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Developmental Editing Jobs in Chicago, IL (NOW HIRING)

Crain

Deputy Editor

Chicago, IL · Hybrid

Oversee the development of newsletters, recurring franchises, and editorial products that build ... Editing Excellence * Raise the quality and impact of daily journalism through strong editing and ...

Asuep

Executive Editor - NEWSWELL Chicago

Oak Park, IL · On-site

Strong editing background with demonstrated excellence in story development and copy editing * Experience managing reporters, editors, freelancers or cross-functional teams * Strong understanding of ...

National Safety Council

Learning Content Editor

Itasca, IL · On-site

$70K - $75K/yr

Maintain, update, and implement the Training Product Development style guide. * Establish editorial ... Experience editing across multiple formats, including digital, print, and multimedia scripts.

New

National Safety Council

Learning Content Editor

Itasca, IL · Remote

$70K - $75K/yr

Maintain, update, and implement the Training Product Development style guide. * Establish editorial ... Experience editing across multiple formats, including digital, print, and multimedia scripts.

New

Fastmarkets

Non Ferrous Editor Americas

Chicago, IL · On-site +1

The regional editor implements the broader Fastmarkets growth strategies, working with the ... Adopt and drive the LEAP (Launch, Elevate, Attack, Protect) approach to price development and ...

Fastmarkets

Non Ferrous Editor Americas

Chicago, IL · On-site

The regional editor implements the broader Fastmarkets growth strategies, working with the ... Adopt and drive the LEAP (Launch, Elevate, Attack, Protect) approach to price development and ...

National Safety Council

Learning Content Editor

Itasca, IL · On-site +1

$70K - $75K/yr

Maintain, update, and implement the Training Product Development style guide. * Establish editorial ... Experience editing across multiple formats, including digital, print, and multimedia scripts.

New

Fastmarkets

Non Ferrous Editor Americas

Chicago, IL · On-site

The regional editor implements the broader Fastmarkets growth strategies, working with the ... Adopt and drive the LEAP (Launch, Elevate, Attack, Protect) approach to price development and ...

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Developmental Editing information

See Chicago, IL salary details

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How much do developmental editing jobs pay per hour?

As of Aug 9, 2026, the average hourly pay for developmental editing in Chicago, IL is $32.55, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $22.02 and $40.87 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are typical challenges faced in developmental editing, and how do editors overcome them?

Developmental Editors often encounter challenges such as helping authors address major structural issues, balancing the author's voice with editorial recommendations, and managing tight deadlines. Overcoming these challenges requires clear and constructive feedback, patience, and strong project management skills to keep revisions on track. Editors also rely on regular communication with authors and other team members to ensure everyone is aligned throughout the editing process. Successfully navigating these challenges leads to a more polished and marketable manuscript while maintaining a positive author-editor relationship.

How do you become a developmental editor?

To become a developmental editor, individuals typically develop strong writing, editing, and communication skills, often through a bachelor's degree in English, journalism, or related fields. Gaining experience by editing manuscripts, building a portfolio, and understanding the editing process is essential; many also pursue certifications from professional organizations like the Editorial Freelancers Association or the Chicago Manual of Style. Familiarity with editing software and industry standards helps improve job prospects in this field.

How much do developmental editors make?

Developmental editors typically earn between $30,000 and $80,000 annually, depending on experience, location, and the complexity of projects. Freelance developmental editors may charge hourly rates ranging from $25 to $100 or more, with rates influenced by their expertise and the scope of editing required.

What is developmental editing?

A Developmental Editing job involves evaluating the structure, content, and overall coherence of a manuscript to improve its clarity, organization, and impact. Developmental editors work closely with authors to refine story arcs, character development, pacing, and thematic consistency. Unlike copy editors, they focus on big-picture elements rather than grammar or syntax. This process is common in book publishing, particularly for fiction and nonfiction manuscripts. The goal is to help authors strengthen their work before it moves to the next stage of editing and publication.

What to do in developmental editing?

Developmental editing involves reviewing and improving the overall structure, content, and flow of a manuscript or document. It includes providing feedback on organization, clarity, tone, and coherence, often working closely with authors to shape the work before copyediting and proofreading. Strong editing skills, familiarity with style guides, and effective communication are essential for this role.

What do developmental editors do?

Developmental editors work with authors to improve the structure, content, and overall flow of a manuscript during the early stages of editing. They provide feedback on organization, character development, pacing, and clarity, often collaborating closely with writers to shape the manuscript before copyediting and proofreading. Strong communication skills and a deep understanding of storytelling or subject matter are essential in this role.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in developmental editing, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Developmental Editor, you need advanced skills in manuscript evaluation, story structure, and content organization, usually supported by a background in English, journalism, or a related field. Familiarity with editorial software such as Microsoft Word with Track Changes, Adobe Acrobat, and project management tools is important, and professional certifications from organizations like the Editorial Freelancers Association are a plus. Excellent communication, collaboration, and diplomacy are essential soft skills when guiding authors through major revisions. These abilities ensure effective manuscript improvement and foster positive relationships with writers and publishing teams.

