transitioning to a national society - editors nsw | a ... · 2 march 2015 iped’s initiatives so...
TRANSCRIPT
InsideThe national mentoring program ......3
2015 president’s report ......................4
Financial report ..................................5
Grammar gremlins .............................6
Write | Edit | Index conference ..........6
Macquarie words ................................7
SfEP/SI UK first joint conference ......8
IPEd notes ...........................................9
Professional development ...............10
Workshop information .....................10
News and notes.................................12
ISSN 2202-1361 (Online) PO Box 254, Broadway NSW 2007 March 2015
Newsletter of the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.
The national mentoring program
Tuesday, 7 April
Ted Briggs, national coordinator
The Society of Editors (NSW) Inc. is now a part of the national mentoring program for editors around Australia. The program, originally piloted by Canberra Society of Editors Inc., offers the opportunity for members of any societies of editors to improve their editing skills with professional oversight and feedback from experienced editors. Tedd Briggs will discuss the progam and take questions from the floor. Sydney Mechanics’ School of Arts 280 Pitt Street, Sydney 6.30 pm for 7.00 pm start.Drinks and light refreshments provided. $20 for members, $25 non-members and $10 for students or concession card holders.
Next meeting: Tuesday, 5 May
Before I took over this role from Owen Kavanagh in September last year, my only direct involvement with IPEd had been with the national accreditation scheme, as an assessor. Beyond that – probably like most of you – I only had a sketchy idea of how IPEd operates and the scale of its endeavours.
For those members who have joined only fairly recently – and as a refresher for the rest of us too – I will start by giving a quick overview of how IPEd was formed, its structure and what it has achieved so far.
History and structure of IPEdBefore IPEd was formed, there were (as there are now) seven individual state and territory societies of editors: Canberra, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.
In 1998, a peak national body was formed called CASE – the Council of Australian Societies of Editors – to bring them all together and make it possible to undertake national projects to benefit our industry.
CASE was an informal association that operated by cooperation among the presidents of the societies of editors. However, to be an effective peak body for the profession it needed to become a more formal, legal entity, and so in early 2008 CASE was replaced by the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd), a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee.
In its present form, IPEd does not have individual members. Instead, each of the seven societies is a member of IPEd, and individual editors are members of it only indirectly, through our state societies.
IPEd is governed by a council that is made up of one representative from each of the seven societies of editors. Each council representative is also a director of IPEd. We meet by teleconference on one Sunday morning each month.
Transitioning to a national societyIn February, Julie Ganner presented to our meeting the progress of the IPEd working party towards creating a model for a national organisation of editors with direct membership. This comes ahead of the release of the white paper to our members for the final vote on whether or not to accept the direct membership model.
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2 March 2015
IPEd’s initiatives so farSince its beginnings as CASE, IPEd has completed a number of major projects to improve the standing and recognition of editing as a profession in Australia. The first of these was the development of the Australian standards for editing practice. These set out the core standards that professional editors are expected meet, tell clients what they should expect from the editors they hire and show new editors the range of skills and knowledge they should be aiming for.
The Standards also form the basis for the national accreditation exam. CASE spent ten years researching and developing the accreditation scheme before it was approved by the membership. The first exam was held in 2008 and they have been held every year or two ever since, with the first round of renewals taking place in 2013.
IPEd also sponsors a program of national conferences, hosted every two years by the state societies in rotation. The first of these was held in Brisbane in 2003. The New South Wales society hosted the fifth national conference, ‘New horizons for editing and publishing’, at Darling Harbour in 2011. The next conference, called ‘Write | edit | index’, will be held in Canberra this May, and then it will be back to Queensland again in 2017.
IPEd’s other functions include maintaining a national register of freelancers on its website, which is compiled from the state societies’ registers. It also awards an annual prize for an essay or paper written as part of a postgraduate degree in editing or publishing, the IPEd Prize. IPEd promotes links with sister organisations overseas, such as the Editors’ Association of Canada, the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP) in the UK and the European Association of Science Editors.
The need for changeSo far, so good. By 2012, however, IPEd had become concerned about its ability in the long term to meet the needs of the societies and their members. Currently, we all pay IPEd a small levy, via our state society, as part of our annual membership fees. The level of funding IPEd receives through this is currently just enough to pay for the accreditation program, the IPEd Prize and updating the Standards, but not much else. It does not allow IPEd to advocate for and promote the editing profession at the level that a national industry organisation should be able to, and this needs to be addressed if IPEd is to keep going and provide us with the support we will need in the future.
Moreover, both IPED and the societies rely heavily on the work of volunteers to be able to function. This not only limits how much IPEd can do but also creates a high attrition rate, as volunteers tend to burn out. IPEd was concerned that if this continued, its work would slowly grind to a halt and eventually it might not be able to operate at all.
IPEd therefore decided that it needed to increase its funding so that it could start employing paid contractors to fill some of the main roles within the organisation. This would not only reduce the reliance on volunteers and the burden on the society committees, but also allow it to be seen as a more professional and business-like organisation. This would help to give IPEd the higher profile it needs in the publishing industry to allow it to work for us more effectively.
IPEd then began a review of its financial viability and structure, including the reliance on volunteers and the need that some of the smaller societies in particular may have for
help with administration. IPEd consulted the societies and invited all individual members to complete a survey about what they need from an industry organisation for it to represent them adequately. The feedback from this process led to the development of three possible future models for IPEd: it could remain as is, with the current level of funding; it could just increase the membership levy to raise the extra funds it needed; or it could both increase the cost of membership and become an individual membership organisation that editors join directly.
