News, events, tips and updates for members of the Editors’ Association of Canada
In this issue:
1. CONFERENCE 2014: Registration is now open!
2. VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH: Cat Haggert
3. INDUSTRY NEWS: Cengage and Aplia emerging from bankruptcy
4. PUBLICATIONS: Committee update
5. PRESIDENT’S AWARD: Recognizing EAC’s stellar volunteers
6. MEMBER SERVICES: EAC members now save 20% on a Usito subscription
7. MEMBER NEWS: Tell the world about your achievements
8. ASSOCIATION: EAC rebranding exercise hits stride
9. FRANCOPHONE AFFAIRS: Leadership opportunity available
10. ACTIVE VOICE: Contributors for EAC’s national magazine wanted
11. THE EDITORS’ WEEKLY: Write for EAC’s national blog
12. TORONTO: Branch blog contributors wanted
13. HAMILTON-HALTON: Twig update
1. CONFERENCE 2014: Registration is now open!
Registration is now open for EAC’s 2014 conference, Tracking Change: e-Merging Methods and Markets! This year’s conference will take place from June 6 to 8 at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, located at 209 Victoria Street in downtown Toronto.
Thanks to all who submitted proposals to speak at the conference. The full schedule will be announced in the coming weeks, and the committee is very excited about the many high-calibre speakers and sessions that have already been confirmed. Stay tuned!
Follow the conference’s social media channels for news and updates about this year’s event:
- Blog
- Facebook: Editors’ Association of Canada/Association canadienne des réviseurs
- Twitter: @eacconference and @eac_acr
We look forward to seeing you in Toronto!
2. VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH: Cat Haggert
February 2014 marks Cat Haggert’s 20-year anniversary as a member of EAC. This month, we celebrate Cat and her dedicated volunteer service to EAC.
Cat began her volunteer work with EAC as a member of the Toronto branch, where she held the positions of secretary, treasurer, chair, co-chair and past chair. Cat moved to Waterdown, ON, in 2008, at a time when local EAC members were planning to form the Hamilton-Halton twig. With the formation of the twig in 2011, Cat became treasurer, a position she still holds. Cat also organizes the twig’s monthly Koffee Klatches. The noon-hour gatherings, which are held at diners, pubs and restaurants in the Hamilton-Halton area, provide a valuable opportunity for members to connect and share ideas.
A freelance editor, Cat got her start with advice and recommendations from fellow EAC volunteers. Her most memorable experiences as a volunteer have been those spent working with fellow volunteers. “Those remarkable moments come when volunteers display and use their passion and commitment,” says Cat. “It is the feeling of being involved and engaged that is memorable and addictive.”
Cat’s volunteerism extends beyond EAC, including work as a Beginning Instructor in Taoist Tai Chi, and as an interpreter at Westfield Heritage Village.
The Volunteer of the Month is a new feature designed to highlight the dedicated people who keep EAC going. Volunteers are the backbone of EAC, a member-run organization. We are grateful for the many volunteers who answer the call when help is needed. Visit the Members’ Area for more information about volunteering for EAC.
3. INDUSTRY NEWS: Cengage and Aplia emerging from bankruptcy
Freelancers who have been working for Cengage (and its subsidiary, Aplia) will be pleased to hear that the company has fended off bankruptcy through a new arrangement with its creditors.
- People who worked on the company’s materials that were intended for the Canadian market should have been paid in full by now. If you haven’t, please contact the person you deal with at the company.
- People who worked on the company’s materials that were intended for the US market will eventually receive partial payment. This might still take quite a while, and the percentage they will receive has not yet been announced.
If you are owed money by either company for invoices you issued before June 2013 and are not receiving the frequent mailings from the receiver’s office, please contact the person you deal with at the company. The company is paying invoices for new work in a timely manner.
For more information, see the February 3 Reuters story or search for up-to-date media reports.
EAC advocates for members who are affected by corporate bankruptcies and other financial misadventures. We’ve developed a number of strategies for getting paid that are more effective than you might expect. If one of your clients is in financial trouble, please get in touch with Greg Ioannou (who chairs PICA, the committee that deals with such things). We’ll keep the specifics of your situation confidential.
4. PUBLICATIONS: Committee update
A small army of fabulous volunteers is busy researching and writing about the many topics to be included in the third edition of EAC’s style guide, Editing Canadian English (ECE). This revised edition, to be published in Fall 2014, will be an online resource that can be updated regularly to ensure that information is current and relevant for Canadian editors. (A print-on-demand option will also be available.)
The committee is grateful for the talents and wisdom of the late Karen Virag, who served as director of publications and as editor-in-chief of ECE until November 2013. We will strive to maintain the high standards, collegiality and camaraderie that she brought to her work with EAC publications. Learn more about Karen’s contributions to EAC.
Welcome to Lynn Wilson, who joins Anne Louise Mahoney as co-chair of the publications committee. Lynn will focus on publications matters beyond Editing Canadian English, while Anne Louise will continue to work primarily on ECE.
Former co-chair Beth Macfie was elected to her municipal council in November. We offer our heartfelt thanks to Beth for her excellent work and tireless commitment to the committee over the past four years and wish her the best.
5. PRESIDENT’S AWARD: Recognizing EAC’s stellar volunteers
EAC accomplishes amazing results, thanks in large part to our dedicated volunteers. Among other things, we publish standards and books on editing, administer a professional certification program and host an annual conference. From chairing committees to staffing registration desks, our volunteers keep things running from start to finish.
The EAC President’s Award for Volunteer Service is one way we thank our volunteers for keeping this organization functioning. We’re really proud that volunteers help run this association—many of the services we provide exist because our volunteers pitch in to do the work.
