I’ve been
a writer since, technically, the third grade, when my short story, The
Wolf & I, won me third place and $300 in my local library’s writing
contest.
Yep,
that’s right – 300 big ones for a third grader. The nineties were a different
time to be a writer.
But I
digress – my point being is that I’ve been a writer for many, many years. While
I don’t actually count that library payment as the start of my
professional writing career, I have been a paid adult writer
for approximately 12 years. That’s a pretty long time!
So, when
my editor gave me this topic – “What is the difference between an editor and a
proofreader?” – I felt a bit flabbergasted. Why?
Because I
was momentarily stumped. I realized I only had a vague idea of the differences
between the two.
And since
we often write about the similar roles in conjunction on Real Ways
to Earn, we figured it would be in our readers’ best interest if we spent
some time defining what one role does versus another, which companies hire
proofreaders specifically and which companies hire editors,
etc.
And of
course, all of the aforementioned companies are at the very least, open to
hiring remote workers. Read on.
What Does
An Editor Do?
Editors
are typically hired to improve the “flow” and quality of writing. This is a
much more creative endeavor, as opposed to a Proofreader, whose main job
function is to check an article for spelling errors, punctuation mistakes, and
grammar misses.
Think of
an Editor like an artist and a Proofreader like an instructor; one is
inventive, and the other is precise.
That
doesn’t mean that these two roles can’t blend together at times, especially if
you’re working remotely for a start-up or smaller business – but make no
mistake, these job functions are separate.
Below is a
list of companies that specifically hire remote editors:
Companies
That Hire Remote Editors
CACTUS
Cactus
hires remote editors to work on a variety of projects, primarily in the medical
and pharmaceutical fields.
Other
industries you may find yourself editing for include: scholarly publishing,
physical sciences, engineering, life sciences, and the humanities – so it isn’t
all dry topics!
Cactus
also has multiple opportunities in terms of how you want to
work, whether it’s full-time, entirely from home, full-time/in-office, or as a
freelancer. They’re big proponents of telecommuting, which is a bonus in our
book!
Current
openings at the time of publishing this article included: Academic Editing,
Physical Sciences & Engineering; Academic Editing, Medicine & Life
Sciences; and Academic Editing, Humanities & Social Sciences. As you can
see, the company places a heavy emphasis on academia, so only apply if that
world is within your background.
Some
editors cite low pay within the
company, so that is something to consider prior to applying.
We also
have a CACTUS review if you'd like a little more
detail on this company.
American Journal
Experts (AJE)
The
American Journal Experts, or AJE, is a division of Research Square, founded in
Durham, North Carolina – meaning, it is a part of the famed Research Triangle.
The company claims to have edited “over half a
million papers in 447 areas of study” – so it seems like a pretty decent place
to work for!
Again,
this is another company in which the employees claim that the pay is low,
so perhaps ask prior to applying what your pay rate would be, and then decide
if it works for you.
Gramlee
Gramlee
accepts clients that need editing with a super-fast turnaround time. How fast,
you ask? 24-hours-fast. This could mean that there is constant work for you (at
home, as a contractor, of course). And the customer reviews of Gramlee are
top-notch.
Based on
the example work on their website, it’s
definitely more of an editing position, as you can seemingly change up the way
content is phrased. If you join, let us know what you think!
EditFast
Perhaps
one of the best features of EditFast is its transparency. The company – right
on its homepage – is pretty upfront about pay (they keep 40% of the final total
project price), how often you get work (could be fairly often, could be
not-that-often), restrictions (don’t talk to the client, duh!) – and so much
more.
The
company hires freelancers and sends notifications when client work is
available.
Managed Editing
This
website hires skilled editors to work as contractors from home, of course,
though right now they “don’t have a current pressing need.” It certainly
couldn’t hurt to apply, though!
Let us
know how the application process goes and if you get hired on – it seems like a
great company to work for, what with their higher standards for editors (you
need to have a college degree and at least five years of
editing experience if you want to apply for a position).
What Does
a Proofreader Do?
