Article
July 2, 2018
1 comment
by Stephen

Three Indexing Mind Hacks

Photo by Patrick Perkins on Unsplash

It has so far been a busy summer. That means tight deadlines and renewed thoughts about how to be more efficient in my indexing process. I mean, indexing is tough. It is constant analysis, understanding what the text means and discerning how to make the text accessible to readers. If there is a way to simplify or expedite part of the process, it does make a difference on overall indexing time and cognitive load.

Learning how to effectively use indexing software is one approach that is commonly advocated for becoming more efficient. I agree, and I think there is more that I can learn with the software I use, Cindex. 

As I have written about earlier, practice is essential for becoming a more efficient indexer. I find so much about indexing is understanding the different ways a book can be structured, understanding the different ways an index can be structured and written, and understanding when to go with one approach versus another. For me, at least, the only way I can learn this is by doing, over and over again, and being mindful of what I am doing so that I can learn with each index. I think that I am more efficient now than I was even just a year ago. I hope to continue to improve. 

Recently, though, I have been thinking about three techniques I use. These are all ways to externalize and capture my thoughts so I do not have to keep everything in my mind all at once. 

Mind Mapping

Mind mapping is a way to quickly diagram relationships. I find this exercise most helpful for understanding difficult books. There is something about writing down the different components of an argument, and physically drawing lines between them, that boosts clarity. It can also be a way to see if I have captured the full scope of the book in the index, as I compare the mind map, based on the book, to the index. I have been finding it so helpful that I am starting to do a quick mind map for all indexes I write, usually before I start the final edit. It only takes about ten minutes, and it gives me an opportunity to reflect.

There is a website on mind mapping, if you want to learn more. Software is available, both free and for a price. I occasional use Scapple, but honestly, I usually just use a pen and a scrap piece of paper. 

Notes

Another technique I have used for years is keeping notes. I use Notes, a program on my MacBook. I have one note per project, and I simply keep a running list of whatever I want to remember for later. These are often notes about terminology, if I am trying to decide between two or three options. Or these can be questions for the author, or errors that I am finding which I want to share with the client. Sometimes I just free write, in order to understand a concept or a relationship. For some books, I will just have a couple of notes, while for others I’ll end up with a page or two. 

By making a note, I am removing the thought or question from my mind, and I am giving myself permission to move on, knowing that I will be able to come back later and resolve the issue. There is too much thinking going on while indexing to remember every last error I found and question I have, so writing the note down frees up a lot of cognitive space. This is also a recognition that for a lot of issues, I will not know the answer until I have read further in the book and seen how the issue is addressed elsewhere, or perhaps I do need to ask the author. In the meantime, I have to keep working, and making notes that I can refer to later allows me to do that.

Labels and Highlights

Coming back to indexing software, there is a feature in Cindex, the software I use, that I am appreciating more and more as a form of note-taking. This is the ability to label, or highlight, entries. I assume the same can be done in other programs, like Macrex and Sky. 

When I label entries, I am flagging the entry with a colour to remind myself to take action at a later date. I will often use two or three different colours to remind myself of different things. The most common is for an entry I might want to cut. Especially if space is tight for the index, it saves a lot of time at the end to be able to search for the labeled entries and hit delete for all of them. I use a different colour if I think I might want to remove subheadings. Another common reason is for entries I want to revisit, but I am afraid I will forget if it is not labeled. 

As with notes, using labels is about externalizing my thoughts so that I can put that thought away for later.

Working full time as an indexer is often about finding ways to be efficient, so we can maintain a full schedule without burning out. These are three mind hacks that I use to process my thoughts more efficiently, and to focus better without being distracted by a host of other thoughts. If you are an indexer, what techniques do you use? I am curious.

Article
June 11, 2018
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by Stephen

Defining Experience, One Index (and One Tree) at a Time

Photo by Jesse Orrico on Unsplash

Experience can be tricky to define and gauge. As a freelancer, what standard do you compare yourself to? When are you no longer a “newbie”? Some professional societies, such as the UK’s Society of Indexers or Editors Canada, offer certification, which can be helpful. Many others do not offer these external standards by which we can gauge ourselves. Is it a matter of, “I know it when I see it”?

I returned home a couple of days ago from the Indexing Society of Canada’s annual conference, held this year in Winnipeg. It was the fifth indexing conference I have attended. Unexpectedly, I came away feeling like I was truly an experienced indexer. I do not say this to brag or to say that I have finally arrived, whatever that means. There has been a shift, though—a subtle, unlooked for, shift, perhaps—in how I view myself, and perhaps in how I perceive how my colleagues view me. 

I have been trying to think about what happened at the conference that might have contributed to this shift. I did announce our new mentorship program, which I helped to write the proposal for and for which I am now one of the two coordinators tasked with turning the proposal into a functioning program. I know that indexing experience is not strictly necessary to put together a mentorship program, but I am still feeling the weight of this responsibility. I did feel like I recognized more colleagues than I have in the past, and in turn was recognized by them. I have been around long enough that colleagues are starting to turn into friends. I did talk to a number of newer indexers, compared to whom I am, I realize, more experienced, while there are others who have been indexing far longer. I suppose you could say that in my sixth year as a freelancer I am somewhere in the middle of my career. The beginning is now past.

I often think about the two seasons I planted trees in northern British Columbia, when I think about the acquisition and progression of experience. I turned nineteen and twenty those two summers. Tree planting is seasonal work in Canada, to replace the trees cut down by logging. First year planters are called rookies, and you remain a rookie until the last day of the season. If you come back for a second year, you are a vet. The demarcation is clear.

Experience is what differentiates rookies from vets. The first season is dedicated to learning proper technique, how to read the ground, and how to add speed, once technique is ingrained. I only hit the two thousand tree mark three, maybe four days that first summer. For me, much of that first season was also the mental struggle to stay engaged in a repetitious, physically demanding task and environment. Especially in the third month, I am pretty sure I was burning out. One afternoon I literally threw my shovel away and cried, alone in the middle of the clearcut. I felt numb and exhausted. All I wanted to do was to sit and be somewhere else. But, I was in the middle of the wilderness with a bag of seedlings strapped to my waist. At the very least I needed to walk back to the truck, which I think was at least a ten minute walk. So after sitting for a bit I found my shovel and dragged myself back to work.

