EFA membership benefits are described below, followed by discounts offered to EFA members by our affiliate organizations.

To read what members have said about the value of membership, visit the member testimonials page.

Online Membership Directory

A powerful marketing tool, directory listings come free with membership. All members are included with minimal information (name, street address, and business-only telephone). Members customize their entries with the information they choose: name, contact information, skills and specialties, brief promotional blurbs, and resume. Potential clients use the directory to find and get in touch with members nationwide. Many members report getting good assignments from clients who hired them after searching the directory for freelancers with the skills and expertise they were seeking. The directory is searchable by skills, specialties, location, name, or keyword.

Education Program

Members enjoy reduced tuition to EFA courses designed especially for freelancers to build and enhance editorial and entrepreneurial skills. You’ll save 20% on the standard price. Topics include editorial skill-building from beginning to advanced level, business tips for freelancers, introductions to particular subfields of editing, and deep dives into tools and techniques. Courses, many of which are conducted online, are usually offered in the spring, summer, and fall of each year and are open to nonmembers as well as members. The EFA is continually working to partner with other organizations to increase EFA member access to an even broader range of courses and webinars.

Free Webinar Recordings

Many of our recorded webinars are free for members. These include primers on a variety of editorial and business skills, including providing trans allyship as a writer and editor, gaining clients with corporate ghostwriting, and surviving and succeeding as a freelancer in the pandemic era.

To access these member benefits and find the full list of free webinar recordings, see the Member Benefits Information page.

Job List Subscription

Included in the annual membership fee, the Job List postings provide members access to a wide variety of jobs, both freelance and full-time, in-house and at home. Clients from coast to coast and beyond—publishers, individuals, authors, businesses, and nonprofits—use this service (free to them), and many members get most of their work from the EFA’s Job List.

Discussion List

The EFA’s primary online forum is its lively members-only discussion list, where participants exchange ideas and advice with hundreds of other editorial professionals all across the country. Many members tell us the discussion list is one of the most enjoyable and valuable features of membership. The discussion list is free to EFA members and is a separate service from the Job List.

Regional Chapters and Networking Groups

The EFA has regional chapters and networking groups all over the country, and new ones form as interest arises. Meetings and other activities are listed on individual chapter pages and under Events. Chapter events are open to all members, guests of members, and freelancers interested in joining the EFA. The EFA also invites members to act as regional liaisons in areas without chapters. Liaisons answer questions about the organization and freelancing in their locale.

Meetings & Events

The EFA offers freelancers a variety of meetings, social events, and other networking opportunities. Meetings may take place at NYC headquarters, at regional chapters across the country, or by webcast. They include expert panels, special guest speakers, the annual business meeting, and joint meetings with related organizations. Periodically, we hold a national professional conference in different locations around the U.S. On the lighter side, the EFA holds networking lunches, Scrabble nights, coffee hours, picnics, holiday parties at the New York headquarters and at many chapters, and more. See Events for details.

Publications

The EFA publishes a quarterly newsletter, the Freelancer, and a monthly e-bulletin, What’s New at the EFA. In addition, the EFA has compiled a list of diversity and contested terms, a list of mental health resources, and a repository of information about keeping your business safe from online scammers. All of these are available to members only.

Publishing Opportunities

EFA members are invited to submit proposals to write for our booklets program, which publishes on specialized topics of professional interest to editorial freelancers.

Social Media

The EFA has a presence on several social media platforms. EFA members are encouraged to engage with the organization and other members on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. All are great platforms for keeping up with the EFA’s latest news and events and making new connections.

Healthcare Discounts

EFA membership offers access to healthcare discount plans at group rates through Careington. In addition, the application fee for Careington plan subscriptions is waived for EFA members. For more information about the program, see the websites for Careington.

In addition, EFA members receive discounts on disability, long-term care, and critical illness insurance premiums through Mutual of Omaha.

Discounts from Affiliates

Insurance

Better World Club is the environmentally friendly alternative to AAA, an auto club providing 24-hour nationwide roadside assistance, travel and insurance services. EFA Members receive a 15% discount on membership. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

Conferences

EFA members can get discounted registration for the Red Pencil conference on May 6, 2023 hosted by the Northwest Editors Guild. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim this discount.

The Professional Editors’ Guild (PEG) represents language practitioners who operate in the South African publishing industry, in corporate communications and the media, and in the academic sector.

PEG’s 30th Anniversary Conference will take place between May 31 and June 1, 2023. It features a stellar cast of presenters from around the globe, all of whom are more than willing to share their experience, expertise and knowledge garnered by operating as editors of various kinds, proofreaders, (copy)writers, translators, training consultants, publishers, and teachers. The online part of the conference will run from 14:00 on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 31st and throughout the day on Thursday, June 1, 2023. It will include many virtual networking and social opportunities, including post-conference virtual activities in the evenings. Please see the conference website for more details. All times listed on the conference program are South African (UTC+2:00), which is aligned with Paris.

Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to register for the PEG conference using the EFA discount.

Educational Programs

American Association of University Women Work Smart Online

Learn how to negotiate your pay rate. Sign up for AAUW Work Smart Online and join the fight to eliminate the gender pay gap. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim this free program.

EFA members receive discount on registration to CIEP’s 2022 conference. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

EFA members can register for Editors Canada webinars at a discounted rate. To find out how to register with your member discount, visit the Member Benefits Information Page. Note: this partner discount is not available to residents of Canada.

Editors Canada also offers this free Career Builder for those seeking guidance on entering the industry.

EFA members receive an affiliate member discount on IPEd courses, webinars, and events. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

Members of the Editorial Freelancers Association are eligible to receive a 10% discount on any course in the media, writing, and communications programs at NYU’s Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts at the School of Professional
Studies. Go to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

Tools of the Trade

Affinity Creative Software, including Affinity Designer, Affinity Photo, and Affinity Publisher, are best in class design tools that will help you create gorgeous layouts that are ready for publication. EFA members get 30% off the purchase of a single app or the entire suite. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

EFA members get 20% off the lifetime purchase of all Campfire Write software. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

The Chicago Manual of Style Online is the venerable, time-tested guide to style, usage, and grammar in an accessible online format. It is the indispensable reference for writers, editors, proofreaders, indexers, copywriters, designers, and publishers, informing the editorial canon with sound, definitive advice. EFA members receive a 20% discount off. Click this link to EFA’s Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.

Timing app

As an EFA member, you can get a 20% discount on your first bill when you subscribe to the Timing app. Timing is an automatic time and productivity tracking app for macOS. Visit the Member Benefits Information Page for instructions on how to claim your discount.