Next meeting Wednesday 25 Jun e 6pm Focus group results At our next meeting we will pres e nt t he re sul ts of the f ocus groups t hat Joe Mass i ngha m has conducted on our behalf. The purpose of these f ocus groups was to get frank and honest feedback about how the so ci e ty ca n i mprove i ts s ervi ce to me mb e rs. We wi l l l ook a t what the fee dback has bee n and di sc us s ‘ Where to f rom here? ’ This will be an e xci ti ng opportunity to contribute to future di rec ti ons of the s ociety, so please come along. As usual, we will meet in the Friends Lounge at the National Library at 6.00 pm for ne twor ki ng an d a 6.30 pm s tart. Ne xt training s ession Satur day 12 Jul y This web writing workshop is limited to 20 participants. Details page 2 bookings page 8. AGM Saturday 2 August 11am With lunch and guest speaker Kathy Golski. Details page 5. At our l a st meeting Ian Howi e - Willis recounted how he became a n e dit or f rom be i ng a wri ter of history. Fascinated by history since ch i l dhood , he l a ter developed a lifelong commitment to t he use of corr ec t gr amma r and punctua ti on a nd to the precise use of vocabulary to convey the exact intended meaning. Ia n f i rst work e d as a ca de t reporter and learnt to: •wri te short, di rect senten ce s, a l ways i n the a cti ve voi ce •type fast and accurately, wi thou t re wri te s •get the facts right, double- check them and answer all the implicit questions in the story. Af ter com ple ti ng un i ve rsi ty, Ian taught in high schools where producing school magazines provi de d his f irst l e s sons in e dit orial work: •how to pe rsua de c ontri butors to me e t de a dl i nes •how to correct their flawed prose without implicit criticism •how to r edu ce the leng th of a rti cles whi ch a re inv a ria bly too l ong . In 1974 Melbourne University P res s pu bl i s he d I a n’ s fi rst t he sis. His editor showed him that the editor is an ally and should be tr us ted. S he ta ught hi m how a good editor works: •suggesting improvements while retaini ng the author’ s s tyl e •sa ving authors emba rras sme nt by getting them to check facts that could be wrong •picking up errors that would discredit authors and books. The e di tor of hi s s e cond boo k showed Ian that a good editor is a n encourager, not a ni t- pi cker. Ian became an editor while in the public service. Later, as editor of academic journals, Ian developed a few rules of thumb: •De a l po li tel y bu t fi rmly wi th ac a demic pri ma donna s. •Overcome academic supervisors who, while expert, wa nt autho rs to r e wri te a rti cles to their personal satisfaction. •Affirm the authors while i mproving their pros e. •Encourage younger authors. Ian also believes the academic e ditor’ s role is to: •keep the authors focussed and ou t of ide ologica l blind all e ys •pe rsua de a uthors to wri te i n the voice with which they speak rather than in a convoluted polemical academic style •convince a uthors that thei r personal experi ence s a re of more i ntere st than the ir theoretical analysis. Af ter wri ting 17 bo oks , Ian knows that no matter how good authors might think they are, the ir book wi ll be be tte r i f i nde pe nde ntl y e di ted. Gil GarconWriter and editor: Ian Howie-Willis Canberra Society of Editors Newsletter Vol 17 • Number 5 • June 2008