In November 2013, the members of the societies were asked to vote on which of these three options they would like to see developed further into a formal plan for IPEd’s future. The majority of members opted for the national direct membership model, with the current societies becoming branches of the national body.
Since then, IPEd has been developing a detailed plan for the transition of member societies to the direct membership model, which, when it is complete, we will be invited to vote on.
Working Party 4 (WP4) has been set up to manage the development of this plan and the transition of IPEd to direct membership should it be approved. WP4 consists of five project teams, made up of volunteers from across all the societies of editors:• Legal and Governance, which is drafting a revised
constitution for IPEd and also the by-laws by which the branches would be governed
• Finance and Operations, which is planning the details of how the transition would come about and also how IPEd would operate financially under direct membership, such as its banking and accounting functions
• Membership, which is outlining the various membership levels and the fee structure that would be offered to us
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3 March 2015
We have gone totally national! As of 9 January 2015, The Society of Editors (NSW) Inc. is now a part of the national mentoring program for editors around Australia, so we are entitled to describe ourselves as truly the Australian national mentoring program for Editors. We may think of a less clunky title in time, but for now we are just very happy to welcome New South Wales.
In doing so, we also welcome Zoë Hale as New South Wales coordinator for the program. She joins the other state/territory coordinators – Kerry Coyle (WA), Davina Dadley-Moore (Vic), Roberta Blake (Qld), Sheelagh Wegman (Tas), Katy McDevitt (SA) and Pam Faulks (ACT). Here is a bit of background about Zoë.
Zoë Hale has been working as an editor and writer for a number of years, and currently works for a small business that delivers educational materials online. She recently expanded her freelance work to include editing genre fiction. As a professional member of the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.since 2013, she believes strongly in the value and importance of having a great editorial mentor and the benefits of being a mentor. She is excited to be joining the national program for mentoring editors.
The mentoring program, originally piloted by Canberra Society of Editors Inc., offers the opportunity for members of any societies of editors to improve their editing skills with professional oversight and feedback from experienced editors.
Mentoring is where one individual provides support, encouragement and advice to another, based on their knowledge and life and experience relative to the mentoring theme. It provides a two-way learning experience for both mentor and mentee, which can encourage deep satisfaction and numerous benefits in many personal, career, organisational and developmental areas.
The mentoring program is aimed at editors at all levels. People interested in the program might be:• editors entering the profession• editors preparing for accreditation• people returning to the profession after time off• editors with any level of experience who want to brush up
their skills or move into a new area of editing• editors who have accepted a job which is outside their usual
area of expertise.
The program brings benefits to the editing profession by increasing members’ skills. This, in turn, helps safeguard the reputation of the profession as a whole.
A mentee is required to pay his or her mentor a small honorarium, and any prospective mentor is required to participate in a training workshop before entering the program.
If you are interested in finding a mentor or becoming a mentor, then please email the mentoring program coordinator at [email protected] for more information.
A bit of history: This mentoring program started from a small idea within the Canberra Society of Editors Inc. Ted Briggs AE and Elizabeth Manning Murphy DE ran a pilot program (December 2012 to January 2013) to see how it would work on a wider scale, and then gave a paper about it at the 2013 ‘Editing across borders’ conference in Fremantle, WA. We had barely finished speaking when the Society of Editors (WA) Inc. said ‘We want to be in that!’, and in June 2013 we launched our then ‘interstate’ program at a Canberra Society of Editors Inc. general meeting, with a Skype hook-up to the Society of Editors (WA) Inc. It snowballed from there with one state after another joining in, plus international interest. And now, with New South Wales joining, we are complete.
This has not been a totally Canberra effort. Without the coordinators around Australia, who have stuck with it, worked on it to improve it and come up with ideas to make it more and more user-friendly, it could not have happened. And without the support of successive Canberra Society of Editors Inc. committees, and particularly Mike Wilkins and Julia Evans (former and present treasurers), it could have been difficult to administer from Canberra. But it is working like a well-oiled engine now, and even when the transition to IPEd support occurs later, it is in great shape to keep going under Canberra Society of Editors’ management.
Thank you to everyone concerned, including two overseas mentors who are currently working happily in the program with Australian mentees. The future looks rosy.
Late news: Since we wrote this article, Pam Faulks has told us she will have to step down from the ACT coordinator’s role. Our sincere thanks to Pam for a great contribution to the program – we will miss you.
Elizabeth Manning Murphy DETed Briggs AEJoint national coordinatorsAustralian national mentoring program for editors
The Australian national mentoring programIf you are interested in being a mentor to other editors or if you would like to be a mentee, you will be pleased to know that the society has recently joined the mentoring program originated by the Canberra Society of Editors Inc.. Find out here how you can contribute and benefit from this national program.
President and mentoring program coordinator Zoë Hale
4 March 2015
2014 was another big year for the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc., and sadly my last as president and committee member. It has been a wonderful five years on this hard working, busy committee but work commitments increased manyfold in October and my freelance world is now one of very full-time university work at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
The society’s committee is indeed a wonderful team of volunteers and my thanks go to these colleagues and friends. Without a keen and energetic committee, the society could not achieve so much, and sustain all its activities. Our two vice-presidents, Pam Peters and Rochelle Fernandez, assisted greatly in keeping the society running smoothly; particularly stepping in if I was not able to be at meetings in person. Thanks to Shelley Reid, our secretary, for her professionalism, especially in the development of our new policies. While we have operated without a volunteer treasurer for most of the year, our very able administration manager, Susie Pilkington, kept us financially viable and between Susie and myself, kept the finances under strict control. Thanks also to Susie for managing all publicity and events for the society.
