We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Catherine Mccaughey a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Catherine, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
Much of my resilience comes from the hardest disappointments I’ve had to face, be they personal or professional. Unexpected losses, failed plans, and frustrated projects all proved to be opportunities for me to choose to get back on my feet, set a new goal or expectation, and continue forging a new and different path forward, all while increasing my confidence in my ability to work within whatever circumstances I find myself. A freelance career is certainly no walk in the park, but every unsuccessful effort to market my craft and connect with new writers has also been a chance for me to practice a growth mindset and continue searching for new opportunities without letting discouragement get the better of me.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a freelance editor and independent author, which I have come to see as two sides of the same coin. I’ve always loved reading and writing, and through high school and college I kept writing down ideas and editing both academic and creative writing. Those passions influenced my choice of major (I hold a Bachelor of Arts in English literature with a minor in philosophy) and eventually my career, as it turned out!
I always knew I wanted to work in the publishing industry, to get as close as possible to the genesis of new stories and authors. However, traditional publishing is a difficult field, often with little flexibility or freedom when it comes to choosing projects or taking risks on new authors. So, after graduation, I decided to market myself as a freelance editor. I began my own freelance business, Wordcraft Editorial, in July 2023.
As a freelancer, I contract with both publishing organizations and independent authors to edit fiction and non-fiction projects. I am familiar with every stage of editing (developmental, line/copy, and proofing) and I have a varied background in editing multiple genres and styles of writing, so I am able to market myself to a fairly diverse clientele. I offer a unique service in that I go beyond merely editing the text to properly explain my edits and to offer suggestions for how to hone the craft of writing, depending on the individual client’s needs.
My favorite clients are independent fiction authors – partly because I, too, am an independent author with a vision and a goal of publishing new books, but also because my passion for reading and study lies primarily in great fiction novels. The world of indie writing and publishing can be very daunting, so I am always thrilled to help a new or established independent author bring another story to life. There is nothing more rewarding than receiving feedback that my edits and commentary have inspired an author to continue publishing and learning more about their craft. For those interested in learning more about me and my projects, I can be found most often on my new Instagram page, @wordcraft_editorial, where I post tips and tricks about fiction and non-fiction editing and writing.
I am also an independent author, having published my debut fantasy novel, “branded” (stylized lowercase), in September 2024! I’ve been an avid fantasy reader from a very young age, and I’ve been writing down ideas and concepts for fiction stories for nearly as long. Publishing my first novel has been a lifelong dream, but for many years, I doubted my ability to achieve that goal. Looking back, I am so grateful that I didn’t give up on it. A little over a year ago, in September 2023, realizing that freelancing gave me the flexibility to work on my own projects as well, I set a goal that the first book of my long-planned fantasy series would be a reality in one year’s time. Holding the published paperback book in my hands for the first time was surreal. I can’t wait to keep writing the series! The official Kindle and paperback versions of my book, and all future books in the series, can be found online at Amazon.com. My official author Instagram page, @wordcraft_novels, also has updates on upcoming projects, events, and other author-related content.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
It’s difficult to pick only three qualities – there are many strengths I’ve had to develop, and many more I continue to learn as I go. However, I’d have to list these as the three most important qualities in my journey:
1. Perseverance. Speaking as a self-starting freelancer, finding new clients can be tough. For the first year or so, I was rejected as often as not, since I just didn’t have enough of a portfolio for bigger clients to take a chance on me. Many of the first projects and first clients I found were through word of mouth and even sometimes cold-contacting potential clients! I was warned ahead of time by other, much more experienced freelance editors (and some self-published authors, too) that progress will be slow, but perseverance is essential in order to establish yourself professionally. I had to choose between discouragement and persistence, and I knew which one would be more rewarding in the long run.
2. Growth mindset. Another part of editing and writing independently is realizing that there are a lot of distinct skill sets that go into making a business or a book successful. I’m a writer by talent, but I had to teach myself marketing, social media literacy, publication formatting, independent market research, website software, graphic design, and a host of other skills that didn’t come as naturally. Having a growth mindset enabled me to approach each of these learning curves with a desire to add something new to my abilities. In the past year and a half, I’ve encountered a lot of learning curves, but I can happily say that I’m finishing out the year with a lot more practical knowledge than I ever imagined I’d have. I can’t wait to see what next year is going to bring!
3. Gratitude. The more opportunities I’ve been able to find, the more I realize how important gratitude is. Speaking as a freelancer, I know that every project I’ve ever accepted means that a client has chosen to take a chance on me with something they’ve invested in. Speaking as an independent author, I know that every copy of my book I’ve ever sold means that a reader has chosen to embark on an adventure because they think my book is worth reading. I don’t take any one of those examples for granted. And I don’t take the failures or closed doors for granted, either. There’s a reason some doors don’t open, and I’ve consistently found that more often than not, the closed doors are markers leading me to another opportunity I might have missed otherwise. Be grateful for the failures as well as the victories. It’s the best attitude to have when handling defeat or success.
My advice for folks who are early in their journey is: Ask a lot of questions! Get in touch with people who are already doing what you want to do. Ask them about their stories. Ask them about their perspectives. Ask them about any of the unexpected challenges they’ve faced, or what they’d want to go back and tell themselves if they could rewind the clock! Odds are you’re not the first person to be journeying down that path – and that’s not a bad thing, because it means you don’t have to figure it all out for yourself. Beyond making those personal connections, I’d also recommend that you always do your research. No question is dumb when it comes to learning more about what you want to pursue. Get online. Find good informational sources, reliable blogs, and other resources you can use. I’ve started making a file folder of tips and tricks I’ve stumbled across, so that I always have something to reference. There’s always something more to learn, and even if you don’t use every piece of advice you receive, it’s always better to explore those questions rather than never get any answers.
What would you advise – going all in on your strengths or investing on areas where you aren’t as strong to be more well-rounded?
I’ll offer the middling answer and say I think that balance is key when it comes to this question! Finding opportunities to put your strengths into practice is extremely important, because that is what you are offering to potential clients or audiences. Maintaining that involves practice and receiving good feedback to be sure you’re still headed in the right direction. However, part of taking on new opportunities involves encountering areas that might be unfamiliar. I’ve never taken on a project that is exactly the same as any projects I’ve done before, so there’s always some new element to my work. Whenever I find I’m asking more questions than answering them, I know I’ve found an area where I could improve. Good constructive criticism from clients is also hugely important here. I’m not the only professional with a perspective, and I’ve learned a lot from seeing others’ points of view and opinions on certain projects. However, if I had to choose a side, I’d err on the side of being well-rounded, because limiting yourself to only your strengths can often lead to stagnation. I haven’t experienced much growth in areas where I already feel comfortable!
As a matter of fact, I can point to a lot of stories about the well-rounded path from my experience as an independent author. Part of writing a book involves sending the manuscript to a limited group of test readers, or “beta readers,” to receive their feedback and make further edits before the book is published. For me, that was definitely the most eye-opening stage of the self-publishing process! I was fortunate to have a wide range of readers in my test group, and I found myself with a variety of opinions on my writing style, characters, and plot. Some beta readers brought up points I had never even considered before. I received some excellent constructive criticism, and as a result, I was able to strengthen certain areas of my book that needed it. Had I focused only on what I knew were my strengths, and not taken a risk on investigating areas that might not be as strong, my book wouldn’t have been as well-written as I wanted it to be. I’m certainly not history’s best writer, but my work is far better for having worked to strengthen those areas!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @wordcraft_novels OR @wordcraft_editorial
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/catherine-mccaughey
Image Credits
Eleanor McCaughey
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