In contrast, my second season got off to a flying start. I hit two thousand trees within the first few days and maintained that pace for the rest of the summer. I would often plant upwards to 2,200 trees a day, occasionally more, with my personal best being about 2,650, on trenched ground, with a sore knee. I was refreshed from nine months away, and all of that experience from my first year—all that I was trying to achieve my first year—suddenly became possible. I was clearly no longer a rookie. That said, there were a few vets on our crew who had been planting for five or more years. They would routinely plant three thousand trees a day, sometimes going up to four or five thousand if the ground was creamy. Experience exists on a continuum. 

Bringing this back to indexing, I think there are a few markers for experience. One is simply putting in the work, measured both in time and in indexes completed. Indexing, like tree planting, is inherently hands-on. While knowledge about technique can inform practice, that knowledge will never replace practice. The best way to gain experience is to just do the work. 

A second aspect is self-reflection. I think it is possible for someone to index poorly for a long time, because they have never thought about how they index or how they can improve. I think when someone is described as an experienced indexer, quality is often implied, which requires attention to craft. The other side of this is that even experienced indexers can get better. There is always room to learn. 

I think that mindset is a third aspect. I see this in myself, in that somewhere along the way I have come to recognize that I have completed a significant body of work, that my work processes and skills have changed over time (hopefully for the better), and that I am better able to deal with challenges as they arise. I also have a changing sense of myself in relation to my colleagues, whether those are colleagues ahead of me, with me, or behind me on this continuum of experience. I am coming to see that I am experienced, while also seeing that there is still more that I can learn. 

Maybe I am premature to consider myself experienced. Maybe I will look back on this post ten years from now and think, “What is that idiot talking about?” And maybe I will think the same again twenty years from now. I don’t know. Either way, the work continues. I trust that you and I, if we keep chipping away at our craft, will find experience, one way or another. And there is always another indexing conference next year to look forward to.

I wasn’t able to find a stock photo of tree planting, but check this article out on Vice for some stunning photos. There is nothing quite like pounding trees. It is as much a lifestyle as it is a job.

Article
May 28, 2018
1 comment
by Stephen

How to Marinate an Index and Other Time Factors

“How long does it take to index a book, anyway?”

This is one of the most common questions I am asked by non-indexers. It is a fair question. What is this alchemy of words and numbers that I do from which an index is created? Do I actually have to read the whole book?

This is also an important question for editors and authors who are looking to hire an indexer. How much time does the production schedule need to allow for indexing? If a rush job is required, how rushed is reasonable?

To answer this question, I often say that I can complete most indexes in fifteen to twenty-five hours. These are hours spent at the computer, actively working on the index. This is true enough, in that I time myself and these are the numbers I get. But it is still a simplistic answer. A better answer is, if I have no other projects on the go, I can complete an index for a 200 page book in three days. Three long days, depending on the book’s content, but still, three days. A week is more comfortable for me, for most books. I currently index, on average, 4-5 books per month.  

Most of my clients, when they send me a project, give me two to four weeks to complete the index (different clients have different schedules). Occasionally I am asked to complete an index in less time, which I might be able to do, but I still prefer at least two weeks. Why is this? Does this not contradict what I wrote above about completing an index in three days? Even three days is a somewhat simplistic answer. There are a number of factors that affect how long it takes to write an index. 

Length and Complexity

Let’s start with the easiest factors. A long book will usually take longer to index than a short book. A more complex book—as in complexity in structure, argument, or subject matter—will also usually take longer to index than a simple book. This is usually the different between a book intended for a general audience and a book intended for a specialist or scholarly audience. If you are an author or editor, think about the audience for your book and how it is written, as well as the page or word count. That should give you an idea for how long it will take to write the index.

Overlapping Projects and Deadlines

Some indexers prefer to work on only one project at a time. I see value in that. It is easier on the mind to not have to switch back and forth between projects. For that reason I try not to work on more than two indexes at a time, though I am currently working on three. When I edit an index, I also tend to double down and not work on anything else until I am done, in order to maintain focus and to keep the big picture of the index in my mind. 

But still, I often do work on more than one index at a time. I also usually have one or more projects waiting on my desktop for me to start. This means what while I may have three weeks to complete an index, I am not actively working on that index everyday for those three weeks. I am sorry if this bursts your conception of how I work. Please know, however, that sometime in those three weeks I will write the best index for you that I can.  

Why do I work like this, with multiple overlapping projects? The main reason is that publishing schedules often change. When I book a project, I mark those dates on my calendar and I try to space projects in a reasonable way. I also believe that my clients are being sincere about the dates they give me. But, dates change. I may learn about changes a few weeks or a month in advance, or it might just be a few days. I have decided that in order to maintain a full schedule, so that a change of dates does not leave a big hole, it is worthwhile to have overlapping projects. Having two or more weeks to complete an index, while technically more time than I usually need, does allow me to work on more than one project at a time, as well as provides a cushion when schedules slip. 

Time to Think

This, in my opinion, is the most important factor when thinking about the time it takes to write an index. If I am indexing a short book that will take, say, eight hours, I could conceivably write the index in one day. But I would never want to do that. Why? Because that kind of compressed work does not give me time to think.

What do I mean by this? Surely I am thinking all throughout the indexing process. There is reading the text and understanding what it means. There is thinking at the micro level, about what main headings and subheadings to use, and how to word them. There is thinking at the macro level, about the index structure. Then there is the final edit, which is a different sort of thinking from reading the book and creating the initial entries. In order to edit with a freshed mind, I prefer to start editing the day after I finish reading the book. So, yes, a lot of thinking goes into the index. 