Susie has also been working with our new and upgraded administrative system, Wild Apricot, to reduce the inefficiencies of our previous systems and have a more streamlined, member managed online system. This new system allows members to update their contact details directly online; has an online registration system for meetings and workshops; online payments; a more efficient reporting system for finances; and an email system that will allow us to send out broadcast emails. We hope you have joined this upgrade to our member administration service.
The society’s publications continue to play a vital role in keeping members informed about all society happenings and other events of professional interest. The digital-only and redesigned Blue Pencil has been managed by editor Meredith McGowan and I thank Meredith for producing a very interesting newsletter for our members, complete with colour photos! Many thanks to Honorary Life Member Robin Appleton for her regular proofreading of the Blue Pencil, keeping us in style. Our online Editorial Services Directory, allowing members to advertise their professional services, continued to be published as an online resource, with members appreciating the ease in updating their own listing in a timelier manner. Thanks to Abigail Nathan and Susie Pilkington for managing our web and digital needs, and particularly Abigail for keeping our social media channels in check. Our ‘Editors job market’ (email advertisements for editorial jobs) has been maintained by Susie Pilkington, providing notice at regular intervals of editorial opportunities in Sydney. Our newest committee member, Zoë Hale, has been responsible for the processing of our new professional members and also has initiated our new mentorship program, in collaboration with the Canberra Society of Editors Inc.
Through the year, the society held a series of stimulating talks for the monthly members’ meetings, arranged by committee member Rochelle Fernandez. Topics and speakers were: • February: David Gaunt – ‘A new era of bookselling’• April: Trish Hepworth – ‘Fair’s fair: The changing nature of
copyright’• May: Rex Finch – ‘20 years with good behaviour (or a
handful of life-lessons in book publishing)’• June: Patty Jansen – ‘Do self-published books need editors?’• July: Samantha Brennan – ‘A recipe for success: Editing
food publications’• September: Sue Ramsey – ‘The world of magazine editing
and subediting’• October: Susan McKerihan – ‘Plain English: An overview’• November: Deborah Norberry – ‘Educational editing’• February: Julie Ganner – ‘IPEd overview’.
The series of members’ meetings was interspersed by two dining events, as is our custom. Susie Pilkington arranged a gourmet midwinter dinner in August, served by hospitality students at The Apprentice at the TAFE in Ultimo – a lovely, wintery gathering of members for some good food and good company. Correspondingly, a memorable summer dinner in December at our society favourite – the William Blue Dining Room in North Sydney. Check out the past issues of Blue Pencil for great reports and photos from both events – and fabulous book prizes from our corporate members.
On the training front, the society held a number of quality professional workshops for members during the year, arranged again with expertise by Agata Mrva-Montoya. These included: • ‘Editing intensive’ – February • ‘Preparing for the accreditation exam’ – March • ‘Copyediting fiction’ – April
The 2015 AGM president’s reportThe society’s outgoing president, Jacqui Smith, looks back on the previous year to remind us of the events, the changes and the many successful workshops and meetings, along with recognising all the people who made it possible.
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5 March 2015
Society of Editors (NSW) IncorporatedABN 53 030 428 517
BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2014
2014 2013
$ $
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents 93,149 85,808
Amount Receivable 144 307
TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS 93,293 86,115
NON-CURRENT ASSETS
Plant and equipment 1,504 2,255
TOTAL NON-CURRENT ASSETS 1,504 2,255
TOTAL ASSETS 94,797 88,370
LIABILITIES
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Funds received in advance 17,966 10,500
TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES 17,966 10,500
TOTAL LIABILITIES 17,966 10,500
NET ASSETS 76,831 77,870
EQUITY
Retained earnings 76,831 77,870
TOTAL EQUITY 76,831 77,870
INCOME STATEMENT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2014
2014 2013
$ $
Revenue 78,921 81,329
Expenses
Administration expenses 13,832 16,622
Audit and statutory fees 2,075 1,980
Depreciation 751 1,128
Other expenses 63,092 54,164
79,750 73,894
Profit / (Loss) before income tax expense (829) 7,435
Income tax expense 210 327
Profit from operations (1,039) 7,108
Retained earnings at start of year 77,870 70,762
Retained earnings at end of year 76,831 77,870
6 March 2015
The Sydney Morning Herald brought the news that one of the thousands of volunteer editors of Wikipedia (code-named Giraffedata) has set himself the very particular task of eradicating all instances of comprised of from Wikipedia’s pages. Since 2007, he has edited out more than
47,000 examples of it, because he regards it as a grammatical mistake, or at least inferior to its alternatives, “composed of ” and “consists of ”. So where does the idea that comprised of is faulty English come from?
The background facts are that the verb comprise is used in several ways that express different meanings, all now recorded in the Oxford English dictionary online. Its earliest uses are active and transitive, and they complement each other. The older sense of the word is to mean “contain”/“include”, as in ‘The official report comprises five sections’, dating from the 15th century. Whereas the sense of “make up”/“constitute”, as in ‘Five sections comprise the official report’, dates from the 18th century. As those examples show, the two senses are embedded in the grammar of the sentence, in whether the word for the whole (report) is the subject or object of comprise. The two meanings are reciprocal, and separating them is a challenge for some, as with other well-known reciprocal pairs, for example imply/infer and replace/substitute.
