Are you an experienced professional indexer who wants to focus on creating high-quality indexes for scholarly and nonfiction publications while spending less time on project management and client acquisition? Flatpage is seeking experienced freelance indexers to join our team as ongoing contractors.
We are a growing business with an active, enthusiastic team of current and former academics, writers, editors, and publishing professionals. As an indexer with us, you can expect to work on academic and nonfiction books in the arts, humanities, and social sciences; museum exhibition catalogues; institutional publications; and books written by scholars, artists, and other creative professionals. Typical workload fluctuates seasonally and is based on project volume. Most projects are assigned on a relatively short timeline, so candidates must maintain regular availability and be comfortable working with deadlines. Our team has active, ongoing discussions using a platform called Basecamp, which you will be expected to participate in.
Ideal candidates will be subject-area specialists with professional indexing experience and a strong understanding of how readers engage with scholarly and nonfiction texts. This is a contract position in which indexers are offered projects on an as-needed basis, based on subject expertise, availability, and project requirements.
At this time, we are unable to train candidates to perform the duties related to this position. Therefore, we are only seeking candidates who have completed professional indexing training and maintain an active indexing practice.
The ideal candidate will possess:
- Graduate degree (MA, PhD preferred) in the humanities or social sciences
- Formal training in indexing through a recognized indexing program, professional society, or equivalent professional development
- Minimum 3-5 years of professional indexing experience
- An active roster of indexing clients and an established independent indexing practice
- Experience creating indexes for academic books, museum catalogues, scholarly edited volumes, and trade nonfiction publications
- Strong subject-matter familiarity with disciplines such as history, art history, cultural studies, literature, media studies, anthropology, sociology, political science, and related fields
- Knowledge of publishing workflows and the role of indexing within the book production process
- Proficiency with professional indexing software, such as Cindex, SkyIndex, or Macrex
- Ability to interpret publisher instructions and style requirements
- Excellent analytical and organizational skills, including the ability to identify concepts, themes, and relationships within complex texts
- Ability to work independently under pressure and meet production deadlines
- Excellent communication skills and enthusiasm to join a growing team
Hours and Compensation
We need indexers with regular availability who are willing to take projects that arise on relatively short notice. Compensation is generally based on the length and complexity of the manuscript. Typical rates begin at approximately $3.00 per indexable page, with adjustments made based on schedule and project requirements.
Applicants who are a match will be invited to submit samples of previous indexing work.
