Sunday, August 14, 2005

Aspects of Professional Editing and Proofreading: Setting Rates

Many factors contribute toward professional editing/proofreading, for editor and client alike, and knowing how to negotiate the best rates is an important facet of becoming a professional in the field.

A question on the SWET mailing list in June 2005 asked about going rates for English editing/proofreading in Japan. There are no hard and fast rules here; rates differ from client to client, even job to job, and are often set at the whims of both the economic climate and client fickleness. In general, the company providing the work sets the rate, which often is not negotiable. Exceptions abound, though, regarding what rate to charge in which circumstances, with the continual adaptation inherent in all language-related fields. What follows are some general guidelines gleaned from my own experiences—good and bad—over the last ten years working in the field in Japan. Many factors contribute toward professional editing/proofreading, for editor and client alike, and knowing how to negotiate the best rates is an important facet of becoming a professional in the field.

Setting Rates
The question on SWET-L asking about rates quoted an offer of ¥1 per English character, a payment form and amount that sounds quite good though I’ve never experienced by-the-character or by-the-word payment myself. Over the years, I’ve been paid in three different ways, with these suggested starting rates for general documents:

  1. by the page for most jobs, with a “page” comprising 1,200–1,500 characters (including spaces) or 200–250 words. I’d start negotiating here at about ¥1, 200–¥1,500 a page;
  2. by the hour for large jobs, jobs with many rewrites, tough translations, or when counting pages is arduous. Here, I’d start at about ¥2,500–¥3,000 per hour; or
  3. by the job or set time period, with a contract of conditions like expected tasks, expected payment amount and schedule, and deadline(s). Base your starting rate here on a high but rough estimate of how many jobs, rewrites, or other tasks you’d expect in the contracted time.

Other variations exist, such as charging by the word or character, as the SWET-L question indicated. I’ve generally found it better to start negotiations high, such as ¥6 to ¥10 yen a word. For any payment mode, if the rate can be negotiated, start higher than the “fair” market rate to cover all possibilities. Negotiations may decrease this figure, so setting a minimum rate is wise, too.

Freelance editing usually allows greater flexibility when negotiating rates. As your experience and reputation grow, the rate you can command naturally rises. In-house positions are generally fixed, usually paid by the hour, and tend to treat all editing work equally. Rates for freelance jobs can vary widely depending on factors discussed below. Though in-house positions are generally more stable, you often have little control over rates or workloads, unless you negotiated them at the outset.

Securing a fair and reasonable rate for yourself, and your client, is a key aim of any editor/proofreader. Here are a few factors that will help determine the rate you can set.

Measuring the Job
For by-the-page jobs, how will job size be measured? Are spaces included in the character count? Will payment be before editing, or after? The differences here aren’t large but can affect final payment. Most clients I’ve worked with on by-the-page jobs count all characters, including spaces, before editing starts; finding translators who create a lot of English would be shrewd!

I once spent some time trying to encourage a firm to use one space between sentences rather than two (especially for documents to be published, where one space is typically the norm). The client steadfastly refused to budge from a firm two-space habit and unwritten company tradition, stating that since their J-to-E translators were paid by the resulting number of English characters, including spaces, some translators complained about decreased payment, however small, in switching from two spaces to one. Though relatively minor, the experience reminded me both that old habits die hard, and that the editor/proofreader is part of a greater flow, working with others to create well-written English text. Professionalism includes continuously keeping this goal in sight.

Translation Quality and Teams
What are the translators’ skill levels? Are the translators trained to translate (via numerous jobs, years of experience, or some certification)? Do they have knowledge of what’s being translated? Or are they untrained staff members who’ve been assigned to “translate” something for you to edit/proofread/check? This factor probably more than any other will determine how easy or hard your job will be, and what rate to negotiate. Get a good translation and the work flows so smoothly you wish there were more. Get a bad translation and a straightforward job becomes a major rewrite, taking far longer than expected and maybe even costing YOU money. Being paid hourly or setting a high rate can be very useful here. Try finding out who you’ll be working with and their capabilities so you can accurately estimate how long the work will take, what payment mode to use, and what rate to charge.

I’ve often found that a team approach is better than working in isolation. Shared knowledge of each other’s abilities—coordinators, translators, editors/proofreaders, checkers, DTP operators, et al.—benefits everyone, not just you, the editor/proofreader. Your company/client should treat you as an important part of the larger process of producing high-quality documents, not an “extra” task easily discarded when budgets get tight. When everyone knows the others’ capabilities, the work tends to be easier and more enjoyable for all. Higher efficiency and better writing are often natural results of this approach, so clients will likely continue sending work to you (and your team).

