[design] Embarking Upon the Technical Editing Sea Anon

While it is true that the last two attempts at getting in-house design positions has come up closed-handed, this is not the same thing as saying that the situation here has been completely without success. My reputation has just helped me land a technical editing contract!

It's true. And a bit more well-paid than the last time too...

Likely as not, not many of you know who a tech editor is or what they do. If you use how-to books, specifically in my case computer software books, they've been intimately involved in the production of that book.

What a technical editor does is check the book for accuracy, clarity, and use. Particularly; the author crafts a chapter and the editor sends it along to the tech ed. Tech ed reads the chapter and does the exercises and projects, noting where things didn't quite work out or where something maybe could be worded a little better. The completed chapter is forwarded back to the publisher for finishing.

When you work with programs like Adobe Illustrator (like the last TE job I did) it's a joy; when you're doing it under the authorship of an accomplished instructor (like Pariah) it's like getting an intensive training session that you get paid for. Failing a regular full-time gig, there's seldom anything better. And I get my name in the credits of a book...how cool is that?

The contract sits upon my desk, waiting to be signed. Signed it shall be, and sent by the morrow at latest. The author tells me he suggested me only to find out that the publisher was leaning toward asking me from research he'd already did.

Now, that is flattering–not to mention being me very impressed with myself.

I love tech editing–and I can't wait to get started on this. Not to mention I just got paid a little from another project, not a kingly amount, but enough to get an extra 512MB on this G4...but I'm digressing again.

There will be more on the editing project when I get an idea of how much I can say about it.

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