John Soares, author of Writing College Textbook Supplements
I recently wrote about the different types of editors who work for college textbook publishers, and which types you are most likely to encounter as a freelance writer of college textbook supplements and ancillaries.
Now let’s examine the characteristics of these editors. Knowing these characteristics will help you tremendously in your textbook supplement writing career.
Varied Educational Backgrounds. Nearly all have at least a bachelor’s degree, and some have advanced degrees. Often editors will work with an academic discipline that is quite different from what they studied in college.
Varied Editorial Experience. Consider yourself fortunate if you are working with an editor who has been in her position for more than a couple of years. Be prepared to deal with editors who have just been promoted, or have just switched to your discipline and are still learning the ropes.
Varied Interpersonal Skills. Some editors are adept at communication while others are not. (See Chapter 3, Getting the Assignment, and Chapter 6, How to Make Editors Happy, for details on good communications with editors and maintaining good relationships with them.)
Varied Organizational Skills. Some editors are great at getting you the materials you need when you need them and taking care of other important details upstream of what you are doing. However, others are not. (You need to keep close track of what is happening with your projects and ensure you get what you need when you need it.)
High Turnover Rate of Lower-Level Editors. Many lower-level editors (associate editors, assistant editors, and editorial assistants) don’t remain in one position for long. They typically leave their current positions for one of four reasons. First, they may transfer to a similar position in a different discipline. Second, they may go into sales for a while. (Many publishing companies encourage this.) Third, they may get promoted to a higher-level position. Fourth, they can leave the company.
(This post is based on an excerpt from Chapter 2, “Students, Instructors, Editors, Publishers,” from John Soares’ e-book Writing College Textbook Supplements: The Definitive Guide to Winning High-Paying Assignments in the College Textbook Publishing Market. You can download the Detailed Table of Contents and first two chapters for free.)
