Editorial Freelancers Association Review — Is It Price It?

In this Editorial Freelancers Association review, you’ll learn the basics of what the association is, how it works, how much it costs, and if it’s worth the fee to join.

The Editorial Freelancers Association, also called the EFA, is a well-known and respected group that helps people within the writing and editing industry umbrella come together to help freelancers grow their careers.

From how to manage clients, get book deals, grow your career, set your rates, or anything else, the EFA has guides and assistance to help you.

Let’s dive into why you might want to join an association in the first place and then go through the pros and cons of the EFA.

Why join freelancer associations?

Freelancing organizations in general can help you network, meet fellow editors, and potentially find work.

When you find one that is professionally managed and with a tone of people, it can be exciting to join and build those connections. When you join a great group, you immediately get access to people you would otherwise have to find and network with on your own.

You also are able to receive feedback and talk to other freelancers about any questions or concerns you have. Freelancing can be a lonely journey since you don’t usually have coworkers or a team so being able to connect with other people on a similar path can help a ton.

If you’re new to the freelance world, it can be great to get feedback on your plans, your work, how to deal with clients and build your business in general.

What is the Editorial Freelancers Association?

The EFA is joined by editors, indexers, proofreaders, researchers, translators, writers, authors, and other people in the writing and editing industry.

From their site:

The EFA Member Directory and Job List puts you in touch with more than 3,000 editorial professionals with a broad array of skills and training—the people you need for self-publishing projects; fiction and nonfiction trade books; site copy; magazine articles; advertising, public relations, and training and education materials; corporate communications; and more. Through the EFA you will find writers, editors, copyeditors, proofreaders, indexers, researchers, translators, and other editorial specialists. There is no charge to use the Directory or the Job List.

– EFA website

One great thing about the EFA is that they offer a ton of information on their website for freelancers. Even their resources page is full of informative articles, editorial rates, sample contracts, and more. It shows you that these are professionals who know what they’re talking about.

If you just choose to use the directory or job list, anyone is welcome to access it at any time without having to pay to join. Many groups hide their job board behind a big paywall, so it’s great they have theirs open.

How much does EFA cost?

At the time of writing this article, one year costs $180 and two years costs $295.

The technical fee is $145 for the first year and $260 for the two year plan, but there’s a $35 processing fee.

If you’re reading this in the future, check here for the current membership rates to the Editorial Freelancers Association.

Editorial Freelancers Association Review

For the most part, the reviews for the EFA membership are positive.

Joining a professional organization and being able to join a directory can help you improve your reputation online. If you don’t have a great reputation in this industry yet, this can help give your work some legitimacy.

The fee to join is a little expensive and keep in mind you’ll have to pay for some of the courses and the events with your own money on top of that membership fee. You will receive 20% off on courses due to being a current member, but this is something you should keep in mind if you’re thinking you’ll be able to just join and get access to all the courses.

People report that most of the job postings are reported to be professional gigs more than anything else and not as many postings for absolute beginners. A large percentage of them also fall under the editing umbrella instead of just pure freelance writing.

That’s not to say that freelance writing jobs never appear. A few comments just mention that they are less abundant than the editing jobs.

It seems to be a group where you’ll get as much out of it as you put into it. Meaning, if you want to put the effort in to connect with other people, buy the courses, and apply to the jobs, it should pay off after time.

Other reviews on EFA

While the EFA doesn’t have any rating with the Better Business Bureau, it also doesn’t have any negative complaints, either. That’s pretty impressive considering they’ve been in business for 50 years.

In this reddit thread, you can find this comment: “I love the Editorial Freelancers Association! I am a medical writer and whenever I need an editor, I look there first. For anyone wanting to secure higher pay and more editing work, you may want to align with the organization and others.”

On another Reddit thread, “I’ve been a member for about six months. I recently landed a project that pays $2,500, so it’s obviously going to be worth it for me. Yeah, it’s a job board, but most of the offerings are professional-level gigs that pay well—not the kind of fluff you see on most freelancing websites. They also offer about a dozen classes on various aspects of editing (professional development), access to an active email listserv, various contract templates, networking opportunities, and a bimonthly newsletter.”

Lower in that thread, another comment mentions how many inbound links and referrals they receive from having their portfolio in the EFA directory.

Related articles and testimonials about EFA:

Pros and cons of joining EFA

Before you choose to join, let’s go through some of the pros and cons of paying the membership fee:

Pros of joining EFA:

• You’ll be connected with other professionals regularly
• EFA hosts annual meetings you’ll be able to join
• Members-only discussions to discuss monthly topics and get support
• Discounted rates on healthcare (including dental) are offered if you’re a member of EFA (certain restrictions apply and only available in certain states)
• Workshops to improve your craft
• Job postings from publishers and authors
• Tons of networking events, both online and in person

Cons of joining EFA:

• This yearly fee is higher than some of the other associations and networking groups out there
• You’ll have to buy some of the other courses on top of the yearly fee
• If you live outside of the United States you might have a hard time attending the in-person events
• Not as many job opportunities as other job boards
• There are a lot of professionals in the group, so you’re in competition on the job boards with people who have been freelancing for a while

Summary of the Editorial Freelancers Association

If you’re looking for great networking opportunities and learning experiences, the EFA is a good place to go and is worth the price. However, if you’re looking strictly for jobs and job postings, it might not be the first choice to pick from.