Yet another use of comprise emerged in the late 19th century; that is its use in the passive followed by of. This is the usage targeted by Giraffedata in his Wikipedia edits, though it
expresses exactly the same sense as the ordinary active use of comprise to mean “contain”. Compare ‘The official report is comprised of five sections’ with the first example sentence in the previous paragraph. Though it may seem a roundabout way of expressing the same sense, comprised of does distinguish itself more effectively from the reciprocal sense of comprise as an active verb meaning “make up”.
But out of the frying pan into the fire! When comprised is used with the following of, it is thrown into the ring with “composed of ” and “consist of ”, which also carry the same sense. It gives writers a three-way choice of expression, though for editors like Giraffedata, that is too much of a luxury.
Yet another occasional variant of comprise is the active form comprise of, recorded in 15th century in the now obsolete sense of “perceive”, “take in (mentally)”. In Caxton’s words: ‘to se[a]rche and compryse of the thinges of the[a]rthe’. This construction has resurfaced in 21st century, but with the same sense as the passive “comprised of ”, as in ‘The official report comprises of five sections’. Both the Macquarie Dictionary (2005) and the Australian Oxford Dictionary (2004) caution against using it, yet it must be around if they feel the need to do so.
With these three constructions with comprise (of) all representing the same sense, there does seem to be some redundancy in its current usage. That is not to say that one or two of them are bad grammar. Rather it shows that the grammar of comprise is evolving amid a set of alternatives.
Pam Peters DE
G G
Grammar gremlins
The ‘Write | edit | index’ conference is getting closer. Located in Canberra, 6–9 May, the conference is hosted jointly by the Canberra Society of Editors Inc., on behalf of the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) and incorporates the 7th national editors conference.
At our February committee meeting, the full committee witnessed the random draw automated program choose five members who will receive conference registration compliments of the society.
We had roughly 50 members who entered the draw so all entrants ended up with a one-in-ten chance to win. Those whose names came up are:
Belinda GrieveMichael WyattAllyson CroftKatherine CummingsAnnabel Blay
The society is pleased to announce that ten of our members will present at the conference.• Abigail Nathan has two presentations
at the event – ‘The writer’s editor’
and she is part of a panel presentation later in the conference.
• Janet Salisbury is our member in two presentations – ‘Information design’, a fresh approach to substantive editing that is more than just words and more than just design; and ‘A new digital workflow for report authoring and editing’.
• Jenny Mosher’s presentation is provocative – ‘Sack that client: Why you need to look after you’.
• On day two, Sarah JH Fletcher organises us – ‘Everything in its right place: Fiction continuity’.
• Indexing guru Glenda Browne looks to the ebook world – ‘Matrix reloaded: EPUB ebook indexing’.
• Denise Holden tackles editing beyond the text – ‘Demystifying numbers: Editing numerical content in prose, diagrams, tables and graphs’.
• Pam Peters is part of a two-hander presentation – ‘Australian style: directions 2015’.
• Linda Nix will guide us through ‘Editing within and for mark-up
languages’.• Education coordinator for the society,
Agata Mrva-Montoya, focuses on electronic publishing – ‘Editing in the world of ebook applications’.
• And rounding out our representatives, Hilary Cadman highlights the benefits of webinars as a professional development tool.
These presenters will then either recreate their presentation at a society general meeting or will write it up as an article for Blue Pencil, so members not going to Canberra will have a taste of what was on offer.
Committee members, too, will attend the various sessions at the conference and write them up for Blue Pencil.
Watch out for a bumper conference issue once we gather everyone’s copy.
And a reminder, please, that if you are attending the conference and would like to be part of a car pool to Canberra, please contact us and we will coordinate transport accordingly. [email protected]
7 March 2015
Macquarie words
Each Blue Pencil issue will feature one or two classically Australian words collated by the people at Macquarie dictionary, including some encyclopedic entries. Some old favourites may prove to have new meaning and some of the colloquial phrases may be new to us all.
The Macquarie dictionary is nationally and internationally regarded as the standard reference on Australian English. We hope the regular column proves interesting and useful.
The Macquarie Dictionary Online (www.macquariedictionary.com.au) gives you access to the Macquarie dictionary, sixth edition with annual updates of new words, along with its companion reference the Macquarie thesaurus.
Society members receive a 10 per cent discount off individual Macquarie dictionary and Macquarie thesaurus subscriptions. Just visit www.macquariedictionary.com.au/subscription/new/ and enter the promo code SOCEDNSWMQ10.
8 March 2015
The UK’s Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP) and Society of Indexers (SI) has announced that booking is open for the first SfEP/SI joint conference to be held at the University of York 5–7 September 2015. Members of IPEd societies of editors are invited to register at a discounted rate.
The theme of the conference is ‘Collaborate and innovate’. The rise of self-publishing and developing technologies mean that more than ever, we need to work together to understand each other’s roles as the publishing industry evolves.
The conference will be opened by Professor of Sociology John Thompson from the University of Cambridge, a founder of Polity Press and author of Merchants of culture: The publishing business in the twenty-first century, who will consider how the publishing industry is adapting to these changes. The closing presenter is Eben Muse, researcher in digital media at Bangor University, who will discuss how readers are adapting, and the future of reading.
Workshops and seminars will cover topics such as an introduction to Microsoft Word, book art and its role in
developing literacy, indexing for editors, the use of corpora and much more
Find out how to deal with names in text, references and indexes; discuss the challenges of editing students’ theses and dissertations; explore how to build your client base and more.
