Editor Career Guide

Are you confident with other people? Are you creative, imaginative and excellent at writing? Do you want to be in a well-regarded career where you have lots of responsibility?

If the answer is yes, then we think you may love a career as an editor.

An editor plays an imperative role in the writing and publication process. They manage all of the individuals that are involved in a writing project. Editors are very senior people in many writing projects. They have a lot of responsibility, autonomy and are often well-respected. To become an editor, you will need a bachelors degree in English, journalism or communications and you need to be able to demonstrate excellent written ability!

[I love editing because] I meet people. Editing has given me a chance to interact with writers and other people who I never would have met otherwise. Many of my editing clients go on to become part of my writing/freelancing network. My life is richer for these relationships.

Laura Spencer

Editor Career Ratings

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Contribution

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Job Profiles

Real-Life Editor Job Profiles

Below is a list of links to anonymous job profiles of REAL PEOPLE who have filled out our survey and offered to share their insights with our users about their job in the Editor field.

ID	Job Title	Gender	Age	Earnings	City & State	Date
33958	Proofreader/Editor	Male	58	$62,000	Hatboro, PA	01/01/2010
33972	News Editor	Female	28	$54,000	Plainfield, IL	01/01/2010
33975	Editor	Female	32	$35,000	Chicago, IL	01/01/2010
33954	Copy Editor/Designer	Female	33	$54,000	Chesapeake, VA	01/01/2010
33826	Executive Editor	Male	45	$250,000	New York, NY	01/01/2010

Overview

What an Editor actually does

The editor plays an imperative role in the writing and publication process. They manage all of the individuals that are involved in a writing project. The editor is responsible for ensuring that the content is being written properly and on time, and then he or she begins to make the magic happen.

The editing process can take several different forms, depending on the exact details of the project. Some editors have to simply review the content they are given from other staff members. Whereas other editors are tasked with reading manuscripts and deciding which ones will actually make it to publication. There are also editors who focus on the details, such as writing headlines, putting together captions for photos, and adding photos to a story. We have focused on writing here, but there are editors in many other industries as well. Editing is also necessary for movies, television shows, podcasts, news stations, and more. Regardless of the industry, editors can expect to do duties and tasks such as:

Going over the work produced by writers to ensure it is suitable for publishing
Proofreading work to ensure that there are no spelling, grammatical or vocabulary errors
Verifying facts cited in material for publication
Improving the flow and organization of a written piece
Creating story ideas for future publications
Handling the layout of a newspaper or magazine (e.g., allocating space for text, photos and illustration)

Why they are needed

Editors play an important role in the writing process. They are needed because:

They provide a fresh pair of eyes for writers and make sure that their work is up to standard.
They will critique the work of writers to ensure that the readers get the best possible thing to read.
They help to develop projects, making them interesting and exciting.
Editors have marketing skills, which often writers and other content producers don’t have.
Editors have an insight into a writers audience and can maintain a bigger picture strategy to keep the writer on target.

Pros and cons of a career as an Editor:

Pros: Cons:

Editors are in charge and they have a lot of responsibility
Editors are well-respected and well-regarded
Editors can progress to earn good money
Editors get to meet lots of different people and network widely
Editors get to work independently and make their own decisions

Cons:

It can be stressful as editors need to manage relationships with lots of different people
Editors often work long hours as there are always deadlines to meet
There is a lot of pressure on editors to get it right, which can make it overwhelming
Some editors are freelance, which means their income and work can be unstable

Employability

Job market

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the overall employment of editors is projected to decline 7% from 2019 to 2029. This decline in employment is expected because there is expected to be a decline in traditional print magazines and newspapers.

Overall, competition for jobs with established newspapers and magazines is expected to be strong. To have the best employment opportunities, editors should adapt to be comfortable working with online media and to be comfortable using electronic and digital tools.

Career paths

In general, editors will need a bachelors degree in communications, journalism or English. However, candidates with a degree in a different field that show strong writing skills can still become an editor.

If editors want to deal with a specific subject matter then they will need related work experience. For example, fashion editors will need expertise in the fashion industry. They can gain this experience by working on high school or college newspapers and for magazines, radio stations, television stations, advertising and publishing companies. Or, editors may complete a student internship when in their junior or senior year of college. Most editors start of as editorial assistants or writer, and will then progress.

Example Job Titles for Editor

Below is a list of common job titles in the Editor field. Click the links below for more information about these job titles, or view the next section for actual real-life job profiles.

Benefits & Conditions

Income and benefits

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for editors in the United States was $61,370 in May 2019. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $32,620 and the highest 10 percent earned more than $112,280. The professional, scientific and technical services was the top paying industry for editors, with a median annual wage of $69,270. This was followed by religious, grantmaking, civic, professional and other similar organizations ($68,530), other information services ($66,530) and then newspaper, periodical, book and directory publishers ($57,030.

Autonomy and Flexibility

Editors have a lot of autonomy. Often, they are one of the most senior people on a writing project. They have control over what content is written, how it is written and how it is laid out. Their flexibility, however, is likely to be less. This is because editors are often working towards deadlines and will likely have to work long and erratic hours.