By time to think, I also mean time away from the index, time that is not captured in those eight hours. These are insights that come to me when I am at the gym, washing the dishes, or driving. Sometimes if I am stuck I will simply go for a walk, hoping that the break and the change in activity will stimulate my thinking. I find that these moments away from the index, when I give my subconscious a chance to hum along while I do something else, are crucial to writing the index. In a way, the index needs time to marinate. The index will be better for spacing the work out over a few days.

Time to Rest

Related to time to think is time to rest. This is both for within a project and between projects. Reading sixty or a hundred pages per day, and created index entries, is a lot of information to process. My mind often feels like mush at the end of the day, and I need to take time to rest so that I can do it again the next day. The same is true between projects, especially as I prefer, as I mentioned, to double down on editing to keep the big picture in my mind. This can make for some long days editing. Depending on how I am feeling, I might take the next day off, or at least work fewer hours, to give my mind a chance to recover.

Rush Jobs

I mentioned rush jobs at the beginning of this post and how they fit in. When a client asks for a rush job, it usually means that I am being asked at the last minute, and the index is due in a week or less. Given that I am already often working on a couple of indexes, I usually turn down rush jobs. If you are lucky, another project has slipped and I have an unexpected hole in my schedule, but that is usually the exception. The other exception is if I really want to work on the project, for whatever reason, or if I am doing it as a favour to the client, at which point I am probably working evenings and the weekend to fit it in.

Figuring out the time it takes to write an index is complicated. Being a freelancer and working with multiple clients means a fluid schedule. There are the deadlines, and then there is how I structure my days and weeks to actually meet those deadlines. If you are an author or editor, hopefully this blog post will give you a better understanding of what you are helping to set in motion when you say, please complete this index in two weeks.  If you are an indexer, what factors are at play for you?

Article
May 14, 2018
2 comments
by Stephen

Strategic and Persistent Marketing

Marketing is probably the one area that most stumps freelancers. Unless the skill you are offering is that of marketing consultant, this is not what you trained for. The thought of cold-calling reduces your voice to a stuttering whisper. If you are new to freelancing, you might also be wracked with insecurity about your qualifications. Are you good enough for someone to hire?

Let’s say that yes, you are good enough to hire. If you have undergone training, have made opportunities to practice your craft, and gotten feedback from others, then you are already a big step ahead of the amateurs. You will continue to learn as you work, but for now, yes, you are good enough to open for business.

So, back to the question: how do we market ourselves?

The actual how is difficult to answer. So much depends on what you are comfortable doing, and what will most effectively reach your target clients. I once read an article in an indexing resource titled something like “A Hundred Ways to Market Yourself.” (I wish I could find that article again.) Some of the ways given were very practical and others were a bit goofy, but the point was, marketing is basically getting your name and services in front of the right people, however that happens. 

I like to think about marketing as forming relationships and connections with the right people. In a niche industry like indexing, it is only a small subset of people who actually need to hire an indexer. Trying to sell my services to the marketing team may lead to a referral to the managing editor, who is the person I actually need to be talking to, but it won’t be the most effective use of my effort. So one of the first considerations is, who do I actually need to talk to? 

To help narrow down the possibilities, answer these questions:

  • What is your market? There are hundreds of publishers out there, and who knows how many thousands of authors, not to mention journals and possibly corporations and government entities who could use an indexer. Unless you plan on starting a large indexing company, working across the whole field, you can’t possibly serve them all. So what kind of clients do you want to work with? Do you want to work with authors or publishers? Do you have a preference between trade, scholarly, or a speciality subject? Do you want to work with clients within a certain geographical area? Your market can overlap any or all of these areas. You can also choose to target different markets as your business grows. But to provide focus, pick a market and focus on that for now. 
  • Who, within your chosen market, are the gatekeepers to paid work? As I mentioned above, marketing is about connecting with the right people. Everyone else you can fairly safely ignore. I say fairly safely because even someone not directly connected to indexing might be able to refer you to work, so by all means make it widely known that you are open for business. That knowledge might just percolate and eventually turn into a job. But for more immediate results, find the gatekeepers. In a publishing house, this will probably be the managing or production editor. If you are not sure who is responsible for hiring indexers, ask. Finding the people who need indexers will take some time and research, and it is well worth the effort. When you do make your pitch, you do not want to waste your time or theirs talking to the wrong person. 

Once you have identified who to contact, these are a few points to consider as you plan your marketing strategy.

  • Choose a marketing method. There are many ways to approach a potential client. I think if done rightly, there are no wrong ways. As mentioned, the main factors are, is it a way that you are comfortable with, and will it effectively reach the client. Personally, I prefer to make contact by email or to network at conferences and other events. I have also tried cold-calling, and once I arranged to meet a managing editor for coffee and tour their office, which I would definitely do again if I moved to a new city and wanted to meet the local publishers. I once heard a presentation from an indexer who conducted an extensive and successful snail mail campaign, and I’ve talked to an indexer who found work on business books through Google ads. Pick two or three ways that you are comfortable with and given them a try. If the first try does not succeed, try again. People will not always reply, so try several times to see if a method is effective or not. If a method is not effective, try something else. The point of choosing a method is to provide focus. It is not to lock you into a method forever. 
  • Show that you understand your potential client’s needs. I think it can be easy to assume that a publisher and an indexer are an obvious match. It can be tiresome to personalize forty emails. But while parts of that email can be the same across all forty, it is still important to show that you know something about the books or the needs of that particular client. Show that this is not just another email that you are dashing off, but that you have put thought into this effort to connect.
  • Talk about yourself with specific details. The flip side about being knowledgable about the client is being specific about your own abilities and accomplishments. If you haven’t yet landed your first project, then mention your training and any academic or employment experience which would be relevant to the books at hand. You can also mention indexes that you have written for practice or as a volunteer. If you have been hired for a few projects, then mention those, including the publishers. If you have a testimonial, put that in. You do not want to send a bland, generic message. Let the client know that you are a real person with experience and knowledge of the industry and the task. 
  • Pay attention to local and new publishers. I wonder if this is an area that some indexers overlook, because it seems like local or new publishers can’t possibly provide enough work. That is most likely true, but local publishers can still be a great starting point. You can use projects from smaller clients to show larger clients what you are capable of. And, I think it can sometimes be easier to get work from local clients. One managing editor told me that she prefers to hire local, even though she knows that with the internet, there is no rational basis for that preference. With someone local, you can also meet them in person, which, if you make a good impression, could be much more effective than an email or phone call. As for a new publisher, becoming their first freelance indexer could help ensure a steady stream of work into the future. So keep your eyes and ears open for changes in the publishing scene so you can respond quickly to new opportunities. 
  • Don’t despise the small clients. This relates to what I wrote last week about having a diverse client base. A small or medium sized publisher will not be able to provide full-time work, but a handful of small publishers might. So don’t be afraid to market to smaller potential clients. It is not a waste of time. 

