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[Caveat: This is a sketchy recitation that definitely does not represent all the points raised, questions posed, or responses given to the questions.]

How can I expand my business into a certain area I haven’t tackled before, i.e., fiction?

	Add those topics to the areas of interest you list in our Membership Directory, so clients searching for someone with those interests will find you.
	Consider volunteering to edit/proof a few projects in those areas, or do it at a reduced rate, to gain experience and a credit for your resume. For instance, one member did an index for a reduced rate so she would be able to put indexing experience (and the prestigious client’s name) on her resume.
	Stress your background in the topic, even if it has not been as a paid editor. For instance, someone seeking fiction work could stress their background as a reader.

How can I make the transition from technical to nontechnical work?

One idea was to identify subjects that you’re knowledgeable about, even if that knowledge wasn’t gained through paid experience as an editor (gardening was an example for the person in question) and explore clients who publish in those areas (Literary Marketplace was one reference book mentioned that could be helpful in this process).

Breaking into academic work was discussed. One member said the UW must publish a great many journals that would require editing, and wondered if there were opportunities there. Another said the academic world can be quite rigid and often requires editors to have a degree in the specific field the journal covers, even if they are not doing substantive editing. Another member suggested exploring academic associations. There are hundreds for every conceivable field and microdivision of a field, and many publish journals.

The importance of building a relationship was stressed.

	Many clients are nervous about giving their projects to an editor they don’t know. They want to know you’ll do a good job (not too much, not too little), on time, on budget. That’s why—annoyingly, for editors trying to break in—they will often ask people they know for referrals rather than consult their file of resumes people have sent in.
	Clients call each other to ask for names of good people, so do a good job for your current clients and you’re likely to get referrals. Also, when people you’ve worked with move to new jobs in different organizations, they may call you to do work for them at the new place.
	One editor delivers work in person (and early if possible) so her current clients can meet her face to face.

Ideas for what to send to prospective clients were offered.

	One editor has compiled a list of books/projects she’s worked on, organized by client, to show that she has had a long relationship with her current clients.
	Including names of references and/or letters of praise from your current clients may be helpful.
	If books you’ve worked on have won awards, that may be helpful to mention.

One member discussed having sent letters of inquiry to 11 potential clients. She carefully tailored the letter to each client, consulting their Web sites to get the names of the editors in charge of the sort of books she was interested in editing. Thus far she’s received two responses, including one from a major New York publisher, which sent her their editing test to do and return, suggesting the encouraging notion that at least some publishers do look at those resumes. (Though 2 of 11 may not sound like too much, it’s actually an 18% return, which would be considered fairly awesome in the world of direct mail.)

This member also was assertive about contacting potential clients when she moved to Seattle, sending them her resume, calling them, and setting up informational interviews, which did result in work as well as other contacts.

There was discussion of what an editing sample would look like, and whether clients are interested in seeing one (we’re not sure). To show editing, you’d have to send a sample of the raw copy with your editing marks on it (either online or handwritten) so a client can separate your work from the writer’s.

A few specific stories were shared.

	One member contacted a publisher whose books she’d enjoyed reading, and now that publisher is one of her clients.
	Another includes among her regular clients a periodical on chocolate published by a candymakers’ association. She got started with them by writing an article about a candy company. When she consulted a reference book to figure out who might be interested in buying it, she found the name of the candymakers’ association. They did buy the article, and thus began their sweet relationship. . . .
	One member recommended developing a sort of partnership with an editor who does a different kind of editing than you do (i.e., not a direct competitor) and can refer work to you when they get inquiries that are more up their alley, or when they need your sort of editing on a project they are working. This member is a copyeditor and has developed a partnership with a developmental editor.

A final reminder

Check the Job Board on this Web site regularly when we get it going! And return the favor—if a client calls you about a job you’re not interested in pursuing, refer him or her to the Job Board, where they can post the job for other members of the Guild to see and respond to. If we all help each other, we’ll all benefit.

—Sherri Schultz, notetaker

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