We’re now accepting nominations for the President’s Award. From the nominations received, one outstanding volunteer will receive the Lee d’Anjou Volunteer of the Year Award.
Any member of the association can be nominated for the award. To nominate someone for the President’s Award, send a letter (100 to 300 words—short is good) describing the candidate’s volunteer service. The letter must be signed by at least three EAC members. For complete guidelines, please visit the President’s Award page.
The deadline for nominations is April 11, 2014.
Send nominations to
EAC President’s Award for Volunteer Service
505–27 Carlton St.
Toronto, ON M5B 1L2
Fax: 416 975-1637
Email: presidents_office@editors.ca (subject line: Nomination, EAC President’s Award for Volunteer Service)
6. MEMBER SERVICES: EAC members now save 20% on a Usito subscription
EAC members can now save 20% (previously 5%) on a subscription for Usito, the new French language dictionary that places language in its Quebec, Canadian, and North American context.
With the 20% discount, an annual subscription will cost just $32 (previously $38 with the 5% discount).
Visit EAC’s Member Services page to learn more and to take advantage of the discount.
7. MEMBER NEWS: Tell the world about your achievements
EAC Member News is where we share information about EACers who win awards, publish books and make their mark on the communications world in other important ways
Do you have a recent achievement? Let EAC tell the world about it on EAC’s Member News page. If you have member news to share, drop our member news coordinator a line.
8. ASSOCIATION: EAC rebranding exercise hits stride
The EAC branding task force, formed in late November 2013, has now completed Phase 1: the selection of a branding company. Over the past few months, the team reviewed documents relevant to EAC branding, including the latest strategic plan and the 2012 membership survey. That was followed by an exercise to source branding companies and the writing of an RFP.
The team received strong response to the RFP from three companies, and after much deliberation and due diligence, selected Costa Leclerc Design in Toronto. A contract is now in place, and Phase 2 has begun. This phase will end in early May with the launch of a new brand that will include a new website look as well as other visual and written messaging.
The entire process should take about three months and be in place on several platforms by conference time.
In the meantime, stay tuned for more updates. If you have any questions, please contact the task force leader, Melva McLean.
9. FRANCOPHONE AFFAIRS: Leadership opportunity available
Does meeting people in our field, improving your resumé and sharing your knowledge sound appealing to you? We’re looking for a volunteer chair for the francophone affairs committee. The chair will lead a committee of volunteers to develop relationships and raise the profile of the editing profession—and EAC—in the francophone community. Interested? Contact EAC’s director of francophone affairs, Marie-Christine Payette, to make a difference.
10. ACTIVE VOICE: Contributors for EAC’s national magazine wanted
We want your skills—writing, editing, copy editing, proofreading and researching—for EAC’s national magazine, Active Voice. This is your chance to volunteer for the Spring 2014 issue!
We have lots of interesting topics (noted below). If you’re interested in writing or editing—and we really hope you are—please contact Brooke Smith, Managing Editor (English).
WANTED: Volunteers for the Spring 2014 issue of Active Voice
- researcher needed to look into the Canadian Society of Magazine Editors and American Copy Editors Society volunteerism models
- writer needed for a piece about the e-publishing houses in Canada; this will include an interview with Iguana Books
- writer needed for a profile on volunteer Emily Dockrill-Jones (co-chair of the EAC national conference in Toronto)
- writer for In Memoriam for Karen Virag
- writer for evolution of editing in 35 years
11. THE EDITORS’ WEEKLY: Write for EAC’s national blog
Is there a book you love and would recommend to other writers and editors? Has a particular job been a real learning experience for you? Have you had a client who was exceptionally demanding or eccentric and taught you some valuable lessons?
The Editors’ Weekly wants to hear from you! Submit your anecdotes (200 to 400 words) to blog@editors.ca and the best ones will be posted on the blog!
You can submit as many entries as you like in the following categories:
- Quirky clients
- Worst (or most educational) jobs
- Best-loved books (reference, fiction—any book of any genre you’d recommend to the editing/writing community at large)
Submit your entries by March 31 to blog@editors.ca.
12. TORONTO: Branch blog contributors wanted
EAC’s Toronto branch launched its new blog, BoldFace, in the fall, and is always looking for new writers—even if you’re not a Toronto branch member. Are you interested in seeing your byline on BoldFace by writing about language trends, tax tips for freelancers, editing-related book reviews, literary or editing event previews or coverage, or any other topics of interest to the editing community? Please email torontoblog@editors.ca and let us know your story idea(s) and which branch or twig you call home. In the meantime, don’t forget to read the blog and sign up for email notifications via the BoldFace home page.
13. HAMILTON-HALTON: Twig update
The Hamilton-Halton twig congratulates Cat Haggert for being February’s Volunteer of the Month. We’re a very lucky twig to have such a dedicated participant. We’d also like to thank Matthew Pioro, editor of Canadian Cycling Magazine, for his fun and informative presentation at our last meeting.
Here are some upcoming Hamilton-Halton events.
March 3: Koffee Klatch at Maria’s Fifty’s Diner (931 Queenston Road, Stoney Creek, ON)
March 13: General “Books and Bothers” meeting at Community Development Halton (860 Harrington Court, Room 209, Burlington, ON)
April 10: “The Lost Art of Sentence Diagramming” presented by Cat Haggert at Community Development Halton in Burlington.
Wondering what’s happening in your neck of the woods? Visit your branch or twig page to find out about events in your area.
The EAC national e-news update is produced on behalf of the national executive council by the national office.