Do I want to remain a freelance editor? Apply for full-time positions … or maybe part-time? Onsite or remote? Perhaps a combination of these?
These are questions I’ve been mulling over daily in the last few months while job searching, as described in my last blog post.
Then I got an interview for a content editor position, and made it to second round interviews. That morning before the interview, I wrote out my daily to-do list. What jumped out was how much the shelter-in-place routine was … still the same. And how much those items filled the day.
When would I complete these responsibilities and chores if I took on a full-time job? What about the volunteerism that I value? Answer: after or before. Or not at all. Ugh.
Sometimes, the path to take is clear as a cloudless blue sky. This was one of those times. I bowed out of the second interview, and resolved to apply to part-time, remote editing positions only as well as one-off freelancing projects.
I felt lighter afterwards, a sure sign that I made the right decision for right now.
Pam’s Pearls on Editing and Grammar: Repurposing Previous Communications
Are you copying and pasting the content of a previous email (text, direct message, social posting, etc.) into a new one, and just changing a few relevant details? That’s perfectly OK and something I often do to save time.
Once that copy is, well, copied and pasted, the next step is to … STOP!
Do not press “send” without double checking your final communication. That entails:
- Proof your work.
- Run the text through spell check. (If a text / direct message / social posting, paste the copy into Word or Google Docs and use that program’s spell check function.)
- Put the copy aside for least five or 10 minutes.
- Reread one final time.
Does the message convey exactly what you want and to whom you want, without errors or embarrassing gaffes? Excellent! NOW you can send with confidence.
If there is an editing or grammar topic you’d like “Pam’s Pearls” to feature, leave a comment below!
Pamela Barroway 