Freelance Freedom!
Plus, last chance on some classes!
Freelance Freedom
A couple of years ago at the ophthalmologist’s office, I got the “Do you need a doctor’s excuse for work?” question again.
I’m always shocked at this question. There are jobs where a GROWN ADULT has to provide a permission slip from Mommy? I mean the doctor?
Are you kidding me?
No, I don’t need a note. I’m self-employed and even if I were a staffer, I wouldn’t work for a control-freak organization that would require me to get a doctor’s note to prove that I was where I said I was going to be.
If you’re tired of being treated like crap by the people who pay you, maybe it’s time to think about becoming a freelancer and achieve freelance freedom.
Freelancing is the most flexible job I’ve ever had. I work from home (or sometimes the beach). I set my own hours and have the flexibility to take an afternoon off to spend time with a friend or go to a medical appointment.
Freelance editing allows me to structure my work in the way that suits my life. When my medically fragile daughter was younger and in the hospital a lot, I was able to adjust the kind of work I did so that it was long-term—writing and editing nonfiction books. The deadlines for this kind of work can be measured in weeks and months. So, if my daughter was in the hospital for a few days, I just worked around it. I didn’t have to ask anyone for time away from the office in order to be there for her.
As she grew older and became more stable, I was able to take on work that had shorter deadlines. A few years ago when we took a long summer trip to Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, I was able to reduce my work load for three months to enjoy my time there. When the trip ended, I ramped my freelancing efforts back up again.
Freelancing allows you to do your work around your life instead of making your life fit in the nooks and crannies of your work.
Last Chance on Some Classes!
Some self-paced classes will be going away from the general catalog and becoming member’s-only classes, so if you’re not a member and would like to take one of these classes, now’s the time!
(If you’ve previously purchased any of these classes, or if you purchase one now, rest assured that you will continue to have access to the course materials! I’m just removing them from the general catalog in order to streamline things a bit.)
The affected classes are:
Upcoming Membership Price Increase
The cost of an annual Club Ed membership will be going up to $119 on June 1, 2026. You can buy a membership now for $99. (Through May 31, 2026, midnight central time.)
Renewals will remain at $99.
You can learn more about the membership program here.
Reminder: Bingo for Self-Paced Classes!
Everyone who wins gets a $50 gift certificate from Club Ed! Sweet, right?
Here’s how it works. The bingo card below lists a number of different self-paced classes offered at Club Ed.
Every time you complete a class, mark it off the card. As soon as you have a bingo—that is, you have completed a full row of classes, or a full column of classes, or have completed one of the diagonals—you win!
You can play bingo with classes you’ve already taken, classes you’re working on now, and classes you buy before the game ends.
When you win (and you can see how confident I am that you will - I told you this is easy), just let me know at ClubEdResortDirector@gmail.com and I’ll send you your $50 Club Ed gift card.
We’ll be playing this game through May 31, 2026 (midnight Pacific time). You can play more than once but you can’t use the same class for more than one bingo win.
Couldn’t be easier! But if you have any questions, the above email address will find me!
For Members
The next quarterly marketing challenge starts Monday, June 22. These are held every quarter and are a fun way to meet other editors and be accountable for doing those often-dreaded marketing tasks.
Membership information (such as coupon codes for the discount on PerfectIt software and dates of the marketing challenge) can be found on the course information page in the Membership Program “class.”
Please check there first to see if the information answers your question. Thank you!
Upcoming Classes
Instructor-led classes starting soon:
Getting Editorial Work from Book Publishers and Packagers, starts Jun 8, 2026 - this is the only time this class will be offered in 2026
Advanced Editing Skills: Romance, starts Jun 15, 2026 - this is the only time this class will be offered in 2026
Editing for Plot and Story Structure, starts Sep 9, 2026
Editorial Toolkit: Coaching Writers, starts Sep 21, 2026
Editing for Character Development, starts Oct 7, 2026
About Jennifer Lawler
I help editors figure out what the hell they're doing.
If you're an aspiring, new, or established book editor or story coach, I can probably help you learn how to do the work better and more profitably.
Through Club Ed, I offer developmental editing classes, a freelance editor membership program/support group, and a slightly bony shoulder to cry on.
I've worked as an editor for more than twenty years. I learned how to edit in the trenches of traditional publishing with its insane deadlines, pitiless competition, and crushing bureaucracy. To that I added a Ph.D in English literature with a specialization in medieval literature because of a long story.
Editorial clients have included Simon & Schuster, Girl Friday Productions, Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, Barnes and Noble Custom Publishing, and others, along with many independent authors.
For fiction self-paced classes, click here.
For fiction instructor-led classes, click here
For nonfiction self-paced classes, click here
For nonfiction instructor-led classes, click here