Questions for a Freelance Editor: Kristine Hunt

Kristine Hunt of Crystal Clear Copy Editing has been a freelance editor since 2001 and is also the chapter development chair for the Editorial Freelancers Association (EFA). 

How did you get into editing?

My husband worked for a college with a small press and heard they needed local copyeditors. I was planning to quit my full-time health insurance job for the birth of my first child the next year, so I grabbed the chance to get my foot in the publishing door. Since then I’ve added proofreading and indexing to my skills. 

What do you find satisfying about freelance editing?

The flexibility to be with my family when they need me and still do work that I enjoy. While I was getting my BA in English, I dreamed of being paid to read. I’m incredibly grateful to finally have that dream job! I also love that I get to read things I’d never have time for otherwise—recently I’ve worked on many anthropology titles, so I’ve been learning about cultures around the world.

Have you worked on any unusual projects?

I proofread a book analyzing the personality traits and psychology of “evil” people like serial killers, which was really difficult to get through. Early in my freelancing career, I edited books on Waldorf education, which has long been a personal interest.

What resources are particularly helpful to your area of editing?

I’d be lost without online access to the Chicago manual, the unabridged Merriam-Webster dictionary, JSTOR, and the OED. I often use Google Books to check citations, Purdue OWL for APA style, and several online foreign-language translators.

What does your role of chapter development chair for the EFA entail?

I advise our volunteer coordinators on running their chapters and report on their activities as a member of the board of governors. Chapters are a great place for EFA members to network locally, gain professional skills, and have fun with Scrabble nights or holiday parties.

If you weren't in publishing, what would you like to try as a career?

I’d love to have a small farm as a “sheep to shawl” business—raising animals and processing their wool all the way to finished items. I’ve done wet and dry felting, natural dyeing, knitting, crocheting, and spinning. I’d create a handcrafts center hosting classes on fiber arts and promoting local small farms.

Thanks Kristine!

Find more of Kristine and her Crystal Clear Copy Editing world on her website and Twitter @CCCopyEditor.

Image courtesy of Crystal Clear Copy Editing.