Members of Australian societies of editors, through IPEd, are eligible for a £50 discount on the resident non-member rate of £485, or a £30 discount on the non-resident non-member rate of £290 (per day).
Book and pay in full by 17 April and you will also receive the early-bird discount of £45 or £20 respectively. Find details on, iped-editors.org/News_and_events/View_News/SfEP_SI_1st_joint_conference.aspx
To claim your IPEd society member discount you need IPEd log-in access, then book as a non-member of SfEP and enter the discount code you will find on the link from the SfEP/SI conference page on the IPEd website. Contact [email protected] to establish an IPEd log-in if required. Booking is open until 3 July.
Discount for IPEd society membersSfEP/SI first joint conference
• ‘Working wonders with Word and PDF’ – May
• ‘Online editing and web content strategy’ – June
• ‘Writing effective blurbs and publicity material’ – June
• ‘Ebooks 101 for editors’ – July • ‘Issues in editing for educational
publishing’ – August• ‘Ebooks 201 for editors: Intermediate’
– September • ‘Principles of plain English for
editors’ – October • ‘The business of editing’ – a free
(for members) full-day course in November
Our members deservedly received a full day of free information in November centred on the freelance world. Held at the lovely Aerial Function Centre at the University of Technology, Sydney, the all-day event provided information that many of our members negotiate individually: such as creating quotes, finding ways to market their services, keeping up with superannuation trends, navigating publishing trends and so on. Participants received a complementary folder of notes to take home as reference material. We had great feedback after the event and hope to continue this style of event in the near future.
The society also sponsored the Australasian Medical Writers Association annual conference this year. Society member and former president
and vice-president, Emeritus Professor Pam Peters, presented a workshop at the event, ‘Grammar and style for medical writers’. We are very proud to sponsor such great conferences and look forward to expanding these sponsorship opportunities in 2015.
The Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) kept our society committee and members very busy over the last twelve months as we read through countless working party papers, green papers, reports and more. All societies voted to change the member structure of IPEd and we are all working towards a new national body with a direct membership structure in the pipeline. Long-term New Sourth Wales society committee member, Owen Kavanagh, continued in the very noble position as IPEd Chair until their AGM in September, where Owen stepped down as Chair and New South Wales councillor. New South Wales member Julie Ganner took on the large role of New South Wales councillor in September and she has been remarkable in her efforts to get the many issues facing the New South Wales society reported back to IPEd and spent many hours deciphering new by-laws, constitution and reports. Thanks Julie! Julie Ganner’s IPEd overview at the member meeting in February this year provided a lot of information about the changes to the IPEd structure. Alison Moodie, Denise Holden, Meryl Potter and Hillary Cadman also gave
many hours of their time as volunteers on various IPEd committees and we thank them for their hard work. We are all looking forward to the next IPEd national conference in Canberra in May and hope to see many of our New South Wales members there.
This wonderful society gains greatly by the active participation of working editors from a variety of contexts, freelance and in-house. It will continue to provide a wonderful service to its members with a new and refreshed committee for 2015. It is never onerous to meet this wonderful committee every month and it is very satisfying to see the many changes that we have made over the last couple of years to become more efficient and provide good governance for our members. Thanks to those members leaving the committee after many years of service – Pam Peters, Rochelle Fernandez, Owen Kavanagh and Agata Mrva-Montoya. I leave the committee in the best shape and look forward to seeing how the new IPEd structure will transpire. We always welcome our members’ input.
Jacqui Smith
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9 March 2015
2015 conference for editors, indexers and publishing professionals
The preliminary program for the national conference for editors, indexers and publishing professionals in Canberra, 6–9 May 2015 has been announced and registration is open.
The conference launches with a day of professional workshops, including two full-day workshops and eight half-day workshops.
‘Decoding XML: A practical guide for editors’ is a full-day workshop which will be presented by Linda Nix. It will provide an introduction to digital markup languages with a focus on XML. Participants will learn which XML schemas are relevant to their areas of expertise, how to apply their editing skill in digital workflows and basic coding skills.
‘Grammar in a nutshell’ by Elizabeth Manning Murphy is also a full-day workshop and will alert delegates to common grammatical problems in text editing and will explain the grammar behind the conventions that make text acceptable. It will include activities related to the IPEd accreditation exam.
The eight half-day workshops cover topics such as blogging, InDesign, indexing, design and EndNote.
The conference keynote speakers are two well-known Australians, namely Jackie French and David Astle. Jackie is the author of 140 books across a range of genres. Her work includes fiction for adults and children, gardening, history and picture books.
David will be known to some as the dictionary guy from the television show Letters and numbers. He is a self-confessed word nerd, writing cryptics for the Age and Sydney Morning Herald.
The conference will be hosted jointly by the Canberra Society of Editors Inc. and ACT region branch of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Indexers (ANZSI) on behalf of the Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) and ANZSI. It incorporates the 7th national editors conference and the ANZSI biennial conference.
Full registration (closes 31 March 2015)Member $550Non-member $650Student member $400 Day registration (closes 31 March 2015)Thursday $200Friday $200Saturday $150
For program details and conference registration go to www.writeeditindex.net.au.
IPEd will update conference news on Twitter @IPEditors and Facebook at www.facebook.com/IPEditors. Join the conference conversation by using #writeeditindex.
IPEd Council newsNo chair has been appointed, given the current workload of councillors. IPEd has continued to operate with a rotating chair.
In November 2014 Ed Highley from the Canberra Society of Editors Inc. resigned as IPEd councillor. Ed has undertaken an enormous amount of work for IPEd over the past ten years, including as its inaugural secretary until 2012, and the IPEd Council thanks him for his contribution. The Canberra Society of Editors Inc. hopes to soon nominate a councillor to replace Ed and there is, as yet, no councillor for Tasmania.
