, which includes links to some great blogs all about the softer side of professionalism, such as Hazel Bird’s ‘How to be a trustworthy freelancer’. Some of Hazel’s top tips are: ask sensible questions; offer solutions, not problems; admit your fallibility; don’t overreach; anticipate surprises; check in without being asked; and build on the past.

Want to know what the best time-tracking software is? Then read ‘Keeping track of time worked’. Want to make notes and save paper? Check out ‘Paperless notes’.

Communicate

Communication is an essential ‘soft’ skill. Editors are generally good communicators, but lockdown has been stressful for many, perhaps making us a bit snappier than usual, and we should be mindful of this when we’re communicating with clients and other editors. We’d all rather do business with someone who’s pleasant, happy and upbeat than someone who is snappy, rude and downbeat. Perusing the forums is a good lesson in supportive communication (with the odd tutorial in soft diplomacy, if you look carefully enough!).

After all that, relax

Exercise is essential for physical and mental health. If we sit at our desk all day, we get sleepy, cross and lethargic. If we take a break, we return to work invigorated and energised. ‘Self-care ideas’ contains fantastic suggestions to help us wind down and relax, including meditation, mindfulness and getting out in nature. For a virtual breath of fresh air, keep up with the ever-popular ‘Wildlife distraction of the day’.

On that note, I’ve been sitting at my desk all day, the sun is shining and I can hear birds tweeting outside. Time for a walk. It’s good for my professional development.

Networking; learning; reading; communicating; relaxing. What will you try?

About the CIEP

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Photo credits: sunflowers by Roma Kaiuk; Always room to grow by Kyle Glenn, both on Unsplash.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

Buck the trend: strengthening your business during lockdown

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By Rachel Gristwood

2020 was a challenging year in which to set up and run a business. But with the wonders of modern technology, it has been possible to receive training, find clients and function as an editor/proofreader from the comfort of our own homes.

In 2019, I completed the CIEP’s Proofreading 1: Introduction course and passed the Proofreading 2: Headway course. That summer, I began a year-long business start-up course through The Growing Club, a local Community Interest Company (CIC) for women that functions much like an enterprise agency. It provided me with training and support while I was setting up my business: Well Read Proofreading Services.

And then the pandemic struck.

There was no script for how to set up a business and find clients in a pandemic. The trick was to use the contacts I already had, think innovatively and make the most of every opportunity that came my way.

I’ve listed below some suggestions for how to strengthen a proofreading/editing business during the pandemic, together with how these avenues have helped me – sometimes in surprising ways.

Local Enterprise Agency (EA)

Local enterprise agencies exist in the UK to help start-up and small businesses. Other countries may have organisations that perform a similar function but go by a different name for our overseas friends.

Ask if they run training courses. These may be as simple as a morning session on how to use a particular social media platform, or an in-depth year-long course on how to set up and run a business. Enquire as to whether you might be eligible for any funding to help with costs.
See if they have any networking events via Zoom. You may be able to find new clients. At the very least, you’d be able to chat with other small business owners and perhaps learn from them.
Does your local EA have any contact with other organisations that may help you, such as the local group of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) or a Chamber of Commerce?
Is there a mentoring scheme where you can be helped with the finer details of running your business and finding clients?

My experience

I am fortunate to live in the area covered by The Growing Club, a Community Interest Company that provides support, training and mentoring opportunities for women in the North West of England. I began a year-long business start-up course in the summer of 2019, which continued via Zoom during the lockdown. Through that course, I now have a business mentor who will answer questions, help me to plan and, most importantly to me, help with any difficulties – something I am so grateful for as it greatly reduces my stress levels!

I attend a weekly Zoom drop-in session, which is great for socialising with other small business owners and finding out answers to any questions I might have. I also attend the monthly local group meeting of the FSB, through which I now have two prospective clients talking with me about their future proofreading needs.

I have gained some business through networking there, and now have two local authors as clients; two local businesses have given me material to proofread that they’ve written during lockdown, and the owner of a new start-up business asked me to bring their website up to scratch because English is their second language.

I’ve also undertaken a piece of copywriting through The Growing Club and had the pleasure of being taken on as a writing coach to help a local author with her writing – something I enjoyed enormously.

Local college

Colleges provide courses to help upskill their local population.

