How Much Money Could I Make Editing a Book?
Editors make a wide range of salaries, depending on experience, geography, industry and level of education. Different types of editors work in book publishing. A manuscript editor is distinct from a copy-editor, who is mainly concerned with accuracy and consistency of usage, while the manuscript editor ensures that a piece of work displays clarity and is structured and organized well. That kind of designation of title also plays a role in the determination of salary. Certain norms can be established that allow editors to negotiate for an appropriate level of compensation for freelance projects.
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Mean Wage
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), nearly 100,000 editors are currently employed in the United States and demand a mean annual wage of $59,340, with a mean hourly wage of $28.53. Variation between editors' salaries exists between industries: someone editing a book on computer manufacturing might command close to $45 an hour, whereas, an editor for a book about the movie industry might expect to make a little over $35 an hour.
Geographical Variation
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Editors on the coasts have a tendency to make a higher salary than their counterparts in the Midwest. An editor in New York, for example, makes an annual mean wage of $61,390 on the low end to $74,690 on the high end, according to the BLS. An editor in Nebraska, meanwhile, earns significantly less, making an annual mean wage of $37,120 on the low end to $42,360 on the high end.
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Freelance Versus Full-Time
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Freelance rates vary almost as much as geographical indicators of rate. On the low end, according to the New Jersey Creatives Network, editors of a scholarly book could expect to be paid $20 per hour. On the high end, editors could expect up to $80 per hour. For a whole project, they could expect to make between $850 and $2,000 per project. Copy-editing is a different story, according to the same source. On average, a copy-editor could command $38 per hour, averaging $1,875 per project.
Expected Pay Range
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Depending on experience, industry, geography, and type of editing, an editor could expect to make anywhere between $20 to $80 dollars an hour. According to calculations made using data from the New Jersey Creative Network's site, an editor could expect to spend an average of nearly 50 hours on a book-editing project, netting anywhere between $1,000 and $4,000 per job. If an editor is taking on a project having to do with technology, he could expect to make an hourly rate toward the higher end of that range, versus editors working in popular culture.
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