News, events, tips and updates from Editors Canada
In this issue:
- EDITORS CANADA CONFERENCE: Do you have your ticket yet?
- TRAINING: Check out our FREE plain language webinar and more!
- PROFESSIONAL EDITORIAL STANDARDS: Download the new edition for free now
- MEMBER SERVICES: Affordable insurance and free mediation support for Editors Canada members
- FEATURED VOLUNTEER: Suzanne Aubin
- BOOST YOUR RESUMÉ: Get involved
- MEMBER NEWS: A round of applause!
- NEC: Notes from your national executive council
1. EDITORS CANADA CONFERENCE: Do you have your ticket yet?
Time is running out to purchase your ticket for Editors 24: Present Progressive! Held from June 21 to 23 in Vancouver, BC, the Editors Canada conference will have incredible keynote speakers as well as cutting-edge sessions, workshops and social events.
Once you purchase your conference ticket, remember to book your stay early as accommodation fills up fast. Take advantage of Editors Canada’s hotel discounts.
Professional development aside, the conference is also a chance to visit the beautiful West Coast—without the rain! Vancouver’s stunning beaches and mountains, award-winning restaurants, and spectacular museums and art galleries await your arrival.
Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with your fellow editors and trade industry knowledge, strategy, and tips and tricks!
Visit the conference website for more information and stay up to date by downloading the PheedLoop app.
2. TRAINING: Check out our FREE plain language webinar and more!
Don’t miss the remaining webinars in our spring professional development lineup, which covers book coaching, marketing for freelancers and more. Explore our varied selection of upcoming live webinars and recorded sessions on our webinars page. The following are coming your way in May:
- May 2: Concordances: Character and Plot (Julie Kay-Wallace)
- May 7: What the Heck is a Book Coach (Suzy Vadori and Dinah Laprairie)
- May 9: Marketing Your Freelance Business like the Boss You Are (Suzy Bills)
- May 16: The Wheat from the Chaff: An Approach to Manuscript Evaluation (Lynne Melcombe)
Watch the Plain Language and Editors webinar for free
If you didn’t get the chance to attend our recent webinar on the new plain language standard from the International Organization for Standardization, you can now watch it for free on YouTube!
Plus, SFU online courses for editors
Update your skills this spring with a flexible online course from SFU Continuing Studies. Professional development courses beginning in May include:
- Plain Language Principles
- Freelancing for Editors
- Structural Editing
- Stylistic Editing
- Writing and Editing for the Web
3. PROFESSIONAL EDITORIAL STANDARDS: Download the new edition for free now
In case you missed it, Editors Canada has released the 2024 edition of Professional Editorial Standards. This new edition is now available as a free download.
This cornerstone publication describes the knowledge, skills and practices most commonly required for editing English-language material. Professional Editorial Standards clarify what is expected of Canadian editors and define the criteria against which their knowledge, skills and practice can be measured. They cover the core standards that all Canadian editors follow, regardless of the type of material they work on or how they edit.
What’s new in the 2024 edition?
Highlights include the additions of conscious language and accessibility as Fundamentals, and the idea that any editorial issues related to legal or ethical matters or conscious language and accessibility are Fundamentals, and editors at all stages are required to understand them and flag them wherever they encounter them.
Visit the Editors Canada website to download the new edition of Professional Editorial Standards now.
4. MEMBER SERVICES: Affordable insurance and free mediation support for Editors Canada members
APOLLO Insurance
Did you know that Editors Canada members have access to affordable professional liability through APOLLO Insurance? Through APOLLO, you will have access to the best rates for your business insurance, including coverage for:
- Errors and Omissions (E&O) up to $2 million
- Privacy Breach up to $2 million
- Optional Commercial General Liability (CGL) up to $5 million
- Contents coverage up to $100,000
- Free legal advice
Download the product flyer to learn more.
Purchase your business policy today through our easy-to-use online platform and get coverage in minutes. It’s professional liability insurance made effortless!
Visit APOLLO’s site for Editors Canada members to get a free custom quote.
This product is available in all Canadian provinces and territories, except Quebec. Editors Canada’s member insurance task force is researching options for members in Quebec.
Mediation
Are you having a conflict with a client over your services? Experiencing difficulty resolving a dispute with another member?
Free mediation support is available to members of Editors Canada and their clients who wish to resolve an issue with the help of a neutral third-party mediator. Free coaching support is also available for Editors Canada members who simply wish to discuss how best to move forward to resolve the situation on their own.
Please email Jane Kidner, certified mediator and coach, to schedule a time to chat by phone.