Find out about the range of courses they offer. You may have thought of broadening your social media reach to get your business ‘out there’, so see if your local college offers training courses on different social media platforms.
See if they run courses on aspects of running a business; for example, marketing or finance.
Ask if funding is available to local businesses.

My experience

I found there were social media courses through Lancaster and Morecambe College, with training provided by The Consult Centre, a local social media company. I undertook training sessions on LinkedIn, Facebook and Google My Business, as well as Canva, which enables me to design professional, branded posts to upload to my social media platforms. As a local business owner, I was eligible for full funding.

While I post weekly on social media to increase the visibility of my business, I’ve enjoyed the natural networking opportunities such interaction has given me. Connecting with other editors and proofreaders through LinkedIn has been a pleasure, a helpful resource, and has helped me feel much less isolated during these strange times.

Universities

Students and academics use the services of proofreaders for dissertations, theses, journal articles and books. Some universities maintain a register of approved proofreaders. They may stipulate that applicants to the register must live within easy reach of the university to meet potential clients in person, if requested, and there are often proofreader guidelines to adhere to.

My experience

I definitely knew when Masters dissertation writing time had arrived! Yes, you’re proofreading to a tight deadline, but I got a real buzz out of working closely with the students and helping make their writing the best it could be prior to submission.

I enjoyed a detailed commission for an academic to help ensure her article met the house style of the journal she wished to submit it to.

The Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading

My membership of the CIEP has played an integral part in my development as a proofreader. I completed the Institute’s level 1 and 2 proofreading courses in 2019.

The 2020 CIEP conference laid a wealth of information at my feet. Thank you to every keynote speaker. The networking sessions were instrumental in helping me build connections with editors and proofreaders.

I also belong to my local CIEP group and enjoy the Zoom meetings. It’s a great way to give tips to others and to learn from those more experienced than myself.

Other avenues

Be innovative!

Write articles for publications. This will get your business name out there and tell people what services you provide.

Diversify. I now also offer:

Copywriting
Transcription
Coaching sessions in writing skills.

For those of you just starting out, see if you can undertake voluntary work in return for a testimonial.

Summary

Be open to opportunities and flexible enough to mould your skills to a situation that may not be your normal remit, but one that you could diversify into.

The most memorable soundbite I learned from my year-long business start-up course was: ‘Don’t ever do the hard sell – just talk to people.’ Ask them about themselves and their business. Leave them with a positive feeling after your conversation and they’ll remember you in a good light.

I hope I’ve been able to suggest ideas to strengthen your business. I’d love to hear your tips, too.

After achieving a Masters in Volcanology and Geological Hazards from Lancaster University, Rachel Gristwood trained in proofreading through the CIEP before setting up her business, Well Read Proofreading Services. She enjoys working within academia, and also with local authors and business owners. Networking is important to her, especially via Zoom during the pandemic.

The CIEP’s guides are great resources for editorial business owners – whatever stage they are at. Check out Marketing Yourself and Pricing a Project. A new edition of Going Solo, with an accompanying record keeping Excel toolkit, will be published soon.

Photo credits: Rachel’s photo was taken by her late father, Ken Gristwood. Strength by Vicky Sim; Grow by Andrew Seaman on Unsplash.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

A week in the life of a virtual personal assistant

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By Sherona Treen-Coward of Treen Coward Associates

I began my self-employment journey as a virtual personal assistant in 2014; having spent 16 years in industry, I felt it was time for a new challenge. I had worked in the legal sector and the NHS, mainly in administrative and managerial roles. I wanted to put my skills to good use, and the concept of the virtual personal assistant was emerging. I also wanted to futureproof my work, and I felt this was a business I could build upon.

In 2017, as the team grew and our services expanded, we decided to rebrand. I now have two employees and a specialist contractor on board, as we continue to grow and evolve the business to suit the ever-changing needs of the professional service industries. As such, we can offer a variety of services, such as virtual personal assistant, virtual administrator, note-taking for meetings, social media management, bookkeeping and call answering.

Like many self-employed individuals, I often cite the variety in my work as a huge benefit. I work with service-based professionals from a variety of industries; however, the principles of good business administration remain the same.