Policy changesThe IPEd Council approved changes to the Guidelines for editing research theses to address the increasing issue of students leaving it to the last minute to engage an editor for their theses. The wording for the pages aimed at students (Engaging an editor for your theses) and supervisors (When your student wishes to engage an editor) were adjusted to encourage students to engage an editor as early as possible.
The Training support policy was renamed the Professional development support policy to broaden its scope to include professional development and mentoring. It now allows Council to agree annually the total training support amount and the maximum for each society. It also gives Council discretion to allow higher support for smaller societies.
Annual reportThe Annual Report 2013–2014 has been finalised and is available on the IPEd website.
IPEd. notes
10 March 2015
Ebooks 101 for editors: FoundationDate: Tuesday, 21 April 2015Time: 9.30 am to 4.30 pmPresenter: Sarah JH FletcherRegister on editorsnsw.wildapricot.org/event-1800887
Want to learn about ebooks, but not sure where to begin? This is the course for you. Through a mixture of demonstration, presentation and small-group discussion, you will explore key editorial questions about ebooks. After the course, you will be given access to an ebook and some optional hands-on correction exercises to try using free software.
This is a beginner-level course, designed for editorial staff with little (or no) experience with ebooks or code. It leads into the intermediate course ‘Ebooks 201 for editors: Intermediate’.
Sarah JH Fletcher began her editorial career in-house at trade publishers before establishing herself as a freelance guru. A longtime consumer of digital publishing, Sarah brings her editorial perspective to the development and testing of quality ebooks. www.sarahjhfletcher.com
Online editing and web content strategy
Date: Wednesday, 20 May 2015Time: 9.30 am to 4.30 pmPresenter: Libby VarcoeRegister on editorsnsw.wildapricot.org/event-1816707Full details to be published shortly
Structural editing: FictionDate: Wednesday, 17 June 2015Time: 9.30 am to 4.30 pmPresenter: Nicola O’SheaRegister on editorsnsw.wildapricot.org/event-1782589
Providing structural feedback to an author on their novel or short story can be a daunting process for an editor. How can you be sure your suggestions are going to improve the manuscript? Are you responding too subjectively to the work? What if your suggestions clash with the author’s thoughts about the work, or feedback from other readers? In this workshop, editor Nicola O’Shea will guide you through the structural editing process.
Nicola O’Shea was a senior editor at HarperCollins before starting her own business in 2004. She freelances for a range of publishers including HarperCollins, Pan Macmillan, Allen&Unwin, Random House and Hachette Australia. She has taught editing at the University of Sydney and the University of Technology, Sydney. Currently she is co-director of ebookedit.ebookedit.com.au
Copyediting: The basics and beyondDate: Tuesday, 21 July 2015Time: 9.30 am to 4.30 pmPresenter: Meryl Potter DERegister on editorsnsw.wildapricot.org/event-1802362
Whether you would like to brush up your basic editing skills or extend them in areas you might not have much experience in, this interactive workshop is designed for you. We will use exercises throughout, and consider the needs of different audiences.
The workshop will focus on the following areas:• Making style decisions that suit the text – who is your
audience, and what do they need? We will look at topics from capitalisation, hyphens and en rules to numbers, conversions and approximations.
• Developing an efficient style sheet.• Using display text – lists, boxes, pullouts, charts and tables
– deciding what is appropriate, and where and how to use it.• Tables, charts and diagrams – making sure they are effective
and error free
This workshop is not for beginners; you should have a basic understanding of copy editing conventions, some editing experience or basic training in editorial skills to get the most from this workshop.
Bring your Australian Style manual for authors, editors and printers and an up-to-date, concise level dictionary. A workbook will be provided.
Meryl Potter is an IPEd Distinguished Editor with more than 30 years experience as an editor and writer, over a vast range of subjects, across book publishing (trade, education, custom), magazine publishing, marketing, and corporate and government communication and publications. She lectured for Macleay College’s Book Editing and Publishing Diploma for more than twelve years, and has developed and presented workshops for the New South Wales, South Australian and Tasmanian societies of editors, and the Australian Institute of Interpreters and Translators in New South Wales and South Australia. She was lead writer for three of the five IPEd accreditation exams, including the first one in 2008.
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Workshop information
RegistrationTo register for a workshop you can book and pay online on:www.editorsnsw.wildapricot.org before the course date. A tax invoice will be automatically generated and emailed to you. Workshops fill quickly and we often have people on a waitlist for courses, so please secure your place early.
Please note that we require a minimum of ten registrations for workshops to proceed. The society reserves the right to cancel workshops if there are insufficient enrolments.
If you have any inquiries please contact the office manager at:[email protected]
Regional membersRegional members living more than 200 kilometres from Sydney can register at a 40 per cent discount on the cost of the society’s regular workshops (excludes some computer-based workshops).
11 March 2015
• Communications, which is concerned with creating a centralised website, a national newsletter and social media functions for the organisation, and
• Professional Development, which is looking at how meetings, mentoring, training workshops and other resources can be provided more equitably across all of the branches, given the differences in size of the various societies across Australia. It also aims to take on some of the administrative work for the branch committees, to relieve pressure on volunteers, while still giving each branch full control over the activities and events it runs.
How would the direct membership model work? The national body would be made up of the national council or board of directors; the branches and branch committees; and the members of the national organisation (us), organised in branches based on our geographical location.
