A Proofreaders Salary

A proofreader is a person who will read through manuscripts and makes corrections to the material, content and writing style to ensure that it not only flows properly, is consistent but that it also is grammatically correct.  It is very well known that even the best of writers make mistakes and quite frankly, many writers are terrible when it comes down to their grammar, spelling and even their flow.  You will find it to be quite common for many writers, newspapers, magazine, publishing houses and much more to be seeking proofreaders.  A proofreader is an invaluable service to offer and many people will find that a proofreaders salary is actually quite good.  In this article I will discuss a proofreaders salary, what the job entails as well as working conditions and skills that may be helpful.

Proofreader Salary

As I stated earlier, proofreaders are actually in high demand and much needed in many different facets when considering jobs.  You will find that proofreaders can be found in many different job fields such working for magazines, newspapers, publishing houses, radio stations, news shows, television shows and much more.  You will find that many of these jobs will pay their proofreaders decent money depending on their experience, the corporation they are working for and how efficient and quick they can work.  The average proofreader salary is roughly around thirty to sixty thousand dollars a year. That can go up depending on things such as experience, the field their in and how long they have been in the business. For those individuals with longer term experience they will find that they will typically see that there salary will increasingly get higher and higher the longer they are in the business and doing well.  One of the top paying jobs you will find as a proofreader is working in a publishing house. This is because you are constantly expected to read through several manuscripts at a time, meeting deadlines, working with editors, authors and much more. Your responsibilities as a proofreader become larger when working for a publishing house, therefore, your salary goes up higher. 

Individuals who work as freelance proofreaders will also find that they can make extremely high pay as well. You will find that freelance proofreaders have a salary that can fluctuate, depending on their jobs, but for those who are established freelance proofreaders, they will find that their salary can be just as high if not higher then individuals who work for publishing houses.  Freelance proofreaders are great jobs for individuals who like to have the freedom of working from home, getting their hands on a lot of different types of books, manuscripts and more. You will find that you will gain a well rounded knowledge of the field of proofreading that will help to sell yourself a lot easier to companies that are looking for proofreaders.  This is the perfect job for those who are interested in flexible hours, traveling and being able to work from home.

Job Description

The job of a proofreader is to ensure that all changes that need to be made are made, that anything that the author, editor or publishing company has requested be done has been carried out appropriately and that the manuscript has been completely corrected and adheres to everything that they are expecting. 

As I stated earlier you will find that a proofreader can work in a wide range of differing materials. You will find proofreaders in the field of academics spanning across to the media fields and much more.  These individuals will find that traditionally many proofreaders would solely be given paper, hard copies of the manuscript that is being edited but with the world of proofreading also changing you will find that soft copies that are sent online through computers are becoming quite popular. Therefore, for individuals interested in the world of proofreading, you should know how to operate a computer properly and use editing programs on their as well. 

There are certain styles of proofreading that are expected from a proofreader before they begin working at a particular job. Just like any job, you will find that every job, employer and company is different.  In the proofreading world every publisher has a different style that they expect out of their proofreaders. Therefore, it would be smart of you to familiarize yourself with the particular writing style expected before you start the job. For instance some companies may give you a short style guide, essentially just saying to make sure that the font type is a certain size, bold certain words or phrases, italicize this and that is it.  Some people will have style guides that are pages long, with tons of rules and for placement, font, editing, centering, alignment and much more.  Figuring out a certain style can become quite exhaustive for a proofreader to get down or understand, hence, being well aware of a companies style guide is important. 

Working Conditions

Many proofreaders will find that they will work at a desk all day long, generally making the life of a proofreader one where the outdoor life is very limited. Proofreaders must be able to concentrate on their task at hand and not become easily distracted. The life of most proofreaders are full of deadlines, meetings, communicating with many different people and constantly editing.  You will expect to find proofreaders spending hours in their day reading, editing, staring at the computer and taking many phone calls.  Some proofreaders will find that they will end up getting chronic headaches, dealing with eyestrain as well as aches and pains throughout their bodies due to sitting at a desk all day long. It is important to work in a well lit area, with a comfortable chair to help with reducing neck and back pains.