More is better

"Finalists will be asked to complete an editing assignment at home and several timed copyediting tests during the interview process."

For a position in Arlington that I won't be applying for.

Testing experienced editors

"Attention to detail a must"

Is that really needed as a requirement in ads for editors? That's what we do by definition.

Testing applicants—as well errors in resumes and cover letters—will weed out those who demonstrate an inattention to detail.

Overkill: Editor Testing, cont'd

In a Craigslist post by Publications Professionals LLC in Fairfax, VA:

"ALL candidates must successfully complete a 3-hour-long battery of tests of their English-language, editorial, and proofreading skills."

I passed PP's test in 2002, which led to a temp-to-perm position. I was hired after three months, worked at that company until 2007, and then quit in a huff over my nonsensical reassignment driven by politics. I evidently have been blacklisted by PP ever since; my many inquiries re temp work have been fruitless.

Editing test, a first

I sent a cold letter of inquiry re freelance work to a publishing company in NoVA, after seeing a craigslist post for a managing editor position (I think that's what it was; in any case it mentioned managing freelancers). I got a response today, with an 8-page editing test. Among the instructions was this: 

"3. Please supply a document-specific style sheet; it should show (1) a list of specific vocabulary terms and word spellings/usage particular to this document; (2) conventions for number usage; (3) acronyms used in the document; (4)  hyphenation usage (specific hyphenated terms) in this chapter; (5) special symbols used, if any; and (5) a query list (referencing the approximate line number where the query occurs within your edited file)."

I don't think so.

Exploitation Masquerading as a Job Ad

Editing is one of the few professions that requires job applicants, regardless of their experience, to take a test. Fair or not, that is the reality. Virtually every editor job I've applied for entailed a test.

Tests range from a relatively short spelling and grammar test up to what amounts to the prospective employer taking advantage of applicants by essentially getting them to edit an actual written product—in other words, the editor is providing his labor/editing gratis.

In a recent ad on Craigslist, the employer—a "leading publishing company of Urban Fiction" seeking to expand its "Reader Program"—asks applicants to provide certain material, including:

"An analysis of an Urban Fiction book—preferably a [company] title, but an analysis of any Urban Fiction book will be accepted. An analysis is a minimum 2-page examination of any combination of plot development, character development, writing style or themes that make the title successful. Please feel free to include critiques of the above elements regarding parts of the book that were not successful."

Exploitation by any other name . . .

Danger, S-curves ahead

We had a temp editor in yesterday to help me out with proposal work.

At one point she asked me if the abbreviation for "headquarters" should be "HQs" because, as she put it, "headquarters" ends with an "s" and is therefore a plural.

I know, I know, it can be a plural, but in this case it was "Duh Inc.'s headquarters."

Today I checked to see if the review team's final hard-copy edits were made correctly by our desktop publishers. In the process I had a chance to see all the files that the temp worked on. Oy vay!

I've worked for the agency that sent this editor our way. At that time I met many of the temp editors they employed. They do virtually no screening and do not administer an editing test. They assemble their pool of editors simply by reviewing resumes.

It's because of this type of practice (i.e, send anyone who says they're an editor out on assignment) that many writers don't want an editor to go anywhere near their work. I can't believe that agency is still in business.