A
proofreader, is, by definition, a person that is essentially a
post-draft-editor. Proofreading is an activity that occurs after a
draft of an article, blog, manuscript, etc., is completed.
Proofreading
is the final step of the editing process; according to Upwork.com, “A
proofreader will review for spelling errors, punctuation errors, typos or
incorrect use of regional English (i.e. ensuring that you’re using American
English or British English when necessary).”
Much like
our list above, below is a list of companies that specifically hire remote
proofreaders, if that’s more your style and experience:
Companies
That Hire Remote Proofreaders
ProofreadingServices.com
This
website hires proofreaders from all over the world – and it requires you to
take a 20-minute test to ensure that you’re up-to-par.
The website
states that pay ranges from USD $19-$46 hourly, with “the highest pay for the
most urgent deadlines.”
The
website also cites “flexible hours” and “great colleagues!” While the latter is
a bit of a “gimme” – I mean, you’re working from home, after all, not around
other people, and I’m assuming the only real interaction you’re going to have
while working for this company is with your editor and/or supervisor – the
flexible hours part is key.
I’ve
noticed lately that some companies, while hiring freelancers, want you to be
available certain hours – ironic, as part of being a freelancer means that
legally, you can work whenever you want and aren’t bound by typical
employee/employer rules of having to be somewhere at a certain time/between
certain hours, or at least working between certain hours.
I
appreciate a company that’s upfront about its flexibility – or lack
thereof.
Quality
Proofreading Services
This group
hires native English speakers as proofreaders, and typically sways more towards
the Brits versus American English speakers.
The
company provides professional proofreading services for academics, students,
and companies; their main focuses are business, science, engineering, and
management.
You must have
a university degree to work for this proofreading service, so keep that in mind
before applying, especially if you haven’t finished school, or are a student
yourself.
While the
website doesn’t provide information on pay, it does start its pricing for its
clients, so you can judge for yourself whether that may work in your favor:
“rates start from £10.90/€15.00/$16.50 per 1,000 words (+20% VAT for UK and EU
customers).”
Babbletype
According
to their website, Babbletype is “always looking for editors” – but they are
highly selective. Also, from the reviews, it sounds like it’s actually a proofreading job
– not an editorial one (see below).
Other reviews state that
payment starts low, but can increase significantly as you get faster and better
at the work.
Your work
at Babbletype will be the final stage of work before getting sent off to the
client, hence it being an actual “proofreading” job.
eCorrector
This
website hires, specifically, scientific proofreaders – a very specific job
function of a very specific industry! They hire translators, too, so feel free
to apply if you fit the bill!
They even
have a “Scientists’ Library” available on their website – pretty cool!
Cambridge Proofreading
This
service is a bit confusing, much like Babbletype, as it tends to use the terms
“editor” and “proofreader” interchangeably, but regardless, the company seems
to be focused on proofreading over editing. In order to work for Cambridge, you
must:
·
be
a native English speaker.
·
hold
at least a BA from a “well-respected” university, and
·
be
able to edit at least 10,000 words per week.
The above
– especially the final point – isn’t bad, considering that 10,000 words equates
to about 20 single-spaced pages – I could do that in my sleep!
Average
pay is between $20-$30 per hour, and you can choose when to get paid, whether
it’s bi-monthly, weekly, or monthly – that’s a pretty sweet deal, if you ask
me! Pay, of course, depends on your editing speed and accuracy.
Have you
obtained any work-from-home positions as an editor and/or proofreader? Which is
your forte? Let us know in the comments!
Start a
Proofreading Side Hustle
You can
earn good money at home by proofreading books, blogs, and websites. There
is a HUGE demand for this!
And no,
you do not need a college degree. If you have a good eye for errors in text and
know your grammar inside and out, you can do this. Another plus to proofreading
for others on the side is that it's non-phone, and you work when and where you
want.
You can register for a free 76-minute workshop here that
will introduce you to this field. The workshop shows you what good proofreaders
do and don't do, how to elevate your skills, some places to find clients, and
some information on an amazing proofreading tool.
