News, events, tips and updates from Editors Canada
In this issue:
1. KAREN VIRAG AWARD: Deadline for nominations is July 31
2. STUDENT RELATIONS: Supporting the next generation of editors
3. MEMBER SERVICES: Protect yourself and your ability to earn an income
4. PUBLICATIONS: Editing Canadian English, 3rd edition and Editorial Niches
5. CERTIFICATION: Confessions of a pilot tester
6. VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH: Gone fishing
7. MEMBER NEWS: A round of applause!
8. TWIGS: Editors Newfoundland and Labrador has a new email address
1. KAREN VIRAG AWARD: Deadline for nominations is July 31
The call for nominations for the inaugural Karen Virag Award remains open, with an extended deadline date of Sunday, July 31.
The extension is in response to member concerns that the notification period for this new award was not long enough, and some interested nominees were unable to complete applications in time. See the Karen Virag Award for more information about how to nominate someone for this award, which recognizes activities that raise the profile of editing. These activities could take the form of teaching, writing, speaking, community outreach, social media and more.
Please help us spread the word about the award and the new deadline. Thank you!
Tamra Ross
Chair, Awards committee
2. STUDENT RELATIONS: Supporting the next generation of editors
More than a dozen students attended the student relations committee’s session at the national conference in Vancouver last month. The committee will take what it learned from the session to inform strategies for promoting and building the association’s student affiliate program. It is critical to get input from the community we are representing, so that we can meet actual student needs.
Students can join Editors Canada for just $50 per year
We’re proud to give students a more affordable way to join the Editors’ Association of Canada (Editors Canada). Student affiliates benefit from exclusive association benefits and get the training, connections and resources needed to help jumpstart their careers. The number of student affiliates in the association is growing and we look forward to creating opportunities for partnerships with educational institutions and offering even more training. If you know a student who is considering a career in editing, writing or communications, please pass this message along and encourage them to join us today.
3. MEMBER SERVICES: Protect yourself and your ability to earn an income
Editors Canada is proud to offer several affordable insurance options for members across the country.
Errors and omissions insurance (through Affinity Insurance)
Professional risks go hand-in-hand with the editing industry. E&O insurance helps protect you against lawsuits arising from allegations of negligence or wrongdoing, thereby protecting your assets. For a client who has suffered damages, E&O insurance can provide adequate funds for compensation.
Health and dental insurance (through Investors Group)
These enhanced health-care plans can supplement your provincial or territorial government’s coverage and help protect you against unexpected health and dental expenses.
With a complete product package that spans term life insurance, permanent participating life, universal life, disability, critical illness and long-term care, these plans can offer you personal peace of mind.
Visit the Members’ Area for more information about these insurance options.
4. PUBLICATIONS: Editing Canadian English, 3rd edition and Editorial Niches
These go-to guides for Canadian English usage were published in 2015. Get the latest guidance on Canadian English, from Canadianization to spelling, abbreviations, punctuation, measurements, bilingual text and so much more. Written by expert editors, it’s a reference guide you can depend on.
Member/affiliate discount
You’ll get all of Editing Canadian English 3 and Editorial Niches with an online subscription to EditingCanadianEnglish.ca. Editors Canada members and affiliates pay $25 annually (regular price $35) for this version that you can access anytime, anywhere. To get the discount, use the membership code MoreThanMeetsTheEh.
Print editions
Looking for hard copies of these incredible resources? You can also purchase Editing Canadian English, 3rd edition and Editorial Niches in print.
Follow Editing Canadian English 3 on Twitter
Editing Canadian English 3 is tweeting! Follow @CdnEnglish for regular tips and advice from the ECE3 team. Retweet us to help spread the word!
5. CERTIFICATION: Confessions of a pilot tester
Thank you to all those who have volunteered to take the proofreading and structural editing certification pilot tests on Saturday, September 10, 2016. Volunteers are still needed to take the computer-based structural editing test in Vancouver and the paper-based structural editing test in Ottawa and Toronto. Please contact Sébastien Koch at the national office for details.
Need tips on how to prepare?
To ensure the validity of the pilot test, it’s crucial that volunteers take the test seriously. Linda Jenkins, a Certified Copy Editor in Ottawa, has written the pilot tests several times—both before and after earning her certification. She shares her experience.
What to study
Study the Professional Editorial Standards thoroughly. Think of the standards for your test as a checklist. Are you confident you have the knowledge and skills covered in each item on the list? Your answer will point you to where you need to focus your study time.
Remember…
Years ago, I learned that a big mistake many people make is they go outside the scope of the test they are writing. They copy edit the test passage when they’re taking the structural, stylistic or proofreading test. Since about 80% of my business is copy editing, I’m someone who could easily fall into that trap. So when I’m preparing and when I’m elbow-deep in the test, I speak to myself severely: DO NOT COPY EDIT (or if I’m piloting the copy editing test: DON’T DO ANYTHING THAT ISN’T COPY EDITING).
Rating the experience overall
I recommend being a pilot tester to anyone. If you pass a pilot test, your confidence gets a wonderful boost. If you don’t pass, you’ve gained invaluable experience without having to pay the fee to take the “live” test. Don’t be discouraged—build on the piloting experience so you’ll be ready to take the test for real the next time it’s offered.
Benefits for pilot testers
- Editors Canada will give you a free copy of the Study Guide, a $55 value, for the test you pilot.
- You will receive notification of your result, which will help you gauge if you are ready for certification.
6. VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH: Gone fishing
Like many of you are hopefully doing, the volunteer of the month will be taking a bit of a holiday this summer. We are, however, hoping to hear from committee chairs, branch exec members, and twig coordinators with nominations for the stellar members who are volunteering with them. Every Editors Canada volunteer matters, and every volunteer should be recognized. Please send your nominations to the chair of the volunteer management committee at volunteer_management@editors.ca.
Have a great summer, and see you in September!
7. MEMBER NEWS: A round of applause!
Mary Newberry (Editors Toronto), a freelance indexer and editor residing in Toronto, is the 2016 recipient of the Ewart-Daveluy Indexing Award. The award was presented at the joint conference of the Indexing Society of Canada and American Society for Indexing in Chicago, IL, on Thursday, June 16, 2016. This award honours Mary’s indexing of The Letterbooks of John Evelyn, volumes 1 and 2, edited by Douglas D.C. Chambers and David Galbraith and published by University of Toronto Press.
The ISC/SCI Ewart-Daveluy Indexing Award is presented each year to an individual who has created an index that demonstrates outstanding expertise, the ability to analyze complex text and the ability to design an index that significantly enhances reader use of the text.
Editors British Columbia member Alison Jacques copy edited The Decolonizing Poetics of Indigenous Literatures by Mareike Neuhaus (published by University of Regina Press), which was recently awarded the 2016 Saskatchewan Book Award for Scholarly Writing.
Do you have an achievement you’d like to share? Are you excited about a new project or opportunity that has come your way? We’d love to hear from you! Please send your stories to the member news coordinator. Each item will be posted on our website and will be included in the Editors Canada e-news updates.
8. TWIGS: Editors Newfoundland and Labrador has a new email address
The new email address for Editors Newfoundland and Labrador is nle@editors.ca. The twig’s original address (which included the word “twig”) has now been deleted. Please update your address books!
Wondering what’s happening in your neck of the woods? Visit your branch or twig page to find out about news and events in your area.
The national e-news update is produced on behalf of the national executive council by the national office.