Try previewing documents to be edited before negotiating rates. If a client seldom works with translators and editors, they may not know about fair rates and realistic deadlines. Working closely with clients/companies provides many benefits, including helping them understand what comprises professional-level work, and helping you hone your skills in dealing with others also working to produce first-rate products.

Editing Level, Deadline, and Type of Document
What editing level is required? In Japan, many companies do not separate proofreading, editing, rewriting, and copywriting when setting rates and deadlines. Many companies see only one task, usually called “proofreading.” Try negotiating the rate based on the editing level required—from light proofreading (punctuation, spelling, and basic grammar only) to full rewriting. Technical, medical, and other specialized topics demand higher rates too, as should tighter deadlines, rush jobs, and jobs outside expected working hours. It’s absurd to be asked to edit professional journal articles or compose ad copy at the same rate as simple business letters, but I’ve found this usually the case in Japan. The rate you receive should match your level of expertise as well.

Copywriting is distinctive because crafting good copy, which employs creativity, understanding, AND readability, simply takes longer. Many companies don’t understand this and may give you copywriting jobs under too-tight deadlines. Successful copywriting demands higher rates.

I’ve also experienced some in-house positions that expected far more than was realistic. One firm assumed I was a walking repository of knowledge (especially of grammar), able to edit any document on any topic and have it done yesterday, all without referencing any online resources (oddly, out-of-date off-line resources were OK). Even if we’d all secretly like to perform like this, clients’ and companies’ dreams sometimes get the better of them. Fair rates tend to be based on reality, of client expectations and of the editor’s/proofreader’s capabilities.

Working with Clients
Sometimes you’ll experience companies/clients who don’t appreciate editing skills. The team approach may not always be well received, either. At one pretentious company I worked with, a higher-level coordinator continually refused me information about the translators I’d be editing, insisting such knowledge was “company secrets” and then chastising me whenever I asked. If this environment is unavoidable, endure it as best you can, learn from the experience, and then move on to other clients and opportunities. Such a “baptism by fire” will help sharpen your skills and your awareness of who’s worth working with and who is not. You may be limited when negotiating rates with such firms, so seeking companies/clients that appreciate both your abilities and what’s expected of professionals in the editing/proofreading field will also help secure better rates.

Be firm and honest if you feel you’re being underpaid. Don’t let companies take advantage of you; many will surely try. Signing on to unfair working arrangements, perhaps because the work is needed at any cost, affects everyone else in the field, lowering the bar for all. In today’s stagnant economic climate, if a company is deciding whether to pay someone inexperienced willing to accept a lower-than-market rate, or someone seeking a higher-but-fairer rate, they’ll often choose the lower rate simply because it’s lower. Negotiating/accepting too low affects others in the field because clients will always know they can find someone, even inexperienced, to do their jobs. Negotiating firmly but fairly, with realistic reasons for your rates, raises the chances of both you and others getting similar or higher rates in the future.

All rates you charge, then, should consider what I call the “client factor,” based on both the translation quality and how much interaction exists between you and others involved. The more troublesome a job or client looks to be, the higher the rate you should set.

Though not directly rate-related, it’s also wise to prepare yourself for non-native English speakers at your company/client who believe their English to be above reproach, even if they’ve never worked with or lived among native English speakers. This is another facet of the “client factor.” Most clients I’ve worked with have been understanding and reasonable, but others have not, including one I worked with face-to-face for eight hours a day who made sure to let the whole office know in myriad ways of his book-learned “expertise.” Though providing endless opportunities for character building, it’s best to just endure and learn from such situations, without being intimidated. We all make mistakes; it’s only natural. Even as native speakers, our use of English is certainly not above reproach, either. If you feel you’re right about something, though, especially based on real-life speaking and writing experience (not just book learning), then diplomatically make your case and explain why your changes may be better. A calm, reasoned approach often melts the icy hubris some clients/companies exhibit, and leads to workable solutions in the end.

When faced with adverse conditions, then, it’s best to just grin and bear it and move on to the next assignment. Using words like “I recommend” or “I suggest,” with some respected online or off-line resource for backup, will often defuse the situation. Many freelance editors/proofreaders work with numerous clients, partly to cushion themselves from the wide variety of client definitions for the word “professionalism,” partly to vary their jobs for a more interesting workload. In the end, it’s quite possible some clients will take your diligent edits and rework everything to fit their notions of English anyway.

On-the-Job Tips
Professionalism expresses itself, then, in at least three ways: how fair or realistic the rate and payment are, the degree of respect you engender through both knowledge and demeanor, and the quality of the actual editing you do.

Below are some other practices that can add value to your work. These are only suggestions, and may not work for everyone, but have worked well for me over the years. I’ve found that most clients appreciate any efforts you make toward creating high-quality products for them and their readers.