I work traditional office hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Typical daily work for me will include chasing documentation over the phone, appointment setting, diary and email management, CRM management, document formatting, invoicing, answering calls and dealing with queries, drafting content for various purposes, and audio typing. I will also note-take at board and other business meetings, and compile action lists and associated papers as well as ensuring they are circulated well in advance of the meeting.

I am also involved in a variety of projects where we agree a process, and I ensure this is adhered to as well as carrying out any tasks that may be assigned to me. I particularly enjoy project-related work, as evaluating or managing processes has always been part of my managerial administrative background.

Stay professional

Pre-pandemic I would often attend many meetings each week which involved travel. All my meetings have since moved online, and I always qualify the purpose of a meeting before agreeing to any requests. I think that has become more important than ever, as demands on our time have not necessarily decreased, but they have changed. One thing I am always conscious of is working productively and adding value rather than being busy. Like many, I am now working from home but have set up my home office to ensure I separate work from non-work. I do miss the travel associated with my work, but it is more important to be safe at this time.

Being a virtual personal assistant and business manager is not just about getting appointments in the diary. We are often the first point of contact for many organisations and professionals, the face or voice of someone else’s business, and their professional reputation can start and end with us. Even though all our meetings have now moved online, I still observe office attire when facing clients or attending a business meeting.

When I first started out and was working from home, I had to deal with assumptions that I wasn’t doing much all day and had lots of free time, but that is not the case. Our clients work traditional office hours and we support them during that time and deadlines are there to be met. While a benefit of self-employment is managing one’s own diary, discipline is essential if you want to stay in business.

Aside from working in the business, I also set time aside to work on the business. Like every business, we need to undertake accounting and marketing activities among other things. I block time out each week to plan our social media, write blogs, and check over our accounting system. I also check in with my colleagues, our clients, and meet with my business mentor, whose support has been invaluable to me and my business.

Stay connected

Part of our marketing strategy involves networking, which I do regularly, and I am a member of a weekly networking event that now meets online. It is also part of a larger network where I can attend other meetings and catch up with other members. Networking is a really important part of my work, and one of the most enjoyable bits too. Meeting with like-minded business owners helps develop a business mindset, and it’s a great way to keep up to date with news from various industries. I always recommend networking to other business owners, regardless of their line of work: it is a great way to meet other professionals, build your professional relationships and create opportunities for potential work. I always enjoyed running the SfEP [now the CIEP] annual conference speed networking events and getting to know the members.

Similarly, I have been able to source professional suppliers based on reputation and trust by asking my network. But it’s not all work, work, work – there are social aspects to networking, which are equally important to us as human beings. When I first started, it was easy to get through almost the whole day without speaking to anyone, as I was so focused on building my business, but through networking, I realised that to build my business I needed to build relationships too.

Plan your courses

Another important part of my working life is CPD [Continuing Professional Development]. As an employee, I was required to attend training courses, and often delivered training too, but being self-employed meant I now had complete control over my CPD plan. I have taken various courses over the years, from introductory to post-grad level; they may relate specifically to my work, but also general business-ownership matters such as marketing or leadership. I am currently completing the ILM Level 5 in Leadership and Management as I want to undertake more project management and process improvement work, and this is taking up quite a bit of my working week as the course comes to an end.

Some courses have been free, others require a financial investment. I have a CPD plan that I review regularly to ensure the courses I attend add value to my work and ultimately my clients. CPD comes in many forms, such as general reading, listening to podcasts, or undertaking self-directed research. That said, I also recently attended a short online art course, which forced me to slow down and make time to observe – traits which I’m sure will benefit all aspects of my life.

Allow time for yourself

It may not seem that there’s much time left after all that, but as my grandparents often reminded me, all work and no play … As difficult as it can be, I always try to do one thing for myself each day. It can be something really small like walking the dog, a five-minute exercise while waiting for the kettle to boil, or calling a family member or friend. I try to do it before I start work so I feel energised for the day ahead; sometimes it’s not possible, and there may be days when it doesn’t happen, but it’s important to factor in some time for yourself to keep a healthy mind and body, and to maintain your relationships in and out of work.

At the end of the week, I always take a moment to look at what I have achieved and celebrate those wins! Again, they may be big or small, but ending the working week positively with a glass of something sparkly is important to me. I’m fortunate to live within reach of two cities and several beaches, and at the weekend I like to spend lots of time outdoors, walking or kayaking. The contrast to my working life really helps me to achieve some kind of work-life balance.

