Microcosm is hiring a book editor!
We are looking for an early-to-mid-career book editor who is excited to work with Microcosm on all stages of editing. If you love the puzzle-solving of developmental editing, relish the challenge of turning a disorganized manuscript into a book that can make a splash and save lives, and want to learn and grow along with us, please consider applying.
Microcosm is a reader-oriented publisher, primarily working with non-literary, nonfiction manuscripts by first-time authors. Our top priority is never to craft a beautiful turn of phrase or achieve grammatical perfection, but rather to offer readers valuable, practical tools to change their lives and world, while preserving the author’s unique voice and always having the most fun.
Hours: This is a full-time position (40 hours per week).
Location: This position is fully remote. At this time, we can only hire new full-time staff who live in Oregon, Ohio, Washington State, and California. If you live elsewhere in the US and are open to full-time contract work please apply anyway and let us know. A desk is available in our Portland, Oregon, office if desired.
Experience: This is not an entry-level position. The candidate we hire will have one to four years of experience editing books for traditional publication.
Core job duties:
- 35% developmental/global edits
- 25% line editing
- 20% copyediting
- 10% preparing manuscripts for layout
- 10% proofreading, writing book descriptions, etc.
Requirements:
- Experience editing nonfiction books for publication
- Experience editing for traditional book publishers (rather than self-publishing or indie authors)
- Strong developmental, line editing, and copyediting skills
- Comfortable editing directly in Google Docs and Word
- Ability to communicate tactfully and professionally with a variety of authors
- Ability and willingness to edit books about topics that may be sensitive to some, including trauma, abuse, and recovery, non-christian religions, various marginalized identities, drugs, sexual instruction, and erotica
- Experience editing for sensitivity, inclusivity, and conscious language around subjects such as race, gender, sexual orientation, social class, and disability
- Ability to meet or exceed deadlines without operating in a state of last-minute urgency
- Ability to prioritize between multiple projects and work independently
- Ability to take direction and to maintain a flexible editorial approach that accounts for the needs and priorities of the publisher and the target audience for each project
- Ability to take feedback and implement it for future projects
- Strong work ethic and desire to continually learn and improve
Preferences:
- Experience editing in house at a book publisher (as opposed to freelance-only)
- Experience proofreading traditionally published books
- Familiarity with The Chicago Manual of Style
- Experience writing and editing book descriptions or similar marketing copy
- Experience editing books with a lot of illustrations or interactive components (e.g., workbooks)
- Experience writing alt text / image descriptions
Pay and benefits:
Starting wage is $18.50-$20.50 per hour, depending on experience and level of responsibility in previous editorial work.
- All company profits are distributed to staff in the form of profit-sharing
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
- Remote work
- Flexible work hours and holidays
- Employee ownership program after five years
- Transparent compensation and clear metrics for advancement
- Meaningful work at a growing company
To apply:
- Fill out this application
- Complete this editorial test and include it in the application form
Please do not send a cover letter, resume, or other supplemental materials.
Application deadline: November 26, 2023