Breaking into a new market sector as an editor

If you thought that only newbie editors find it difficult to move into a new-to-them market sector, take it from me: it is not true! Even seasoned editors feel that familiar dread when it comes to putting themselves out there in a market they’re not well established in. And it’s got nothing to do with how experienced or knowledgeable they are. That imposter syndrome voice pipes up pretty quickly. I know because I’ve just come out the other side of it. But I lived to tell the tale, and I’m here to tell you too that it’s not as difficult as you think.

Let’s start at the beginning

I’ve been a non-fiction copyeditor and proofreader for eight years. It’s my second career because I decided that my wanderlust had finally got the better of me. A lifelong traveller, I finally had enough of staying in one city with the same (or similar) view from my office desk. So, I retrained as a copyeditor, packed my bags, and hit the road. Since then, I’ve been a roaming editor (digital nomad, if you must) in one form or another.

So you’d think it would be easy with all these years of travel and editing experience to move into editing travel writing. I’ll let you in on a secret: it is easy. The only obstacle in my way was … me!

Editing experience: Check! Travel knowledge: Check! Ability to apply editing experience to travel-related manuscripts? Check, check, check! So what was the problem? Getting out of my own way and selling my services to travel writers.

Making a break for it

It was a cold December afternoon, and I was sheltering from a squall on my hostel bed in northern Greece when it happened. I had been following a particular travel-influencer couple for a while, when a post popped up on my feed. Marie was writing a book, and as English isn’t her first language, she posted asking if any of her followers knew of an editor. I hesitated but I started typing before I could second-guess myself. I put myself forward.

The rest is a blur. Marie got in touch with me, we discussed terms and fees, and suddenly I had my first full-scale indie author travel memoir manuscript to edit. As I write this, months later, I realize it was a blur because muscle memory took over. I put on my editor’s hat and got to work, doing what I do with all my other non-fiction editing work: fix typos; tidy up grammar; wrangle idioms and language; check consistency; restructure where necessary; fact-check things I’m unsure of; query parts I don’t understand; and make suggestions where things could be strengthened or tightened.

The best part of it was being able to put my travel knowledge to good use. For example, I understand the sensitivities around land border crossings, or what it’s like to be in the middle of nowhere in a country with a completely different culture to mine. I get how frustrating it is when you can’t communicate after being on the move for days and all you want is a shower and a hot meal (or any meal!). I know what many of the beaches and mountains are like in a particular country, and how it can make you feel to dig your toes into the hot sand or gaze at the snowcapped peaks in awe.

All that helps get the best out of my authors’ words and help them evoke those same feelings in their readers.

Overcoming that imposter syndrome feeling

The hardest part was overcoming that imposter feeling. Who am I to tackle someone else’s travel memoir? Someone with years of travel and editing experience, that’s who!

So if you take anything from this blog post and this story, let it be this: No matter your knowledge and experience, breaking into a new editing sector may feel like you’re back to square one. But you’re not.

You’ve got this.

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