Book editor to magazine editor
A book editor already meets 32% of what the magazine editor role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
66.9/ 100
1 How much of what a magazine editor is expected to do is already part of a book editor’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the magazine editor role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A magazine editor role treats 4 of its required skills as things a book editor already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- consult information sources
- copyright legislation
- develop professional network
- writing techniques
What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 13 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A magazine editor role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a book editor background worth leading with.
- already held check correctness of information information skills
- already held writing techniques arts and humanities
- already held desktop publishing information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held apply desktop publishing techniques working with computers
- already held spelling arts and humanities
- already held use word processing software working with computers
All 13 carried skills, including the 4 the magazine editor role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 24 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn adapt to type of media required
- still to learn create editorial board required
- still to learn ensure consistency of published articles required
- still to learn participate in editorial meetings required
- optional, not held interview people optional
- optional, not held use specific writing techniques optional
- optional, not held write captions optional
- optional, not held write headlines optional
- optional, not held adapt to changing situations optional
- still to learn apply organisational techniques required
- still to learn manage staff required
- still to learn meet deadlines required
- optional, not held write to a deadline optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- still to learn editorial standards required
- optional, not held interview techniques optional
- still to learn follow ethical code of conduct of journalists required
- still to learn press law required
- optional, not held edit negatives optional
- optional, not held edit photographs optional
- optional, not held perform image editing optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a magazine editor role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 adapt to type of media practise this
- 02 create editorial board practise this
- 03 ensure consistency of published articles practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 13 skills that carry over
- already held consult information sources skill
- already held copyright legislation knowledge
- already held develop professional network skill
- already held writing techniques knowledge
- already held apply desktop publishing techniques skill
- already held apply grammar and spelling rules skill
- already held check correctness of information skill
- already held desktop publishing knowledge
- already held grammar knowledge
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held proofread text skill
- already held spelling knowledge
- already held use word processing software skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held check stories optional
- optional, not held follow the news optional
- optional, not held graphic design optional
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held check stories optional
- optional, not held edit negatives optional
- optional, not held edit photographs optional
- optional, not held follow the news optional
- optional, not held interview people optional
- optional, not held use specific writing techniques optional
- optional, not held write captions optional
- optional, not held write headlines optional
- optional, not held write to a deadline optional
- optional, not held adapt to changing situations optional
- optional, not held graphic design optional
- optional, not held interview techniques optional
- optional, not held perform image editing optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
19 held skills the magazine editor role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse texts to be illustrated skill
- not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
- not needed by the target role attend book fairs skill
- not needed by the target role conserve new media skill
- not needed by the target role establish collaborative relations skill
- not needed by the target role implement marketing strategies skill
- not needed by the target role interpret illustration needs skill
- not needed by the target role literature knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role network within the writing industry skill
- not needed by the target role perform market research skill
- not needed by the target role provide support to authors skill
- not needed by the target role publishing market knowledge
- not needed by the target role read manuscripts skill
- not needed by the target role rewrite manuscripts skill
- not needed by the target role select illustration styles skill
- not needed by the target role select manuscripts skill
- not needed by the target role show diplomacy skill
- not needed by the target role suggest revision of manuscripts skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn editorial standards required
- still to learn press law required
- optional, not held graphic design optional
- optional, not held interview techniques optional
Other moves recorded from book editor
- book publisher 55% covered · moderate
- proofreader 48% covered · moderate
- copy editor 46% covered · moderate
- speechwriter 40% covered · substantial
- fact checker 40% covered · moderate
- writer 38% covered · substantial
- lexicographer 34% covered · substantial
- publishing rights manager 31% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a book editor become a magazine editor?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A book editor already covers 32% of what a magazine editor is expected to do: 13 skills carry over, 4 of which the magazine editor role treats as required.
What skills does a book editor need to become a magazine editor?
10 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is adapt to type of media.
How hard is the move from book editor to magazine editor?
Its learning distance is 66.9 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.