By this point, I don’t blame you if you are wondering if we are done yet. There is a lot to consider. But take a deep breathe—I am almost done.  Just a few more big-picture points to consider.

  • Think long term. You may meet the perfect managing editor who can send you work, but they don’t need you yet. Indexing is just one part of the book production process, and maybe when you make contact, they don’t have any books at that stage. Or perhaps they already work with other indexers, and the editor is willing to give you a try but you have to wait until the other indexers are not available. It can sometimes take months or even years for a contact to actually send you work. To give an extreme example, I was recently hired, for the first time, by someone I first met at a networking event four or five years ago. She still remembered me, and when someone else recently recommended me to her, she decided that it was finally time to get in contact with a job. Thankfully the next longest span for me between first contact and a project was about a year, and with most other clients it was a matter of within a few months. But still, marketing may not yield immediate results. So do not be discouraged if work is slow to come. Keep trying, follow-up, and the work will eventually come. 
  • Remember that marketing is a numbers game. The more people you contact, the better the odds that at least some of them will reply with work. If you contact ten publishers, expect that maybe one or two will get back to you. If you factor in time, maybe a couple more will eventually respond as well. It can be discouraging to put in all that work to only receive silence. This is fairly common, unfortunately. So within your chosen market, and having done your research to identify the gatekeepers and how you can meet their needs, reach out to as many potential clients as you can.
  • Network. Like marketing, this is another of those dreaded words for freelancers, especially if you are an introvert and part of your motivation for freelancing is because you want to work at home by yourself. What does it mean to network? Like marketing, it is about making connections with the people who need you or who can refer you onwards. I don’t enjoy getting together with strangers either, but a lot of it is, honestly, just showing up and saying hello. Surprisingly, this is now one of my preferred methods. Networking does get easier with practice, especially if you can return to the same event two or three times. The first time may be awkward, but by the second or third visit, people will start to recognize you, and you them. 

Okay, you can breathe again. Thank you for staying with me to the end. 

Marketing is intimidating, but with a focused plan it is possible. You can gain clients and launch your freelance career. Be persistent, be strategic, and the work will eventually come.

The Freelance Career Launch Series is a set of posts about how to start your freelance career. The focus will be on indexing, because that is what I do, but the principles are universal. 

Article
May 7, 2018
0 comment
by Stephen

The Value of a Diverse Client Base

One of the most daunting questions to face a new indexer is, where does the work come from? How do I land my first client? That experienced indexer over there has lots of work and it looks like they don’t even market. How does that happen?

I will write about marketing next week (I promise). Suffice to say for now that it is possible to get to a point where marketing can take a back seat, though I think one should always keep an eye out for new opportunities. The publishing scene is too dynamic to become complacent. 

Instead, today I want to write about the value of building a diverse client base. Marketing will certainly help you gain clients, but I believe that long-term sustainability as a freelancer comes from gaining and retaining at least a handful of regular clients. You don’t want to have only one or two clients, no matter how much work they provide, nor do you want to have a revolving door of clients who never contact you again. 

Why is this so? I have observed three reasons, from my own experience and from talking to other freelancers.

  1. Your mix of clients will change over time. Even if you are the world’s best indexer, your clients will change over time. Having one or two clients that provide all the work you need may be awesome in the short term, and it will also be disastrous should that client suddenly disappear. Changes in your client base is not a reflection of you. Instead, it is the reality of a changing publishing scene. In the last few years, I’ve had my very first client shut down and absorbed by a larger press. Another university press, which for a while was providing me with a fair chunk of my work, was downsized by its university as a cost-saving measure. An editor at a third press, who also provided me with a lot of work over a couple of years, decided to herself freelance. I still get the occasional project from the new editor, but nowhere near the volume of work I used to get. If any one of these had been my only or primary client, my schedule and income would have taken a major hit. As it was, though I was sad to lose those books and contacts, work from other clients filled in the gaps. I currently have about a dozen clients who regularly or occasionally send me work, and somehow it all balances out. 
  2. Because many potential clients are small. I live and work in Canada, and as author Eve Silver once told me, in a workshop, there are no big publishers in Canada. Not like there are big publishers in New York or London. I used to worry about this, thinking that I needed to find an in with the big name publishers so that I would have a guaranteed stream of work, or so that I could index New York Times bestsellers. I don’t worry about that anymore. Someone has to index those books, and if that person is you, congratulations! But still, as mentioned above, I would caution about relying too much on a single big publisher for work. I also want to suggest that if you are in a market full of small to mid-sized publishers, it is still possible to build a business. Most of my clients only send me a handful of books per year, because that is all they produce, but several handfuls add up quickly. If this is the kind of market you find yourself in, work with it. 
  3. So you don’t have to work on the same thing all the time. I don’t know about you, but I enjoy variety in my work. If my brain is getting tired wrestling with a scholarly text, a light trade book can be refreshing. If I am getting tired of economics, indexing a book about nature is a nice change of pace. This reason is more about personal enjoyment than the realities of publishing, but still, you will probably be more successful if you are enjoying your work. You may not always get work from the clients you want, but you should certainly pursue work that you will enjoy.