Sherona Treen-Coward is a virtual personal assistant and business manager with over 20 years’ experience working with lawyers, doctors and service-based professionals within the UK. After starting her own business in 2014, one of Sherona’s first self-employed contracts was supporting the CIEP conference director, drafting and sending correspondence on behalf of the CIEP. Five CIEP conferences later (and imposter syndrome very rarely permitting) she thought perhaps she wasn’t that bad a writer after all, and finally started writing her own stuff.

Check out the other posts in our ‘Week in the life’ series: discover what a picture researcher, senior editorial project manager and a book indexer do.

Photo credits: Desk by Nathan Riley on Unsplash; video conference by Alexandra_Koch on Pixabay.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, CIEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the CIEP.

BookMachine: three benefits for editors and proofreaders

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By Laura Summers

I run BookMachine, a thriving community for publishing professionals. We have been running for nearly nine years now and we pride ourselves on our ability to connect the people who actually make publishing happen. If you are looking to work on new projects and be at the forefront of the industry, then BookMachine is for you.

Here are three ways we can help you.

1. Access to book fairs

Traditionally, book fairs were the land of rights and editorial professionals – those negotiating over the finer points of a book sale. Starting at 8am, and often finishing in the early evening, fairs were a time to discuss upcoming titles for sale and meet potential partners from all over the world.

This is still at the heart of a book fair; however, there is a lot happening these days that can also benefit the rest of us – and that includes copy-editors and proofreaders. Over 25,000 publishing professionals will attend the London Book Fair next week and it is free to attend for BookMachine members. There is a packed seminar programme designed to provide knowledge, tools and insight for everyone working in the industry; and a host of opportunities to meet interesting industry professionals.

BookMachine always organise an informal event on the Wednesday afternoon – an opportunity for professionals to meet each other and relax after a day of meetings or seminars.

In the evening, we work in partnership with the London Book Fair team and host the Global Gathering, the goal of which is to help international visitors and UK publishers to meet and mingle, again in an informal setting.

2. Industry knowledge from your desk

If alongside your work, you crave knowledge, ideas and personal development, then you can access our knowledge base for free.

Like the SfEP blog, we aim to enhance the lives of our community. Unlike the SfEP blog, we don’t write exclusively for editors and proofreaders. The site collates articles divided into six channels – tech, design, editorial, marketing, business and audio. If you work in editorial, please don’t just read the editorial channel. The idea is to encourage people in different departments to work together. All the blog posts have been designed to help us do this.

We have been curating industry insights on the blog for such a long time that, whatever you are interested in finding out, we should have the answers for you. However, as an editor, if you can’t find a question answered, or think you have a better angle on one of our ideas – please let us know. We are an industry site, and although our expert Editorial Board keep us informed, there are always going to be niche areas we could all learn more about.

3. Industry knowledge on a night out

Early on in our own publishing careers we identified that many events for publishers are really quite formal and expensive. Unless an employer or client offers to pay for this, it can be quite prohibitive. We knew so many people wanting to learn more – but on their own terms, from their own pocket and in order to boost their own careers. This drove us to create events which are accessible to everyone (although we know we need to venture out of London more).

Since 2010 we have hosted over 100 events for these people who actually make publishing happen, and in 2019 our event series BookMachine Unplugged is back to offer even more insight. There will be six informal events, each of which will zoom in on a vital area of the publishing industry and feature three expert speakers. Each evening has been programmed by an Editorial Board member and has been designed to inspire you with real insights into what is working in publishing right now. The events aren’t expensive to attend (£10 or free for BookMachine members) and we guarantee that editors and proofreaders will learn something interesting and meet someone new.

Laura Summers co-founded BookMachine in 2010, initially as an informal way for publishers to meet each other at events, and then as a popular site for anyone building a publishing career. The team have now organised over 100 events. In 2017 she launched BookMachine Works, a creative events and marketing agency, specialising in the publishing industry. Laura has spoken about events and publishing at the Frankfurt Book Fair, the London Book Fair, IPG Digital Quarterly, the Galley Club, BIC battles, Women in Publishing and the SYP conference.

Posted by Abi Saffrey, SfEP blog coordinator.

The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the SfEP.