I’ve been
a writer since, technically, the third grade, when my short story, The
Wolf & I, won me third place and $300 in my local library’s writing
contest.
Yep,
that’s right – 300 big ones for a third grader. The nineties were a different
time to be a writer.
But I
digress – my point being is that I’ve been a writer for many, many years. While
I don’t actually count that library payment as the start of my
professional writing career, I have been a paid adult writer
for approximately 12 years. That’s a pretty long time!
So, when
my editor gave me this topic – “What is the difference between an editor and a
proofreader?” – I felt a bit flabbergasted. Why?
Because I
was momentarily stumped. I realized I only had a vague idea of the differences
between the two.
And since
we often write about the similar roles in conjunction on Real Ways
to Earn, we figured it would be in our readers’ best interest if we spent
some time defining what one role does versus another, which companies hire
proofreaders specifically and which companies hire editors,
etc.
And of
course, all of the aforementioned companies are at the very least, open to
hiring remote workers. Read on.
What Does
An Editor Do?
Editors
are typically hired to improve the “flow” and quality of writing. This is a
much more creative endeavor, as opposed to a Proofreader, whose main job
function is to check an article for spelling errors, punctuation mistakes, and
grammar misses.
Think of
an Editor like an artist and a Proofreader like an instructor; one is
inventive, and the other is precise.
That
doesn’t mean that these two roles can’t blend together at times, especially if
you’re working remotely for a start-up or smaller business – but make no
mistake, these job functions are separate.
Below is a
list of companies that specifically hire remote editors:
Companies
That Hire Remote Editors
CACTUS
Cactus
hires remote editors to work on a variety of projects, primarily in the medical
and pharmaceutical fields.
Other
industries you may find yourself editing for include: scholarly publishing,
physical sciences, engineering, life sciences, and the humanities – so it isn’t
all dry topics!
Cactus
also has multiple opportunities in terms of how you want to
work, whether it’s full-time, entirely from home, full-time/in-office, or as a
freelancer. They’re big proponents of telecommuting, which is a bonus in our
book!
Current
openings at the time of publishing this article included: Academic Editing,
Physical Sciences & Engineering; Academic Editing, Medicine & Life
Sciences; and Academic Editing, Humanities & Social Sciences. As you can
see, the company places a heavy emphasis on academia, so only apply if that
world is within your background.
Some
editors cite low pay within the
company, so that is something to consider prior to applying.
We also
have a CACTUS review if you'd like a little more
detail on this company.
American Journal
Experts (AJE)
The
American Journal Experts, or AJE, is a division of Research Square, founded in
Durham, North Carolina – meaning, it is a part of the famed Research Triangle.
The company claims to have edited “over half a
million papers in 447 areas of study” – so it seems like a pretty decent place
to work for!
Again,
this is another company in which the employees claim that the pay is low,
so perhaps ask prior to applying what your pay rate would be, and then decide
if it works for you.
Gramlee
Gramlee
accepts clients that need editing with a super-fast turnaround time. How fast,
you ask? 24-hours-fast. This could mean that there is constant work for you (at
home, as a contractor, of course). And the customer reviews of Gramlee are
top-notch.
Based on
the example work on their website, it’s
definitely more of an editing position, as you can seemingly change up the way
content is phrased. If you join, let us know what you think!
EditFast
Perhaps
one of the best features of EditFast is its transparency. The company – right
on its homepage – is pretty upfront about pay (they keep 40% of the final total
project price), how often you get work (could be fairly often, could be
not-that-often), restrictions (don’t talk to the client, duh!) – and so much
more.
The
company hires freelancers and sends notifications when client work is
available.
Managed Editing
This
website hires skilled editors to work as contractors from home, of course,
though right now they “don’t have a current pressing need.” It certainly
couldn’t hurt to apply, though!
Let us
know how the application process goes and if you get hired on – it seems like a
great company to work for, what with their higher standards for editors (you
need to have a college degree and at least five years of
editing experience if you want to apply for a position).
What Does
a Proofreader Do?
