Cool Job: Work From Home as a Copyeditor

Since my last Cool Work From Home Job was freelance writer, I thought a look at copyediting would be fitting. What is a copyeditor? Well what a copyeditor is not, is a proofreader, although proofreading is part of the job. Copyeditors go over written copy before it's set into type, correcting errors in grammar, spelling, style, and usage.

Sometimes copyediting includes fact checking, although in most instances, this is not the case. It occasionally even means rewriting a piece to make it tighter and more readable. If you work at a magazine or newspaper, your job as copyeditor might include such things as layout or writing captions and headlines. But as a freelance copyeditor, your job will mainly consist of making certain a piece of copy is free from error, reads smoothly, and follows the rules of the recognized grammar and style guides.

Finding work as a freelance copyeditor may be challenging at first. The Freelance Work Exchange is a great place to advertise and find work. A professional website with contact information is a must.

Theda K. at Crayon Writer has written an excellent article about freelance copyediting, entitled "If You Can Write, You Can Copyedit." Read it for a better idea of what copyediting involves and whether it might be the right job for you.