What are the most commonly searched types of Developmental Editing jobs in Chicago, IL? The most popular types of Developmental Editing jobs in Chicago, IL are:
What are popular job titles related to Developmental Editing jobs in Chicago, IL? For Developmental Editing jobs in Chicago, IL, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Developmental Editing jobs in Chicago, IL look for? The top searched job categories for Developmental Editing jobs in Chicago, IL are:
Developmental Editing jobs near you
Infographic showing various Developmental Editing job openings in Chicago, IL as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 20% Full Time, and 80% Part Time. Highlights an 60% In-person, and 40% Hybrid job distribution, with an average salary of $67,709 per year, or $32.6 per hour.

Deputy Editor

Crain

Chicago, IL • Hybrid

Full-time

Retirement

Posted 9 days ago

Job description

Description

Pensions & Investments isseekinga strategic, audience-focusedDeputy Editorto help lead our newsroom and shape coverage that serves the institutional investors, asset managers, consultants, and retirement leaders who rely on us every day.

TheDeputy Editorwill work alongside the editor team andwithreporters to set priorities, sharpen journalism, and ensure our coverage consistently delivers value to a sophisticated professional audience.

TheDeputyEditor serves as one of the central editorial leaders for the brand, balancing daily news demands with enterprise reporting, audience growth, and long-term editorial strategy. The ideal candidate combines exceptional news judgment with strong editing instincts, leadership experience, and a deep understanding of digital journalism. They know how toidentifythe stories that matter most, sharpencoverage,so it delivers meaningful insight, and help reporters produce their best work.

This is a digital-first leadership role. TheDeputyEditor must understand how audience behavior, analytics, newsletters, events, and emerging technologies contribute to a modern B2B media brand's success.

Location: New York City with in-office presence three days a week highly preferred. For the highly qualified person we are open to Chicago with in-office presence three days a week.

What You'll Do

Editorial Leadership

  • Set daily, weekly, and long-term editorial priorities across all platforms.
  • Lead the reporters covering what matters most to Asset Allocators.
  • Guide story selection, framing, and execution to ensure journalism is timely, differentiated, and impactful.
  • Maintain high standards of accuracy, fairness, clarity, ethics, and originality.
  • Balance breaking news demands with enterprise, analytical, and investigative reporting.
  • Ensure stories are framed around clear audience needs - helping readers understand what happened, why it matters, and what comes next.
  • Push the newsroom toward fewer commodity stories and more interpretation, insight, and decision-support journalism.

Audience Strategy & Growth

  • Champion an audience-first mindset across the newsroom.
  • Use analytics, reader behavior, and editorial judgment to shape coverage decisions.
  • Ensure coverage aligns with the needs of core audiences, including institutional asset allocators, money managers, consultants, and retirement leaders.
  • Oversee the development of newsletters, recurring franchises, and editorial products that build reader habits and loyalty.
  • Partner with audience development, product, and marketing teams to improve engagement, retention, subscriptions, and reach.
  • Identify opportunities to expand audience through newsletters, search, social, events, and emerging platforms.

Editing Excellence

  • Raise the quality and impact of daily journalism through strong editing and story shaping.
  • Work closely with editors and reporters to sharpen framing, sourcing, structure, and 'why this matters.'
  • Ensure stories are packaged for clarity, usefulness, and digital performance.
  • Champion storytelling that is scannable, actionable, and highly relevant to professional readers.
  • Strengthen consistency in headlines, framing, and editorial decision-making across the newsroom.

Reporter & Talent Development

  • Lead, coach, and develop reporters and editors at all levels.
  • Help reporters sharpen sourcing, beat expertise, framing, and enterprise thinking.
  • Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement.
  • Conduct regular coaching and feedback conversations that help journalists grow professionally.
  • Support recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and talent development efforts.
  • Build a stronger newsroom bench and develop future editorial leaders.

What Success Looks Like

  • Journalism that consistently delivers value, relevance, authority, and differentiation for institutional investors.
  • Clear editorial priorities and stronger newsroom focus.
  • Increased audience engagement, loyalty, and reader habits through newsletters and recurring franchises.
  • Stronger story framing with greater emphasis on insight and decision support.
  • Reporters and editors who are developing their skills and producing more ambitious, impactful work.
  • Effective collaboration across editorial and business teams while maintaining editorial independence.
  • A culture that embraces innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.

