The Club Ed Certificate in the Developmental Editing of Nonfiction Program

Applications to the Certificate Program in Nonfiction are currently paused (as of April 15, 2024). To learn when applications will reopen, please sign up for the Club Ed newsletter.

Developmental editing is not an entry-level position. You have to understand the use of effective editorial techniques to do it well. The Club Ed certificate program is designed to help you develop these skills.

You can apply for the Certificate retroactively – we’ll credit the classes you’ve already taken!

Benefits of a certificate of completion

Clarity

Offers a clear course of study that will help you be ready to work with paying clients

Skills

Prepares you to add a skillset to your existing editing business

Tools

Ensures you have the tools needed to get work from discerning clients

We can’t promise that you will be hired because of this credential. But we can promise that you’ll be a far more confident and knowledgeable editor after completing the certificate. The purpose of the program is skills-based and education-focused: it is meant to help you be ready to do the work. This is not an accredited program. It is intended strictly for professional development.

The Club Ed program focuses on editing works written for adults, and in particular trade nonfiction (that is, nonfiction that appeals to a general audience), as this is where most nonfiction editing work can be found.

How the program works

1

You must take the two introductory self-paced classes, Basics of Developmental Editing for Nonfiction and Principles of Developmental Editing for Nonfiction.

2

You must take three classes covering specific developmental situations. These are:

  • Editing Short Nonfiction (either instructor-led or self-paced)
  • Writing and Editing Book Proposals (either instructor-led or self-paced)
  • Editing How-To and Self-Help Books (either instructor-led or self-paced)

Note that more options will become available as the program expands.

3

You must take four electives of your choice. Choose from self-paced and instructor-led:

  • Editorial Toolkit: Coaching Writers (instructor-led)
  • Starting Your Editing Business (self-paced)
  • Getting Editorial Work from Publishers and Packagers (instructor-led)
  • Editorial Toolkit: Book Doctoring and Ghostwriting (instructor-led)
  • How to Edit Query Letters, Blurbs, Etc. for Nonfiction (self-paced)
  • Finding (and Landing!) Indie Author Clients (instructor-led)
  • Editorial Toolkit: Creating Classes & Information Products (instructor-led)
  • Fall Study: Editing Narrative Nonfiction (instructor-led)
  • NEW! Editorial Toolkit: Beta Reading (instructor-led)

Note that more options will become available as the program expands.

4

You must take the instructor-led Advanced Developmental Editing for Nonfiction class OR the self-paced Developmental Editing Practicum.

5

For all instructor-led classes, you must complete all assignments to be considered as having taken that class. If you missed doing an assignment during such a class, you can turn in missed homework using the Missed Homework Makeup product.

6

You must signal your intent to complete the program by filing an application to the program. (There is no charge.) You have three years from the time of your application to complete the requirements for the certificate. When you’re finished with the program, you can request your certificate by sending a list of the classes you’ve taken that fulfill the requirements. (See email below.)

7

You must agree to abide by the Kindness Policy.

Note: If you’ve already taken Club Ed classes, some of these can be applied to the program requirements. List the Club Ed classes you’ve taken when you fill out the application and we’ll let you know which requirements they can be used to fulfill.

If you have taken Beginning and Intermediate Developmental Editing through the EFA, regardless of the instructor, you can bypass the first requirement for the fiction certificate – but talk to us first (Info@ClubEdFreelancers.com). 

Similarly, if you have taken the Developmental Editing for Nonfiction class through Club Ed or the EFA, get in touch with us to see how you can substitute this for the Basics and Principles classes. (Info@ClubEdFreelancers.com).

The cost of the complete program is about $2,200, depending on the class choices you make. Classes can be purchased a la carte, and you can pay for classes as you are ready, not all at once – unless you choose to take advantage of a certificate package. The program is intended to be completed in about a year, taking about one class a month, but you can take up to three years from the time of application to finish the program.