EdTas branch news
By the time you read this, we’ll have celebrated our pre-Christmas lunch at Ross in what now seems to have become a tradition. The branch committee is planning both virtual and in-person events next year: stay tuned for more details.
We are still looking for an Accredited or Distinguished Editor to take over from Vicki Nelson on the Accreditation Board. Contact her to learn more.
On virtual conferences
In the past month I’ve registered for, and attended parts of, two virtual conferences. The first was the Be a better freelancer conference, delivered via Zoom and running from 9am to 5.15pm, US Eastern time — that is, from 11pm to 7.15am in Hobart. It’s fair to say I did not get much out of this conference — and that was entirely my fault.
I am not a night owl, but thought taking a nap during the day would be enough to keep me awake for at least a few presentations. It wasn’t. I barely made it through the opening session on ‘Startup essentials and business basics’. Fortunately, presentations were recorded and I’m looking forward to catching more of them, but it’s not the same as being able to ask questions in real time.
Fortunately, I learned from this experience, so when the CIEP conference came around in November, I was better prepared. The main conference program ran (from my perspective) from 11.50pm to 4am, with themed networking sessions from 9pm to 11pm, speed networking from 6am to 8am on day one, and a quiz from 6am to 8am on day two.
I made up the spare bed in my office, noted the time each presentation would start, warned the family that I would probably resemble a zombie during normal waking hours, and set my alarm. I attended most of the formal presentations and some of the speed networking.
It wasn’t the same as attending a conference in person — of course it wasn’t. But it was still a great opportunity to get away from the day-to-day routine of editing to meet colleagues doing different things — or doing the same things in different ways — around the world.
The next conference I’ve signed up for isn’t an editing one — it’s RootsTech 2021. In normal times, this event attracts thousands of family historians to Salt Lake City; next year, it’s going online. I’m looking forward to seeing how their team manages such a huge audience.
Have you attended a virtual conference? Comments are open at the IPEd 2021 conference blog or the member portal.
Elizabeth Spiegel AE