By Jonathan Sims
Freelance Editor

Freelance book editors lead uncertain financial and professional lives, but there are a few ways we can have more control over our freelancing experience.

This is what Dianna Graveman discussed Friday in her ACES breakout session, “Dos and Don’ts of Successful Freelance Book Editors.”

Graveman gave attendees a list of the top 25 lessons she learned from her experiences. These simple principles can help you in your future as a freelance book editor.

1. Get your first gig.

2. Build experience/credentials/reviews.

By Rhiannon Root
ACES content intern

Sam Enslen talks to an overflow crowd.

Can a fifth-grader read and understand your writing? Is it a bad thing if one can?

Samantha Enslen of Dragonfly Editorial said “no” during her Thursday morning presentation on readability, where ACES members packed the room and many stood just outside the room’s threshold.

Readability is vital for getting information across quickly and efficiently. It is simply asking if text is something that can be easily understood. Enslen stressed that this is essential in the context of conveying news, not necessarily for fiction or other forms of writing. Easy readability is important when readers are busy and aren’t necessarily paying close attention.

Darrell Christian, Colleen Newvine and David Minthorn of the AP Stylebook team. (Photo by Mark Allen)O

When the Ask the AP Stylebook Editors session got underway on Thursday morning at ACES’ 17^thnational conference, the gasps were only small.

And they related directly to the stylebook editors decision to change the spelling of “underway” from two words to one.

While, there were some “nos” from the audience, the twitter traffic at the conference seemed to be fine with the idea of bring the Stylebook in line with the dictionary (Webster’s New World Collegiate, Fourth Edition).

Copy editors at the Omaha World-Herald, Star-Ledger in New Jersey, Politico, Wichita Eagle and Dallas Morning News all took home multiple awards in the American Copy Editors Society 2013 Headline Contest.

The contest honors the most creative headline work published Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2013. Winners were announced Friday morning during the opening session of ACES national conference in St. Louis.

Download the Winning Headline Presentation

Each professional first-place winner earns $300 and a plaque; second place gets $125 and a certificate; and third place is awarded $75 and a certificate. For student entries, the cash prizes are $125, $75 and $50, respectively.