A
proofreader, is, by definition, a person that is essentially a
post-draft-editor. Proofreading is an activity that occurs after a
draft of an article, blog, manuscript, etc., is completed.
Proofreading
is the final step of the editing process; according to Upwork.com, “A
proofreader will review for spelling errors, punctuation errors, typos or
incorrect use of regional English (i.e. ensuring that you’re using American
English or British English when necessary).”
Much like
our list above, below is a list of companies that specifically hire remote
proofreaders, if that’s more your style and experience:
Companies
That Hire Remote Proofreaders
ProofreadingServices.com
This
website hires proofreaders from all over the world – and it requires you to
take a 20-minute test to ensure that you’re up-to-par.
The website
states that pay ranges from USD $19-$46 hourly, with “the highest pay for the
most urgent deadlines.”
The
website also cites “flexible hours” and “great colleagues!” While the latter is
a bit of a “gimme” – I mean, you’re working from home, after all, not around
other people, and I’m assuming the only real interaction you’re going to have
while working for this company is with your editor and/or supervisor – the
flexible hours part is key.
I’ve
noticed lately that some companies, while hiring freelancers, want you to be
available certain hours – ironic, as part of being a freelancer means that
legally, you can work whenever you want and aren’t bound by typical
employee/employer rules of having to be somewhere at a certain time/between
certain hours, or at least working between certain hours.
I
appreciate a company that’s upfront about its flexibility – or lack
thereof.
Quality
Proofreading Services
This group
hires native English speakers as proofreaders, and typically sways more towards
the Brits versus American English speakers.
The
company provides professional proofreading services for academics, students,
and companies; their main focuses are business, science, engineering, and
management.
You must have
a university degree to work for this proofreading service, so keep that in mind
before applying, especially if you haven’t finished school, or are a student
yourself.
While the
website doesn’t provide information on pay, it does start its pricing for its
clients, so you can judge for yourself whether that may work in your favor:
“rates start from £10.90/€15.00/$16.50 per 1,000 words (+20% VAT for UK and EU
customers).”
Babbletype
According
to their website, Babbletype is “always looking for editors” – but they are
highly selective. Also, from the reviews, it sounds like it’s actually a proofreading job
– not an editorial one (see below).
Other reviews state that
payment starts low, but can increase significantly as you get faster and better
at the work.
Your work
at Babbletype will be the final stage of work before getting sent off to the
client, hence it being an actual “proofreading” job.
eCorrector
This
website hires, specifically, scientific proofreaders – a very specific job
function of a very specific industry! They hire translators, too, so feel free
to apply if you fit the bill!
They even
have a “Scientists’ Library” available on their website – pretty cool!
Cambridge Proofreading
This
service is a bit confusing, much like Babbletype, as it tends to use the terms
“editor” and “proofreader” interchangeably, but regardless, the company seems
to be focused on proofreading over editing. In order to work for Cambridge, you
must:
·
be
a native English speaker.
·
hold
at least a BA from a “well-respected” university, and
·
be
able to edit at least 10,000 words per week.
The above
– especially the final point – isn’t bad, considering that 10,000 words equates
to about 20 single-spaced pages – I could do that in my sleep!
Average
pay is between $20-$30 per hour, and you can choose when to get paid, whether
it’s bi-monthly, weekly, or monthly – that’s a pretty sweet deal, if you ask
me! Pay, of course, depends on your editing speed and accuracy.
Have you
obtained any work-from-home positions as an editor and/or proofreader? Which is
your forte? Let us know in the comments!
Start a
Proofreading Side Hustle
You can
earn good money at home by proofreading books, blogs, and websites. There
is a HUGE demand for this!
And no,
you do not need a college degree. If you have a good eye for errors in text and
know your grammar inside and out, you can do this. Another plus to proofreading
for others on the side is that it's non-phone, and you work when and where you
want.
You can register for a free 76-minute workshop here that
will introduce you to this field. The workshop shows you what good proofreaders
do and don't do, how to elevate your skills, some places to find clients, and
some information on an amazing proofreading tool.
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