From the committee
by Camilla Cripps
The Editors NSW committee held their monthly meeting on 12 March 2024, with 11 attendees. The committee thanks Julie Ganner AE and Dr Kai Jensen AE for their efficient shared chairing of the meeting over Zoom. Minutes of the February committee meeting were accepted and actions noted.
Upcoming presentations and events formed the bulk of the March meeting’s discussion. The committee made plans for a replacement host to take the reins while our usual host and presentations coordinator, Dr Kai Jensen AE, appeared as our April speaker. Kai delivered his talk “How to get editing work in Australian universities” on 2 April. Other speaking events in the coming months include “Editing the Autistic voice: Dr Clem Bastow in conversation with Dr Louise Merrington AE” (7 May) and “Pervasive and problematic: editing trauma in the Australian context” with Camilla Cripps (4 June).
Plans for our ABM are well underway, including an exciting presentation to be held immediately after the formal proceedings. Editors NSW looks forward to welcoming both members and non-members to the presentation.
Led by our networking coordinator, Ruth Powers, the team brainstormed locations for our July dinner and strategies for better communication of networking events to New South Wales editors, with some great ideas being thrown around. February saw a successful networking lunch hosted by Professor Pam Peters DE in Cheltenham, with 14 attendees. Unfortunately, our Moruya event was cancelled; however, there are plans to host another far south coast networking event later in the year. We are also excited for events currently in the pipeline for the New England region, and for both northern and western Sydney. See the IPEd Events page for more information on presentations and networking events.
Otherwise, committee news was brief this month, with succinct reports on the draft budget and assumptions paper, news of the accreditation exam workshops being held over three weekends in March, and updates from the Standing Committee on Professional Development and Communications and Style Standing Committee delegates.
Networking event report: Editors’ lunch at Cheltenham
by Professor Pam Peters DE
The Cheltenham Recreation Club’s restaurant – Molly’s to the locals – proved a congenial leafy venue for 14 editors (mostly current, a few prospective) taking time out for a networking lunch on 22 February 2024. The restaurant for big groups like ours is in the main meeting hall, surrounded by an old garden with tennis courts and croquet lawns.
Representing IPEd itself was Hana Krskova, the new finance director, making contact with practising editors from different points of the compass around Sydney. Susie Pilkington, the former NSW branch office manager, was present and warmly greeted.
We were seated at a long refectory-style table, allowing for plenty of in-depth conversations with our neighbours over shared pasts as well as current issues: changing arenas of work; dream and nightmare clients; and the inscrutable impacts of AI on the profession.
Molly’s menu offered tasty options for different dietary preferences and, though the majority drank nature’s purest, special drinks were available. A nice touch, in terms of service for our large group, was having our meals served at the same time so we could all munch together. Consensus: a good place for another networking lunch!
Above: Cheltenham networking lunch in March 2024. Image: Courtesy of Pam Peters