Editor: Tanya Mykhaylychenko Company: tm-editorial.com # of years in editing: 13 years
Tell us a little about yourself, including how you got started as an editor?
I graduated with an MA in English in 2009. While my original focus was on teaching writing and literature, one of my work contracts was full-time proposal writing for a staffing agency. After two years in this role, I started thinking about broadening my writing and editing skills. I attended Editors Canada and Editorial Freelancers Association conferences, joined ACES and Editors Canada, took a copyediting course at Ryerson University, reflected on my niches and core client groups, and launched my website www.tm-editorial.com in 2019.
What is your area of focus and why did you select this niche?
I offer writing and copyediting services for job seekers, academic authors, and businesses. My niches are resume writing, business content, and academic publications in the humanities and art history.
I chose these areas because of my prior expertise and for a sense of fulfillment. I love (and have some knowledge of) visual arts and wanted to edit in the field. I excel at working with clients one-on-one and helping them achieve their goals, be it a new job or a new publication. I listen carefully to their preferences and make sure I match their direction with the readers’ expectations for clarity, readability, and quality. Finally, I have done work for small and medium businesses and I know how to help companies with content marketing and web writing.
Walk us through a typical workday. How do you manage your time?
A typical morning starts with a brief exercise and meditation routine to keep my mind focused for a productive day ahead. I check several mailboxes and respond to emails first, completing shorter edits and revisions. I write one or two projects per day (1,300-2,500 words) and review action items on my marketing plan. There may also be phone calls with clients or companies I work for. I keep a list of tasks for the week and for the day and make notes on projects completed.
What is your favorite thing about being an editor?
The satisfaction of making the text more readable while learning something interesting about the subject matter or the language itself, not to mention the joy of meeting talented people and being inspired by their work.
What is your biggest challenge and how do you work through this?
My challenge is juggling deadlines and various types of formats, genres, and style guides. I overcome it by understanding my multi-tasking limits and grouping projects to focus as much as possible on a single type of work. I am good at taking short breaks (meditation practices help a great deal) and distributing tasks throughout the week. I don’t try to do everything at once, and I can say a full or partial no to certain projects without compromising the professional relationships.
What are you currently working on?
I am currently working on SEO and content marketing to develop high-quality blogs for a client as well as my own website.
What advice do you have for someone who is just starting their career as an editor?
If you are going freelance, do not wait too long to start marketing yourself, bit by bit. Get over the fear or any other idea that is holding you back and start taking small steps to be findable and recognizable online. For freelancers, this is the #1 action to take and the strategy to keep honing for years.
Learn from industry associations and established professionals. I benefited a great deal from all the materials shared in a very supportive and collaborative editorial community via conferences, association websites and webinars, books, online courses, blogs, and EAE Facebook groups.