What I have written here assumes that your clients will mostly be publishers, book packagers, or other organizations. These are clients who can send you regular, repeat work. An alternative approach is to work primarily with individual authors, who can recommend you to their friends and colleagues, which is another way to build your client base and get additional work. A downside with authors is that they often have long gaps between projects, so you will probably have to wait at least a year before an author hires you again. This is why I have chosen to focus on developing relationships with publishers, who can either hire me directly or recommend me to their authors. But both approaches are possible and can lead to full-time work.

You may be wondering at this point, how am I going to get five or ten clients if I don’t even have one? Having to market is daunting enough. Now I have to up my goal for the number of clients I need? Well, yes and no. Keep working on finding that first client. Don’t worry about finding others for now. And when you get hired for that first job, celebrate and then get to work. Just keep it in the back of your mind that long-term one client will not be enough. You will want to find more. In my first few years as a freelancer, it was my goal to add each year at least one new regular client. Often I would end up with two or three new clients, and some years, as I mentioned, I would also lose a client or two. Building a diverse client base takes time. It is also well worth the investment.

The Freelance Career Launch Series is a set of posts about how to start your freelance career. The focus will be on indexing, because that is what I do, but the principles are universal. 

Article
April 30, 2018
0 comment
by Stephen

The Benefits and Practice of Practice

So you have decided to be an indexer. Maybe you have taken a course to learn how to index, and perhaps you have started to build your bridge so that you can transition to full-time freelance indexing. But still, a question remains (well, probably several questions, but we’ll get to the others later). How do you become good at indexing?

I have heard some new indexers talk about the course which they have taken as being a good starting point, but they are still not confident in their indexing abilities. They still have questions about how to construct a index, or about what terms to include, or about when subheadings are necessary and how to phrase the subheadings. This is an astute observation on the part of the new indexer, and I think it reveal the importance of practice.

About ten years ago, Malcolm Gladwell popularized the idea of needing to put in 10,000 hours of practice in order to achieve excellence. That claim is much disputed (more about that, and practice, here), and I do not think that you need to put in 10,000 hours to become an excellent indexer. Practice, though, is still important, especially deliberate, focused practice, in which you are able to be aware of what you are creating, and to find ways to improve. This ties nicely into the idea of life-long learning and professional development. I still try to improve my craft, even though I have been indexing for about seven years now, and have written around 200 indexes. I believe that I can get better.

The good news from this is that you do not need to be an expert to start freelancing. You need to be good enough so that you can do a decent job. You do, after all, want the client to hire you again or to recommend you to others. But practice is, essentially, deliberate doing, and once you have achieved a certain level of competency, you can practice as you work. 

But still, how to practice? Especially if you are at the start of your freelance career and no one has hired you yet. Perhaps you are like the new indexers I have talked to who have completed training, but are not yet confident in their abilities. There still are ways that you can practice. Practicing now, before your first paid job, will solidify your skills, give you confidence for when you do land that first job, and might also give you a portfolio which you can use to market yourself.

Here are a few suggestions for how to practice.

  • Critique published indexes. Examine the indexes that are already on your bookshelf, visit the library, or browse indexes on Amazon using the Look Inside function. What does the index do well? What is done poorly? Is there anything unique about the index? Any rules broken? Why does it work or not work? Try to critique both poorly written indexes and excellent indexes. What differentiates the two? Look at several indexes from within the same subject or genre. What makes the good ones good? This is actually how I learned how to index. I had a short-term work placement with a university press, and one day I was handed an index, the press’ indexing guidelines, and the Chicago Manual of Style chapter on indexing. My job was to figure out if the index was ready for publication, and, if it was not, to fix it. After doing this several times, I was ready to try writing my first index.
  • Find a book or report and index it. This can be a book off of your shelf or a PDF pulled from the internet. It can already have an index or you could be writing its first index ever. The point is that you are writing an index. No one is paying you for it, but you can use the resulting index in your portfolio.
  • Volunteer your indexing services for a friend or local society. I know that as professionals, paid work is what we strive for, and I do not want to advocate doing too much for free. However, if you are trying to build confidence, your skills, and/or a portfolio, and you know of a person or group that could use an indexer, volunteering to write an index might be a win-win situation for one or two projects. Be clear on your reasons for taking on the project, and be clear with the client on the parameters of the project, and this could be a good stepping stone towards your freelance career.
  • Ask for feedback from other indexers. And, see if you can critique other indexers’ works-in-progress. This can be a great way to both gain feedback and see what others do. If you are interested in this, there is an email group, Index Peer Reviewers, for this very purpose.

Practicing can feel like a chore, and it can feel disconnected from what you really want to do, which is to be a professional freelance indexer. But if you keep that goal in mind, and take the time now to practice, either while waiting for that first paid job to arrive or in anticipation of launching your freelance career, I think you will find that you will have greater confidence in your abilities, and be working at a higher level, which will help you find success sooner as a freelancer. So pick an approach and start practicing today.

The Freelance Career Launch Series is a set of posts about how to start your freelance career. The focus will be on indexing, because that is what I do, but the principles are universal. 

Article
April 23, 2018
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by Stephen

Freelance Career Launch Series: Building a Bridge

So you want to be an freelance indexer. The idea of being paid to read is alluring, or you need a more flexible job that will fit around the rest of your life, or you just want to work from home. Whatever your reasons, welcome!

But how, you ask, do I become a freelance indexer? Or a freelance anything? Where does the work actually come from? Is there enough work out there for me, and for everyone else who is also freelancing?

The answer is yes, I do believe that there is enough work out there for all who want to freelance. And yes, initially finding that work will probably be difficult. It will take effort to connect with the people who need your services, and it may take time before those people are ready to hire you. I have heard it said, and found this true for myself, that it takes about three years to build up a business to the point where you are consistently working full-time. Freelancing is not a quick fix for a sudden financial crunch. Successful freelancing is a long-term endeavour.

But still, how do you start? Because we all have to start from somewhere.

In his book The Art of Work, Jeff Goins discusses the concept of building a bridge to achieve your goals. In this way of thinking, you work systematically towards your goal instead of taking a drastic leap. You do not need to do everything at once to achieve your dream. Instead, you are always asking yourself, what can I do next? In freelance terms, this likely means preparing to freelance prior to quitting your previous job. It means that you have certain conditions in place that give you the confidence to freelance, because you have already done some of the work, and what you have done leads naturally to the next phase.