What You Bring

  • Degree in journalism, communications, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.
  • Significant journalism experience, including substantial editing and newsroom leadership responsibilities.
  • Familiarity with the world of institutional money management, specifically with the role ofAsset Allocators, spanning from CIOs to those leading Endowments and Foundations.
  • Strong news judgment and demonstrated ability to guide high-impact reporting.
  • Experience managing editors, reporters, or cross-functional editorial teams.
  • Proven track record of coaching journalists and developing talent.
  • Strong understanding of audience-led editorial strategy and digital publishing.
  • Experience using analytics, audience insights, and editorial tools to inform decisions.
  • Ability to balance breaking news demands with long-term editorial planning.
  • Deep commitment to journalistic ethics, accuracy, and editorial excellence.
  • Strong communication, collaboration, and leadership skills.
  • Comfort operating in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.

Preferred Qualifications

  • Experience covering institutional investing, retirement, asset management, or financial services.
  • Experience leading audience growth initiatives.
  • Experience with newsletters, events, multimedia storytelling, or editorial franchises.
  • Familiarity with analytics platforms, SEO, and audience development strategies.
  • Experience leading newsroom transformation or change management initiatives.
  • Familiarity with AI-enabled editorial workflows and tools.

This position is exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act and is not eligible for overtime pay.

Pay Transparency Disclosure:

The estimated salary range for this position is $115,000 to $130,000.


The final salary offering will take into account a wide range of factors, including experience, accomplishments and location. The salary range provided should not be considered as a salary limit or cap. In addition to base salary, Crain also offers competitive benefits including retirement plan savings contributions and bonus opportunities based on individual and company performance.

#LI-LV1

#LI-onsite

#mid

#editorial

#full-time

Brand Overview:

Pensions & Investmentsdelivers critical financial news, data, and analysis to executives responsible for the investment of large institutional assets such as pension funds, endowments and foundations. It reaches top global executives at corporations, governments, pension and retirement fund executives, investment advisers, consultants, and financial institutions. It is the world's leading media brand for institutional investing.

www.pionline.com

@pensionsnews

About Crain Communications:

Crain Communications is a leading business news and information company with a portfolio of 24 media brands that provide indispensable coverage and data for professionals globally and across sectors, including advertising, automotive, finance, healthcare, staffing, and workforce solutions. Many of Crain's brands are the most influential media properties in the industries and communities they serve, including Ad Age, Automotive News, Pensions & Investments, Modern Healthcare, Staffing Industry Analysts, as well as Crain's regional business brands. For more than a century, our dedication to deep sector expertise and journalistic integrity has enabled us to provide trusted insights across all our platforms, empowering today's business leaders to make industry-shaping decisions. To learn more about Crain Communications, visitcrain.com.

Environmental Demands

Where you work matters. The job posting will provide specific information on where and when your amazing work would be performed. Employee work location is determined by the needs of the specific team and may include on-site, hybrid or remote. Employee work location is subject to change.

  • An "in-office" role would require the employee to come into the office most days with occasional flexibility to work remotely if tasks can be performed elsewhere and if the manager approves.
  • A "remote" role would allow an employee to work from a home office that is in one of the states Crain does business in. We can only employ a remote / "work from home" employee if they reside in one of these states: AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, MD, MA, MI, MN, NV, NY, NC, OH, OR, TN, TX, VA, WA, WI, and Washington, DC.
  • A "hybrid" role would be a mix of in-office and remote work. There may be a specified schedule for coming into the office or it could be at the discretion of the employee with the manager's approval, subject to change.
  • Employees who live within a reasonable commute distance from a Crain office are expected to work on-site 3 days per week.

Many positions will also include work done in "the field." Depending on the role, this may include conducting in-person interviews, attending work-related events, meeting with sources or clients. Specifics will be noted in the job posting but are subject to change as a role evolves. Employees may be exposed to adverse environmental conditions, specifically during field work. Other typical job functions are performed under conditions such as those found in general office work.

Travel to cover news stories/events, meetings with clients, and to our geographically separated offices may be required. It is the nature of many positions to experience non-standard working hours and be on-call when needed for responding to email, meeting with clients, attending work-related events, story development or breaking news. Most employees perform work Monday through Friday, although early-morning, evening or weekend shifts may be required. Work schedule and travel requirements are subject to change as a role and needs evolve over time.

Physical Demands
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of many Crain jobs and are subject to change.

Physical activities will include frequent in-person or virtual interactions. For most positions, it is essential to be able to remain at a desk/computer workstation for prolonged periods, perform computer-related tasks, and create/maintain documents within filing systems. Must have close visual acuity to perform an activity, such as preparing and analyzing reports and information, transcribing, viewing a computer terminal, or extensive reading. The typical physical requirements are light work-exerting up to 25lbs of force occasionally and/or up to 10lbs of force frequently and may include climbing, pushing, standing, hearing, walking, reaching, grasping, kneeling, stooping, and repetitive motion. Some positions will have additional physical requirements, including exerting up to 50lbs of force to move and/or carry equipment, supplies, files, or other materials as the role requires.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions and meet the environmental and physical demands of the role.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)

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