Edit ion

Three years ago we took a comprehensive look at the other print media but there was only one post on editing (3rd June 2015)
Editing in newspapers and general interest magazines inhabits specific areas: the real estate section may be the responsibility of the publication's editor but in some cases it will be a real estate editor or classifieds editor that looks after this. Equally, for all those areas of the paper and the mag we looked at then

• news editor
• current affairs editor
• fashion editor
• entertainment editor
• sports editor
• motoring editor 
• religion editor
• business editor
• finance editor
• food editor
• cooking editor
• dining out editor
• gardening editor
• travel editor

This division is only useful if you are in publishing and earn a living from knowing so much about the Syrian conflict, flannelette shirts, the Carry On films from a postcolonial perspective, French cricket, Honda motorcycles, Church of Christ v Baptist, the cost of building cement, damper, pigface and/or Singapore.

The writer, be they journalist, scribe or budding author, is more likely to seek out the services of a freelance editor who has the time and the general editorial skills described in our previous post. This works out as they doubtless need the money more than someone working for Murdoch or Fairfax.

What separates editors from the journalists and authors they work with? You can write about canasta but to use your knowledge of the card game at the editor stage, I'd imagine you'd be a card games editor, a parlour games editor or games editor even. It depends on the format the piece appears in.
This doesn't mean that you can make a living writing and specialise in canasta.