  • If editing hard-copy rather than digitized text, know and use commonly accepted proofreader’s marks (and here), including ones used in Japan. Clients will appreciate your efforts to incorporate styles that they’re familiar with into your work.
  • Use all available resources, including the Internet. Don’t rely entirely on your memory, however vast, and don’t shy away from today’s technologies because clients are stuck in the past. Join editing/writing-related mailing lists like SWET-L, bookmark frequently used Web sites, and build a library of trusted off-line books and guides. Some suggestions:

Dictionaries, encyclopedias

  • Eijiro (in Japanese) - Can input either Japanese or English, but not romaji
  • Jim Breen’s WWWJDIC Server - Allows various input types; uses various dictionaries, including Japanese names
  • Dictionary.com - Dictionary and thesaurus; culls references from various online dictionaries like American Heritage and Merriam-Webster
  • OneLook - Searches almost 1,000 online dictionaries and organizes results with links to individual dictionaries
  • Acronym Finder
  • Webopedia - For computer and technical terms
  • MedicineNet - Medical terms, from Webster’s

Style and usage guides

Grammar guides (Site 1, Site 2 [glossary], Site 3 [NASA], Site 4)

Misc. resources

  • Ask for and utilize the ?? (original Japanese version) of every document you edit (whether or not you understand everything), especially for jobs already laid out. This allows you to check available spacing, and edit appropriately for tables, charts, figures, and maps and their captions and labels. Editing often entails more than simply correcting and moving words around. Don’t rely on the DTP operator or others to “fix” your English to fit the final layout. It’s better if you can be involved throughout the process, though this rarely happens.
  • Leave meaningful comments on documents you edit. Comments are not always necessary, but invariably a client will come back with questions about your changes, or a translator might repeat the same error throughout a job. Leaving comments explaining the whys and wherefores of your changes may lengthen editing time but potentially eliminates back-and-forth questioning from clients, translators, and others. Comments also help translators and clients improve their skills, leading to easier and more efficient editing of work from them in the future.
  • Learn to optimally use online tools the clients use, such as MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Using tools more efficiently can improve both quality and throughput. For example, see MS Word Tips and MS Excel Tips.
  • When editing most Western languages online (English included), try to replace all two-byte Japanese (full-width, ??) characters with suitable one-byte (half-width, ??) versions. This depends, though, on the target user and/or intended audience. If the document is for use in Japan, this may not be a concern, but leaving such characters could cause problems if the document is sent overseas for use on non-Japanese computers. Mojibake (garbage characters, ????) will likely result, assuming the file even opens; files with Japanese file names may not even open on computers with one-byte operating systems.
  • Time and resources permitting, verify the accuracy of items in the document you’re editing so others, including clients, won’t have to.
    • Verify all Web links; indicate those only available in Japanese.
    • Double-check all unfamiliar phrases and spellings, including which wording is more common. For this, try Google Fight, a good resource, though it’s limited to English and allows no advanced Google search parameters (e.g., “site,” “filetype,” and “link”; or other parameters).
    • Verify correct English spellings of Japanese addresses and names, e.g., by using Japanese postal codes. One Japanese site for this is Yuujirou. Use Hepburn romanization unless the client or situation demands Kunrei or other.
  • Strive for consistency. Clients nearly always react favorably to work edited in a similar style, though this can indeed be a challenge if multiple translators were used.
  • Finally, ask questions if you don’t know or understand something. Respectable clients and coworkers will appreciate honest efforts to achieve high quality. Don’t waste time with clients who expect you to know everything, or who bristle or look down on you for even asking.

Know your limits
Editing and proofreading, like any other work, rest upon a core factor essential for developing professionalism: knowing thyself. Staying honest with yourself and your abilities, and striving to learn and evolve, are keys to opening doors. This includes not overselling your abilities, and not charging rates you know aren’t fair. The editing and proofreading field in Japan is not that large, and becomes even smaller and more personal when you stay in one place over time.

Trying to take advantage of clients and companies ultimately hurts all editors, proofreaders, and other language specialists. Language professionals form a small community in Japan, all trying to better themselves. Learning to work diligently and honestly within this community, including negotiating rates and then performing as (or better than) advertised, goes a long way toward ensuring continued success.

Most of my editing and proofreading experiences in Japan have been good ones, with the occasional bad apples being stepping stones toward a strengthened desire to improve. Whether just starting out or active for many years, learning to develop sound professional editing skills and habits, including setting rates, benefits both you and everyone else in the business. Doing so even when the client doesn’t expect it, require it, or appear to appreciate it still benefits everyone in the end. Striving for professionalism is frustrating sometimes, but from my experience, worth every effort.

(© 2005 Ron Andrews)
Posted by Ron Andrews on 08/14 at 09:16 AM
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