Six paid contractors would also be hired after transition takes place: • an executive officer, who will look after the operational
management of IPEd• a company secretary, who will deal with the daily admin• a membership officer, who will look after applications and
renewals • a communications officer, who will be responsible for the
website, newsletter, social media and other information releases
• a professional development officer, who will support the professional development activities of the branches, and
• a finance officer, who will look after banking, payments, accounting and financial reports.
The contractors will be working in a virtual office, not a physical one.
The national council would be responsible for the overall planning, policies and governance of IPEd, for approving new members and rescinding membership (if that is ever necessary).
The branches would continue much of the same work as the societies do now, such as organising events and workshops. They would also provide information to IPEd for the national website and newsletter, but the main accounting, banking, membership and communications functions would now be taken care of directly by IPEd.
Individual membership would be automatically transferred to IPEd and we would be assigned a branch by default, based on our residential address. For example, the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.would become the New South Wales branch of IPEd, and we would be transferred to this branch automatically on transition to the direct membership model. If this is not convenient a member can always transfer to a different branch of their choice.
The process from hereThe WP4 teams have been working on a detailed plan for how each of their areas would work under the direct membership model. The teams have all recently completed the first drafts of their green papers outlining these plans, and these are being considered by the committees of the seven societies. Once the feedback has been received, they will be revised based on
the committees’ comments, and then released to all individual members as a white paper. When everyone has had a good chance to consider these plans and submit any feedback for WP4 to make its final revisions, we will all be invited to vote on whether to go ahead with the transition to a direct membership model.
IPEd is aiming to have all the feedback from the society committees in by the end of February for revisions in March, and the papers out to you, the members, in April. A date for the vote has not been set yet, as it will depend on whether more time is needed for the final revisions, but at the moment the voting process is expected to begin sometime in the second half of this year.
If transition is approved then the societies will ultimately be wound up and become branches of IPEd, transferring their funds and member records to IPEd to be maintained by the national body from then on. The contracts will be hired and a new council will be appointed from members of the branches.
For the individual members, all current membership categories will transfer to the equivalent category for full or professional and associate members. Student or concessional categories will be assessed against the new national criteria that IPEd has drawn up, and any new categories of membership that IPEd has created will need to be applied for.
The national freelance register for professional members will be on the IPEd website, as it is now. Though it will be organised by branch, it will be searchable nationally through fields such as key words, subject specialties and services offered. An annual subscription fee will be charged to those wishing to be listed, at about the same price as it is now.
Although members will be able to join only one branch, they will still be able to participate in other branches’ activities if they wish – for example, workshops or seminars. The national model will also allow members to access articles and other information that has been generated by other branches, via the website and in the national newsletter.
What needs to happen for the direct membership model to go through?For the direct membership model to go ahead, 75 per cent of the societies’ members will need to vote to approve it. This means that even if there are sufficient votes overall for the transition to go ahead, it is possible that one or more societies will elect not to join IPEd, but instead continue as a separate entity. If this happens, members of those societies will be given a chance to vote again a few months later. If they still reject the direct membership model after this second vote, that society will cease to be a member of IPEd. However, no one is left out: any individual members who want to join will still be given the opportunity to do so by transferring their membership to another branch.
Since my presentation, the WP4 committee has clarified the voting process for transition to the direct membership model. Approval to go head with the transition will require a ‘yes’ vote by at least 75 per cent of financial voting members who cast a vote. A special general meeting of IPEd will then be held for each society to record its vote. A society whose members vote to approve must cast its votes in favour of the transition plan, while any society whose members do not approve must cast its votes against the motion. Each society is allocated a number of votes according to the proportion that its membership makes up of total society memberships. Effectively, this means that
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for the transition to proceed, a number of societies whose combined membership is 75 per cent or more of total society membership must approve the plan
What are the benefits to members of the direct membership model?We would have a national organisation that can speak for Australian editors with a single, powerful voice and present a unified image of our profession. Having a unified national body to represent us would also bring us in line with other countries such as the UK and Canada. These countries already have a national organisation to represent their editors, and these organisations have been operating successfully for a number of years, so we do know that having a national organisation works. A stronger IPEd would also increase our ability to form links and share resources with these overseas bodies as well as with other Australian organisations, and so improve the standing of our editors both nationally and internationally.
On the national level, having a unified organisation would also increase our ability as editors to share resources and experiences across the country. The IPEd website and national newsletter would be able to provide members with information about the professional development opportunities and other resources being offered across the country, and through our international affiliations, rather just those of our own branch.
Having a centralised IPEd website would be convenient
not just for membership application and renewals but also registration for events and activities, including those held by other branches if we wish to attend them. Moreover, because functions could be shared more efficiently across the branches, IPEd would be able to provide services for all branches as equally as possible, including things like training and mentoring support. The savings made through economies of scale, which would reduce running costs, would result in more funds being available for developing training and other professional development activities to support our members throughout their careers.
Finally, centralising some of the administration functions through paid contractors would lighten the workload of our volunteers, and so (we hope) make it more attractive for members to become involved with their local committee.
The decision on whether or not to become a single national body is a very important one. Whichever way we decide to vote, our choice will have a significant impact on our profession and ourselves as individual members. I would therefore urge everyone to consider the white papers very carefully when they are released.
Most importantly, please make sure you vote!
Julie GannerVice-president and IPEd representative
Vale Bruce ChampionWe are sad to report that our foundation member, Bruce Champion, passed away on 17 March.