Locations and commute

According to Zippia, the best states to be an editor based on number of jobs available and average annual salary, are:

Massachusetts, where the average annual salary was $72,435
District of Columbia, where the average annual salary was $70,204
Connecticut, where the average annual salary was $66,633
New York, where the average annual salary was $65,662
Vermont, where the average annual salary was $59,453

The worst states to be a writer, according to Zippia, are Utah, Indiana, Wisconsin, Wyoming and Iowa.

Work environment

35% of editors in the United States are employed by newspaper, periodical, book and directory publishers. 14% are self-employed workers, 10% are employed by the professional, scientific and technical services industry, 9% are employed by religious grant making, civic, professional and similar organizations and finally, 9% are employed by other information services.

Most editors tend to work in offices, whether onsite with their employer or from a remote location. They often use desktop or electronic publishing software, scanners and other electronic communications equipment. Editors may struggle with fatigue and stress as they will be overseeing and coordinating multiple written projects simultaneously.

Career Satisfaction

Common Matching Personality Types

Which personalities tend to succeed and thrive in Editor careers? Based on our research, there is a relatively strong positive correlation between the following personality types and Editor career satisfaction. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t many exceptions, of course, but if you fit into one of the following personality types then we suggest you give strong consideration to a career in Editor.

16 Types (Myers-Briggs)

Big Five (OCEAN)

Openness

DISC

Enneagram

Holland Codes (RIASEC)

Personality types

Editors need to have creative personality because much of their work requires them to be original, imaginative and self-expressive. Editors also need to have an inquisitive personality because editors will need to explore many ideas and will want to learn more about things. Finally, editors also need to be natural born leaders and must be confident instructing and delegating tasks to other people.

Accomplishment and mastery

Editors will feel a huge sense of accomplishment and mastery when they successfully build their reputation and become well-recognized and well-regarded in their field. Each time an editor help writers to publish successful stories, news articles or internet posts, they will feel a sense of pride and achievement.

Meaning and contribution

The information published, whether it’s fiction or news, is important. Written content is used to engage, entertain and inform us. Without it, the world would be a very different place. As editors contribute hugely to this industry by ensuring that written content is accurate and interesting, their work has great meaning and contribution to society.

Life fit

Most editors work full time. In general, their schedules are determined by production deadlines and type of editorial position. Editors typically work in busy offices and have to deal with production deadline pressures and the stresses of ensuring that the information they publish is correct. As a result, editors often work many hours, especially at those times leading up to a publication deadline.

Who will thrive in this career?

The most obvious quality a thriving editor will have is excellent literacy skills. As well as this, editors will need qualities such as:

The creativity and imagination to come up with new content
The ability to lead a busy team
The ability to remain calm under pressure
Commitment and dedication to success
Attention to detail
The commitment to work long hours

Who will struggle in this career?

There are a few qualities that may mean that someone will struggle as an editor, for example:

They are not naturally creative or imaginative
They want a job that requires no overtime
They aren’t good at writing and have bad grammar
They want to work independently and aren’t confident leading a team

Requirements

Quick Glance

Skills

Skills and talents

Editors need many skills in order to be successful. For example, they will need skills such as:

Adaptability, as editors will need to work with lots of different people in lots of different situations and will need to adapt accordingly
Creativity, as editors need to regularly come up with imaginative and interesting content
Writing skills, as editors need to ensure that there are no punctual, grammatical or spelling errors
Critical-thinking, as editors must be able to understand new concepts
Communication skills, as editors will need to clearly communicate with writers and other publishing staff

Education

Certifications

There are no specific certifications or licenses needed to become an editor in the United States.

How to Become

Summary

Immediate action

Editors need to be able to demonstrate their writing skills. Therefore, in order to have the best possible chances at a career as an editor you should consider enrolling into some writing courses and beginning to develop your skills!

Education and learning

Editors will need a bachelors degree in communications, journalism or English. However, candidates with a degree in a different field that show strong writing skills can still become an editor. In order to gather work experience, editors can get internships.

Skill development

Editors develop many of their skills during their degree. They will continue to progress and update their skills throughout their career as they gain more knowledge and experience.

FAQs

Ask a Question

Have a question about Editor careers? If so, our mentors would love to help! Just click on a mentor’s profile below and then fill out the “Ask a Question” form on that page. Your question will then be emailed to the mentor, who can then email you a reply.

ID	Job Title	Gender	Age	Earnings	City & State	Date
33958	Proofreader/Editor	Male	58	$62,000	Hatboro, PA	01/01/2010
33972	News Editor	Female	28	$54,000	Plainfield, IL	01/01/2010
33975	Editor	Female	32	$35,000	Chicago, IL	01/01/2010
33954	Copy Editor/Designer	Female	33	$54,000	Chesapeake, VA	01/01/2010
33826	Executive Editor	Male	45	$250,000	New York, NY	01/01/2010

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