5. FEATURED VOLUNTEER: Suzanne Aubin
From the age of 15, Suzanne Aubin knew she wanted to be an editor—or a French teacher. She scratched the teaching itch by becoming a ballet and a tai chi instructor, but she explored her interest in language by pursuing a bachelor’s degree in linguistics at the Université de Montréal (completed 1995).
It wasn’t until 2002, though, that Suzanne joined Editors Canada. “I attended a presentation by Elizabeth d’Anjou and fell even more in love with language and editing,” Suzanne says.
“I felt I had found a home where I could grow as a professional editor.”
Suzanne jumped into volunteering as francophone affairs chair in 2003 and then as chair of Editors Québec. Life intervened, however, and it wasn’t until 2022 that Suzanne returned to volunteering, this time as director of member recruitment and retention on Editors Canada’s national executive council.
“I believe I can help our association grow and thrive, especially where our francophone membership is concerned,” she says. Working mostly in comparative editing (from English to French), Suzanne has translated many documents for Editors Canada and is now part of the strategic planning work group.
While Suzanne found it challenging to be faced with a blank slate when she first plunged into volunteering, she now reminds herself regularly to face her fears when confronting new challenges. Her favourite part of volunteering has become “getting to know new people and learning about the profession and the possibilities.”
Based in Montréal, Suzanne loves practising tai chi, knitting and raising her daughter. No matter the endeavour, Suzanne says, “I believe that hard work pays off.”
—S. Robin Larin
The featured volunteer recognizes the contributions of our dedicated people who keep Editors Canada going. Volunteers are the backbone of the association, and we are grateful for the many members and affiliates who answer the call when help is needed.
Want to make a difference in your association? Find out more about volunteering for Editors Canada.
6. BOOST YOUR RESUMÉ: Get involved
National Volunteer Month
April is Volunteer Month in Canada! A big thank you to everyone who has volunteered for Editors Canada in the past. We are a better association because of you. In fact, we are an association because of you. Editors Canada would not exist without volunteers.
If you’re interested in becoming involved, now is a great time to get started. We’re currently recruiting for national executive council positions and committee chairs. We always have room on our many national committees, and other opportunities are available as well. Most work is done remotely, so it doesn’t matter where you live.
Looking for volunteer opportunities?
If you want to volunteer for Editors Canada, check out VolunteerConnect, our resource for matching volunteers to tasks. You can use this searchable tool to
- find opportunities of interest to you
- list yourself as a potential volunteer
Volunteering lets you give back to your organization, but you also receive so much in return: experience, skills, contacts, friendships and a wonderful sense of accomplishment. Volunteer today!
Set the standard for editing in Canada: Volunteer with the standards committee!
The 2024 Professional Editorial Standards (PES) have just been updated, thanks to the hard work of our dedicated volunteers. But we are never finished! We have already started thinking about the next version of the PES and need new volunteers who want to be part of this exciting endeavour. If you are interested, please contact Greg Ioannou.
7. MEMBER NEWS: A round of applause!
Editors Manitoba member Susan Bond dabbles in poetry, composing and songwriting. Last June she studied poetry with Lorna Crozier during a weeklong retreat in Ontario. Two of her poems are included in Book of Night, a chapter book of poetry published by Wintergreen Studios and released in January 2024.
Editors Toronto member Lisa Frenette was a contributor to the Bridge to Publishing pilot program this spring. The program is an online professional development program for Indigenous youth that helps them develop their writing, editing and storytelling skills. She provided an hour-long training module for participants of the program with a specific focus on editing Indigenous-authored texts and sensitivity reading.
Editors Canada Member News is where we share information about members and affiliates who win awards, publish books and make their mark in other important ways.
Do you have an achievement you’d like to share? Are you excited about a new project or opportunity that has come your way? Let us tell the world all about it! Please send your stories to the member news coordinator.
8. NEC: Notes from your national executive council
The national executive council (NEC) met on Sunday, March 24, 2024.
A lot of projects are currently underway at Editors Canada:
- The publications committee is working on new volumes of Edit Like a Pro and a diversity handbook.
- Webinars are currently running as scheduled, and planning for the next season of webinars is expected to begin in the next few months.
- Conference planning is continuing as planned.
- Planning for the French-language conference in late 2024 is well underway.
- Work on the strategic plan continues to be fruitful. Our facilitators have been doing excellent work ensuring that our members’ voices are being heard and that the strategic planning process is clear. Any members who have not yet been contacted to contribute to the strategic plan will be given the opportunity soon through a member survey.
We were also joined by Jenny O’Reilly, who gave the NEC a quick overview of what Editors Hamilton-Halton has been up to.
The NEC met again on Sunday, April 21. A summary of that meeting will appear in the next e-news update.
Maria Frank
President
The national e-news update is produced on behalf of the national executive council by the national office.