Bruce was instrumental in the inception of the editors group in 1978, the foundation for Society of Editors (NSW) Inc. His efforts and support in relation to editing and the society were acknowledged with an honorary life membership, and until a few years ago Bruce still attended the member meetings when he could.
His wife, Janet, kindly advised us that his passing was peaceful, after his deteriorating health of the past few years, and she noted his passion for the society.
A condolence card was sent on behalf of his colleagues at Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.
Editors’ Association of Canada conferenceThe Editors’ Association of Canada will host the ‘Editing goes global’ conference in Toronto in June.
IPEd has agreed to sponsor a speaker to represent IPEd at the conference and cover the costs of travel, accommodation and the speaker’s registration.
The speaker will be expected to be on several panels, deliver on more than
one topic and address the current IPEd transition process during one of their sessions. They will also be expected to represent IPEd during networking opportunities and will be required to prepare a conference report.
Blue Pencil interactiveBlue Pencil is incorporating a new range of interactive elements for your convenience. Having attended the society’s InDesign course, Blue Pencil editor Meredith McGowan, has developed the newsletter so that it is easier to navigate.
You may notice that where we previously noted which page a story continued on, we now have a link. If you click on the box it will take you to the page where the article continues. The index is also active so that you can go straight to the story of interest and we have provided bookmarks.
The hyperlinks have been active for some time now and will take you to URLs or emails when you click on them. What is new is the inclusion of active logos. If you hover over the Macquarie Dictionary logo you will notice a hand. Clicking on the logo it will take you to the subscription page. There are other active logos throughout.
Secret Editors’ BusinessEditors Victoria has established a Facebook forum for editors around Australia to share ideas, help each other resolve issues and answer questions for one another. If you are interested you can join the group.
Secret Editors’ Business is where can you turn if you have a question or concern about a job or a client that you need some feedback on NOW? Or if you just want to blow off some steam to people who really get it?
Editors Victoria have set up a closed Facebook group where connect with other editors. Membership is restricted to members of the state and territory societies. It has been in existence for a little over four months and has more than 200 members.
Jump onto Facebook and like the Editors Victoria page (if you have not already), type Secret Editors’ Business into the search field at the top of the page and ask to join.
If your Facebook name is not your real name, also send a quick email [email protected]
We will verify your membership for approval. And then you can get chatting.
N e w s a n d n o t e s
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13 March 2015
Society of Editors (NSW) Inc. 2015 committeePresident: Zoë Hale
Email: [email protected]
Vice-president: Julie Ganner Email: [email protected]
Secretary: Shelley Reid
Email: [email protected]
Treasurer: Susie Pilkington
Email: [email protected]
Newsletter editor: Meredith McGowan
Email: [email protected]
Professional membership coordinator: Zoë Hale
Email: [email protected]
Mentoring coordinator: Zoë Hale
Email: [email protected]
Website coordinator: Abigail Nathan
Email: [email protected]
Freelancers’ lunch host: Terry Johnston
Email: [email protected]
General committee members: John Carrick
Email: [email protected] Shannon Tyler-Kelly
Email: [email protected] Robyn Short
Email: [email protected] Russell Noakes
Email: [email protected] Rhonda Daniels
Email: [email protected]
IPEd councillor: Julie Ganner
Email: [email protected]
Accreditation Board representative (NSW): Alison Moodie
Email: [email protected]
AdministrationOffice manager: Susie Pilkington
Administration officer for publicity, membership and events coordination. Email: [email protected]
Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.PO Box 254, Broadway NSW 2007 Voicemail: 9294 4999www.editorsnsw.com© 2015 The Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.
Blue PencilEditor: Meredith McGowanAssistants: Susie Pilkington and Robin AppletonBlue Pencil is available in digital format (PDF). If you want a printed version, please contact the officer manager.
Published: generally 11 issues a year (combined January–February issue).Your comments and contributions are welcome. Post them to the Editor, Blue Pencil, Society of Editors (NSW) Inc., PO Box 254, Broadway NSW 2007, or email the editor at [email protected]
Copy deadline for the April issue is Tuesday, 31 MarchThe views expressed in the articles and letters, or the material contained in any advertisement or attachment, are those of individual authors, not of the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc.
Advertising ratesFull page $375; half page $200; one-third page $125; quarter page $100; one-sixth page $75 (half of one column). Circulation: approximately 400. Please note that the committee reserves the right to decide whether advertisements are appropriate for this newsletter.
MembershipMembership of the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc. is open to anyone working as an editor for publication (print or electronic documents) and anyone who supports the society’s aims. Membership is available in different categories.
Membership runs for a calendar year. The 2015 fees are $105 for professional members (new or renewal), $85 for associate members (new or renewal) and $45 for student members. Interested organisations can become corporate associates for $400 per year.
To obtain a membership application form visit the Society of Editors (NSW) Inc. website www.editorsnsw.com, phone 9294 4999 (voicemail) or write to PO Box 254, Broadway NSW 2007.
Listing in the Editorial Services DirectoryThe Editorial Services Directory is available online at www.editorsnsw.com/esd New listings and updates can be added quarterly as follows:
• January (deadline 31 December)• April (deadline 31 March)• July (deadline 30 June)• October (deadline 30 September).The cost is $40 per year in addition to the fee for membership of the society. Only professional members are eligible for a listing. New listings should be submitted using a template available from the office manager at [email protected]
Committee meetingsAll members are welcome to attend the society’s committee meetings, generally held on the second Tuesday of each month. Please contact a committee member for details if you wish to attend the next meeting.
ABN 53 030 428 517