For me, I was confident about quitting my in-house publishing job and starting to freelance because I had learned how to index while working in-house, I already had some guaranteed work from previous employers, and I had some money saved which I could live off of for the first few months. This was my bridge that allowed me to build a freelance business. Was it enough to provide me with full-time work when I first started to freelance? No, I was only working part-time, at best, in my first year as a freelancer. But I had enough to pay the bills, and I had enough to build upon, which was what I needed.

So what can you do to build your bridge? We all start from different places, so your bridge may look different from mine. Here are a few suggestions, though, for where to start. How many of these you need is up to you.

  • Learn how to index. You can take a course, you can teach yourself, or you can learn while working in-house for someone else. But your first freelance job, working under a deadline, is not the best time to learn. 
  • Moonlight. If you have a full-time job, start freelancing part-time on the side. This will give you experience and you can start to build your client base. When you do decide to freelance full-time, you will probably have to expand your client base, but that should be easy compared to starting from scratch.
  • Secure promises for work. Do you have an employer or previous employers who can send you work when you switch to freelancing? Do you know of other potential sources of work? Talk to them now. The best piece of advice I received when I started is to have some work already lined up. This alleviates the financial stress of not knowing how you are going to pay your bills in those first months. It also gives you a portfolio right from the start that you can show to other potential clients.
  • Build a financial cushion. As mentioned in the previous point, stressing out about how to pay your bills is not fun, and is not conducive to the mental and emotional space needed to build your business. Also keep in mind that clients usually pay after the job is completed, so even if you do have work lined up for when you start freelancing, it will probably still be a couple of months before you see that money. If you can, save some money to live on for those first few lean months. 
  • Network. Even if your previous employer can send you work, you will likely need a larger client base than that. Are there local publishers that you can contact and ask to visit their offices or meet for coffee? Are there local editor and author groups that you can join or visit? Are there relevant conferences that you can attend? Can you get to know other indexers? Finding work is about connecting with the right people. Start building those relationships now, so that you are not completely isolated when you start to freelance. 
  • Create a plan. What kind of indexing do you want to do? How much money do you need to make? How do you define full-time? How are you doing to market yourself? Where are you physically going to do the work? You do not have to implement this plan before you start to freelance, and the plan will probably change over time as you gain experience and as circumstances change, but having some amount of plan will help tell you what the next steps are, and will help to give you a sense of momentum.

Starting your own business is never going to be easy. It will always carry some risk. I do believe, however, that it is possible to manage the level of difficulty. If you can think of launching a business as a series of smaller steps, some of which can be done prior to launch, you will be setting yourself up for a greater chance at success, and an easier, less stressful beginning. That is what building your bridge is about.

If you have already launched your freelancing business, what steps did you take to ensure success?

The Freelance Career Launch Series is a set of posts about how to start your freelance career. The focus will be on indexing, because that is what I do, but the principles are universal. 

Article
March 29, 2018
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by Stephen

Happy Indexing Day! A Tribute to the Joys (and Tribulations) Faced by Indexers

 

It is that day to poke our heads up from our computers, shake loose the cobwebs of headings and locators which cling to our minds, and realize that hey! we are not alone in this business. (It is great to see you too.)

Indexing can be a lonely endeavour. Most indexers freelance, working from home or co-working spaces. Occasionally we will collaborate on a particularly large project, which will initiate a flurry of phone calls and emails, but even then we are usually doing the actual work by ourselves. Perhaps because of this seclusion, indexers tend to be extremely helpful and welcoming, whether on email groups, or at conferences or regional get-togethers. Even introverts—and most of us are probably introverts—need our social outlets. 

Being self-employed also means that you never really know what project will be offered next. Is that email in your inbox a dream project, perfectly aligning with your interests and expertise, or is it going to be a nightmare? I have to tell you, philosophy and literary criticism are not my strong points, unless it is a book with a title like Philosophy for Dummies (which I am still waiting to receive). There are other indexers with graduate degrees in philosophy and literary criticism. Please hire them instead. 

But still, our incomes depend on receiving a steady stream of projects. It can be tempting to take on those difficult projects, especially if there is a hole in your schedule or pocket. Sometimes you don’t realize that a project is going to be difficult until you start. Sometimes you just want to beat your head against the keyboard, you have no idea what the text is trying to say. Maybe the book would have made sense to that indexer with a graduate degree in whatever the subject is (and maybe that indexer is cursing the project that would have been perfect for you), but there can be a silver lining. I have gotten some of the most effusive praise from clients on the books I had the most difficulty with. Maybe it was all of the extra time I poured into the book, trying to read and re-read it, turning the text upside down looking for the hidden key that would grant me comprehension. 

Then there are the projects, of course, that are far easier than expected, or which are simply a delight to read. The emotional lives of trees, anyone? Simply reading that book was relaxing. A mental forest bath. Or the annotated translation of marriage law from the Yuan dynasty. So the text itself was a bit dry, but wow, some unique circumstances and prescriptions. My wife and I had fun imagining how our wedding and marriage would have been different had we lived in that time and place. Then there is one of my current favourites—business books. Why not learn how to improve my business while I am working?

So happy indexing day, everyone! Like any job, indexing has its ups and downs, its surprises, its moments of uncertainty and frustration, and its moments of relief and glee. It is truly amazing the diversity of books that I have indexed. It is truly amazing that I have survived some of the indexes I have written, not to mention the deadlines. My clients and colleagues have also been truly amazing, especially the ones I have been able to work with over multiple projects, and develop camaraderie with. Indexing may be practiced in solitude, but it by no means exists in isolation.

