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tyllwyd

As a bit of an aside, to the other freelance editors, do you have any professional indemnity insurance? I've never had it (and when I worked in house I don't remember any freelancers mentioning it) but I had a scare recently where there was confusion over whether I'd supplied the wrong files for typesetting, and it made me realise that if I got the blame for something going wrong, I didn't have any insurance to back me up. What do the rest of you think of it?

Essex-girl_2

Good Morning Everyone

Seaxwyn - congratulations on that contract sounds great :j

also :jfor Purpleroses.

Thankfully it is Satuday so no guilt about not doing office work, I sometimes find it easier to work in the office at the weekend because I dont feel I have to iykwim:rolleyes:

Had have quite a relaxing week really so will put that behind me & go for it next week. Will tidy my desk and sort my inpile over the weekend as that always makes me feel much better. Had only 3 days with no kids this week but next week will be 5 so will have no excuse.

Off to do the ironing today so I wont be thinking about that when I am in my office Monday.

Have a fantastic weekend, and good luck to all DFW's who are running the Marathon tomorrow.
x

Oh and nearly forgot, have a phone call yesterday and have the local Federation of Small Business' "popping" round on Tuesday - must have given them my details at the recent HMRC seminar day. No idea what they do but it will be interesting at the very least.

Horace

Hi all

Forgot to say Well Done Purple:T yesterday.

I need to tidy up my office today and go and see about buying a filing cabinet - it is needed and would stop me storing stuff in carrier bags:rolleyes: I think that once that is sorted out I will feel much better and more organised, think I will treat myself to a proper office chair as well:cool:

Best crack on - I am in a writing mood:j

Have a good weekend all.:D

nzmegs

Oh Gosh wish i was in the writing mood. Nothing done at all today and deadline looming.
regards the above conversaation about SFEP. Never heard of it....I am not a proof reader as such but have done some proof reading. Is this a society a writer should be a member of? I have to say i have more work than I can handle at the mo - but better paying jobs might be good. Would membership allow me to charge more? I feel like I am completely going it alone and doing ok - but if memeberrships and courses could improve my prospects I am all for it.

Good weekend everyone!

tyllwyd

Society of Freelance Editors and Proofreaders
http://www.sfep.org.uk/

I thought it was aimed more at copyeditors than writers - would the NUJ cover writers? When I worked in house (10 years ago admittedly!) there was no mention of paying SFEP members higher rates, and I've never been asked if I was a member. Mind you, somewhere in their website you'll find info on the recommended rates, but I've never worked for a publisher who paid anywhere near that amount (maybe legal publishers are just mean with their money).

Seaxwyn

Hi tyllwyd and all - I'm cheered to know there are so many other freelance editors about.

I don't have professional indemnity insurance and have never considered it. I had a scare once when I was accused of plagiarism and the accuser threatened to sue my client. It was horrible. But I looked into the law and it seemed pretty clear that I was innocent, so we wrote her a stiff letter and she backed off, but I was really worried. I realised then that if I had been a member of the NUJ I would have been entitled to free legal representation. (Incidentally it turned out that the woman was a) mad and b) had been exposed as a plagiarist herself.) Anyway, it made me realise how vulnerable we are.

As for rates... I just looked up the SFEP recommended rates: http://www.sfep.org.uk/pub/mship/minimum_rates.asp I get considerably more than this. I think we should all relax about not being members!

BusyLizzie_3

Hi Tyllwyd, Seaxwyn, Wordsmith - I haven't considered professional indemnity insurance either, and having worked with freelance editors and proofreaders for quite a few years, I've never heard that any of them have indemnity insurance. But I do worry sometimes that we're in a potentially vulnerable position with no access to legal redress if problems arise.

I agree that the SFEP is aimed more at editors and proofreaders than writers - I guess writers can also look more at the Writers Guild or the NUJ. The SFEP suggested minimum rates are just that - suggested, and not enforcable in any way. I earn less than their suggested minimum rates, and the academic publishing companies I know of pay less than the suggested rates too, unfortunately. Seaxwyn, I'm impressed that you earn considerably more - working for non-publishing clients is clearly the way to go here!

Seaxwyn

I think 'real' publishers pay very badly. A friend of mine edits literary fiction - including Sebastian Faulks' novels - and I am always shocked by how little she gets. But editing jobs too vary a lot, mine often involve project management and overseeing designers and stuff. SFEP probably does offer a really good service, but nothing beats understanding one's own niche and clients.

BusyLizzie_3

Seaxwyn wrote: »

I think 'real' publishers pay very badly. QUOTE]

Yes, I agree Seaxwyn! Sad, but true. SFEP offer a course on gaining work from non-traditional publishers which looks interesting. I think the SFEP are great for networking with other editorial freelances, and for training, but they're certainly not a vehicle for gaining new clients, or higher hourly rates, and they're very honest on their website about the generally low pay and the difficulty in obtaining work, especially for new freelances.

BusyLizzie_3

Hmm, so how does the quote feature work then?