What: Editors BC professional development seminar
When: Saturday, October 27, 2018, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Where: Room 464, 4th floor, BCIT Downtown Campus, 555 Seymour Street, Vancouver | map
Cost: $165 for Editors Canada members ($135 early bird), $230 for non-members ($200 early bird), and $100 for student affiliates. Advance registration required. Registration closes October 23; early-bird rates are in effect through October 9.

Many editors are intimidated when they are asked to do a structural edit. Unlike other stages of editing, structural editing has fewer “rules,” and there is never just one way to solve structural problems. Structural editors are called upon to clarify, reorganize, and even rewrite. Negotiation with the author is also often part of the job.

This one-day workshop will deepen your existing skills by examining a sure-fire approach and process. You will learn how to break down structural editing into manageable tasks and resolve imbalance in content and ensure the manuscript is appropriate for the intended audience. At the end of the workshop, participants will know

• How to assess a manuscript to identify structural issues
• How to use an outline to reveal structure
• What questions to ask when analyzing problems
• How to avoid over editing and respect the writer’s work
• How graphics and design can support structural editing decisions
• Why diplomacy can be just as important as editorial skill
• How to estimate how long editing will take

This workshop will help anyone wishing to advance their structural editing abilities, broaden their skills base, or study for the upcoming structural certification test offered by Editors Canada this fall. It will be most useful for participants who already have an understanding of structural editing and some experience, although editors at all levels are welcome. All course materials will be supplied.

Ruth Wilson has more than 30 years’ experience editing trade books, professional journals, association publications, and corporate materials at all levels. She first honed her structural editing skills when she worked at Vancouver book publisher Self-Counsel Press, and since then she has shared what she has learned, having taught Substantive Editing in SFU’s Writing and Communications Program for 15 years, along with other skills-based courses.

Ruth is a partner in West Coast Editorial Associates, and she has served on several national committees of Editors Canada. In 2011 she was honoured by Editors Canada as a recipient of the President’s Award for Volunteer Service, and in 2014 she was recognized as a Certified Professional Editor (Hon) for the work she did in developing and launching Editors Canada’s world-class certification program.