Article
January 10, 2017
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by Stephen

Book Review: Indexing Specialities: Medicine

Indexing Specialties: Medicine, ed. by Pilar Wyman (Information Today, Inc., 1999)

I have been curious about medical indexing since I heard Mary Russell from Australia speak on the subject at the Indexing Society of Canada’s conference in 2014. Though I don’t have a science or medical background, the way that Mary described the thoroughness and comprehensiveness of a medical index, and the logic behind medical terminology, made a lot of sense to me. Anne Fifer will soon be presenting a 3-part webinar through ASI on medical indexing (see here if you are interested), which seems like the perfect opportunity to further explore this area of indexing. First, however, I decided to finally read ASI’s book on medical indexing, which has been sitting on my shelf since last summer.

A slim volume at about 120 pages, including the index, I found the book to answer most of my questions as a newcomer to the field. It was published almost twenty years ago, however, and so I also often wondered while I read how relevant certain chapters still were.

The book is split into four sections. The first, Medical Indexers, consists of an interview with Frances Lennie, of Cindex fame, and Alexandra Nickerson, as well as a short autobiography by Shelley Greenhouse, who does database indexing. I found these interesting, the interview especially, as I felt that it gave a good sense of the different types of projects and situations a medical indexer might face, some of which I imagine is still relevant today. It would also be great to read an updated interview, to see if there is anything new in the current indexing climate.

The second section, Medical Indexes, consists of two chapters by Pilar Wyman, one looking at medical indexes which have been reviewed in The Indexer, and the other looking at award-winning medical indexes. I also found these chapters to be very helpful, as they give a good sense of the qualities that a good medical index should have, namely accuracy, thorough analysis, comprehensiveness, and usability. For me, this section is among the highlights of the book.

The third and most extensive section of the book, Medical Indexing, consists of a mixed bag of chapters on different aspects of medical indexing. The two chapters I found most relevant were Cynthia Bertelsen’s chapter, “Indexing Food and Nutrition Materials,” and Irving Conde Tullar’s chapter on all of the different issues that one might face, ranging from text structure to terminology to considerations for different medical specialities. These chapters are very much on the nuts and bolts of dealing with the content, and as such very helpful, if also a bit intimidating. I got the impression that Tullar is trying to discourage people from entering this field, and perhaps he is. As he writes, “I would not recommend that anyone think of specializing in medical indexing without first becoming a competent and time-efficient indexer. I also would discourage the indexer who contemplates devoting only a minor part of total indexing time to this speciality because it is the cumulative experience from numerous projects that prepares one to index at the requisite speed not only to meet the increasingly uncomfortable publisher schedules but to be adequately compensated for the effort and stress.”  You, and I, have been warned.

Also interesting and clearly written, though potentially less useful, are the two chapters on medical database indexing, a more general chapter by Max McMaster and a chapter by Helen Ochej on the MEDLINE database. My hesitation comes from hearing anecdotally from long-time indexers that most of their database indexing contracts have disappeared. Is this, then, still a viable field for new indexers to pursue? I have no idea, and I would appreciate clarification. Also, if database indexing is still a thing, is the technology used the same as described in these chapters? If not, then the chapters’ usefulness also diminishes, though you still get a good sense of the theory and purpose of database indexing.

Also interesting, though also possibly a historical footnote today, is Susanne Humphrey’s chapter on the MedIndEx Project, which was (is?) an attempt to automate aspects of medical indexing. Whether this actually worked, I have no idea. Googling it didn’t reveal much either, so I’m guessing it either now goes under a different name or the initiative failed. 

Lastly, there is a curious and short chapter by Gerry L. Messner on why nurses make potentially great indexers. I have no arguments with the author, and presumably this would be most useful for someone with a nursing background who is considering a career change.

The final section is on resources, consisting of another chapter from Cynthia Bertelsen and a chapter by Carolyn Weaver. I found these chapters, especially Bertelsen’s, to be helpful in knowing what types of resources I am likely to need, but given the age of the book I feel that I can’t trust these chapters to be up-to-date. I expect that I would need to do my own research to see what is still in print, if any of these resources are now available in a digital or web-based format, and what new resources might be available. Ditto for Weaver’s chapter on web-based resources, which I assume would now be much thicker.

Besides the periodic sense that material was out-of-date, I would have also appreciated more information on project workflow and schedules. A typical book for me now, indexing in the humanities and social sciences, is 200-500 pages, and I have 2-3 weeks to complete the index. How do you jump from what I am familiar with to working on a book that is say 1,000+ pages, or in multiple volumes? Tullar touches on this by saying that some projects can stretch out over many months and that he often receives books in batches of chapters, not always in order, but I still didn’t get a clear enough sense of how that worked in practice. How do you schedule your time for such a project? How do you invoice? How do you negotiate budgets or a schedule? How do you keep track of that much information? What is it like to receive disparate chapters at a time? How are long are typical indexes? Any tips for editing such a large index, so that nothing falls through the cracks? I feel like this could take up a chapter in itself, or at least a significant portion of a chapter.

For a contemporary edition of this book, I would also want to know about embedded indexing, or other forms of digital or web-based indexing. Are they now common for medical texts? Are books expected to be outputted into digital or web-based formats? I know that my previous family doctor primarily used her smartphone during consultations to check my medical records and other information. How does today’s technology affect how doctors access medical information, and how does that in turn affect indexers? Is there anything about the indexing process that is particular to medical indexing? Besides understanding the subject matter, do I also need to learn new technical skills?

I am also curious about name indexes. In theory they sound easy, and I understand that they are often subcontracted out to other indexers, but if the book is 1,000+ pages long, that is a lot of names, which could magnify problems by virtue of sheer volume. So, are name indexes common in medical texts? Any tips for compiling both a names index and a subject index for a book? Any conventions that I should be aware of? Common issues?

Despite my reservations, I do highly recommend this book, especially as there does not seem to be any competitors. There is mention in the references to a book published in 1995 by the Society of Indexers in the UK, Indexing the Medical and Biological Sciences, but that appears to be out of print. I also checked the index for The Indexer, and it appears that the last time The Indexer published an article on medical indexing was in 2009. I don’t have access to Key Words, so I don’t know if any recent articles have been published there. So beyond Anne Fifer’s new webinar, which seems a most timely addition, this book is it for resources. There is still much of value here. I also sincerely hope that ASI will consider publishing an updated edition, which can only improve upon the strengths of this book.

Article
December 15, 2016
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by Stephen

Cutting the Index: Tips for Trimming to Meet Space Limitations

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The words I dread the most from a client are, “You only have x number of pages for the index.”

Those words put me on notice that I will probably have to censor myself as I write the index. Instead of thinking, “How can I make this information most accessible?” I start to think, “Of the access points available, which should I use and which can I do without?” I start to triage potential entries and subheadings, labeling some for potential deletion, while others may not even get included in the rough draft. This approach is the opposite of how I want to index, which is to be comprehensive and inclusive. I want the information in the book to be fully accessible. Not surprisingly, my indexes tend to be on the thick side. 

But, sometimes there are limits. Maybe the client can’t afford to add an extra signature or half signature. (Books are printed in blocks of pages called signatures. See here for more information.) Or maybe the full index will only fill part of an extra signature, and again, it just isn’t worth the extra cost to only fill an extra page or two. Publishers generally don’t like empty pages at the end of a book. In some cases, the client may have a pre-established notion for how long the index should be, perhaps based on a formula to calculate the length of the index. But I would suggest that every book is different. A formula can give you a rough estimate, but it doesn’t take into account the content of an individual book. For these clients, a longer index might be acceptable if you can justify it. 

So, step one, if told that there is a space limitation and if you have examined the proofs and are leery of the page limit being enough, is to ask if the limit is negotiable. Because it might be. Maybe you won’t be able to get the full number of pages you want, but you might get a few more.

If you find with a particular client that you often have trouble with the space they allot, you might also want to contact them to discuss the issue. They may be unaware of the problem, there may be factors for the length of the index that you are unaware of, and having a frank discussion about the index length may lead to happier times on future projects. At the very least, raising the issue shows that you are engaged in the client’s books and in doing the best job you can. If nothing changes, that might also be an indication that you should fire the client and find another client or two that share your indexing vision.

But even if you do decide to eventually move on from this client, this particular index still needs to be finished. You know it is too long. How are you going to shoehorn it into the allotted space?

I always start by prioritizing what I want to keep. This may seem counterintuitive, because the immediate goal is to make the index shorter. But it is still important to keep the ultimate purpose of the index in mind, and that is to make the information in the book accessible. So what, out of all of the entries, absolutely needs to be in the index?

The metatopic is a good place to start. What is the book about? Are there specific people or case studies that the author discusses at length? Concepts that carry the argument forward? Let’s call these the core entries, the entries that lead the reader to the meat of the book. These entries get the comprehensive treatment, and I will do my best to leave them unscathed. 

The rest of the information I prioritize in decreasing importance. Think of it as concentric rings around the core entries. When I start cutting, I start with the outermost ring–the least important entries–and work my way towards the core. The goal is to get the index to fit while inflicting the least damage. 

How do I do this? There are three aspects of the index I focus on.

As I mentioned, I sometimes label entries as I index. One type of label is for entries that seem minor or tangential to the main subject of the book. Some of these might be considered borderline passing mentions, and I pick them up in my first pass through the text in case they are discussed more fully later on. In a comprehensive index, I would probably include most of these entries. If the index needs trimming, these can be a good place to start. Since they are labelled, it is pretty fast to find and cut. 

Another easy cut is to get rid of subheadings. My usual rule of thumb is to add subheadings if there are more than 6 locators per entry, but if space is tight, I might increase this limit to 8-10 locators. Another option is to combine subheadings. This way the subheads are not as precise, but there will be fewer of them. The importance of the entry is also a factor in deciding how to deal with the subheadings. Where on those concentric rings does the entry lie? If it is close to the core, I am less inclined to heavily modify it. If it is more of an outlier, I’ll cut deeper. 

I also earlier mentioned reducing access points to the information. One common way to provide multiple access points is to double-post, say under both an acronym and the full term or name spelled out. Another is to have the information as a stand-alone heading and as a subheading (or two) under the relevant umbrella terms. You can also think of multiple access points in terms of an event, for example, the bombing of Pearl Harbour, and then the different people, organizations, and concepts involved in that event. By providing these multiple access points, the reader can search using whatever term they want and will still, ideally, find the relevant information.

But maybe there isn’t enough space for all of these access points. So you have to think, what are the most important access points? Instead of double-posting, what is the reader most likely to look for? Is it better to have stand-alone entries or to consolidate entries under umbrella terms? Can nested entries be used to concisely delineate the metatopic, instead of scattered entries? Can cross-references be used judiciously to steer readers to the one and only access point? The goal is to still make the information accessible. The access points can’t disappear entirely. You just have to be a little more creative on how to make those access points pop.

You may be wondering, how do I decide which are the most important access points? How do I prioritize the information and entries? I admit that it is not an exact science. You will have to make a judgment call while knowing that someone else might make that call differently. You might also find that you need to change your mind as you cut. Those subheadings that you were holding onto? The index is still too long, so bye-bye subheadings. Those people who played a relatively important role in that event? Well, they now need to be reassessed as relatively minor, and cut. Cutting the index like this feels like intentionally dulling a sharp knife. Sometimes that is what you have to do.

Throughout all of this, try to be consistent in what you cut. If you decide that acronyms need to go, then take out all acronyms, unless there is a very compelling reason to keep one or two. When I cut, I still want the final index to look thoughtfully structured. I don’t want the cutting to be random, or for a reader to wonder why one entry is present and another term, identical in type, isn’t.

It isn’t fun trimming an index that you already consider to be print-worthy. Especially if you have to cut deep. That hurts, seeing your hard work reduced to something less than what it was. But if you do have to cut, have a plan. Keep the ultimate purpose of the index in mind–making the information in the book accessible. Understand the structure of your index, and understand how that structure might have to change as you cut. Figure out how to prioritize the content of the index. This will make it easier to identify, out of the hundreds or thousands of entries, what can be cut. Do all of this–a controlled cutting process–and the end result should still be a usable index.

What are some of your favourite ways to trim an index? What do you cut first?