After several failed attempts to find someone able to organise the occasional social event in Brisbane, I decided to organise one myself, although I am no longer living there. When the alarm went off at 5 am on Saturday 7 June, I was sorely tempted to stay in bed. Did I really want to take on the car, train and 2-bus trip to be there at 10 am? To cut a long story short, I was there on time.
Was it worth it? Absolutely! It would not be exaggerating to say there was a look of joy on several faces, probably including mine, as we all started telling each other a little of our backgrounds and our motivation for coming: “It’s so good to catch up in person!”
Here are some snippets of our conversation:
- “I think a lot of editors are introverts, like me, so we don’t put ourselves forward to take on the role of organising anything.” Later: “I could organise something like this.”
- “When someone asks me what I do and I say I’m an editor, I almost cringe because I don’t know if I can call myself a real editor yet – it’s the impostor syndrome.”
“I sometimes feel that impostor syndrome, and I’ve been editing for decades! Maybe it’s more a women’s thing.” - “There’s no question too dumb!”
- “Oh, yes, those comma questions! I had an author who said there were far too many commas in my edited version, but [the publisher] said there weren’t enough!”
- “It’s vital to ask for the organisation’s style guide, if they have one.”
- “You might want to register for the workshops in preparation for the accreditation exam, whether or not you are sitting for it. They are a great help in navigating the basic questions, as well as the exam itself.”
- “Ghostwriting and book editing are what I love to do most, but government work pays the bills.”
- “We should do this more often!”
- “I was quite nervous about coming, but everyone has made me feel so welcome.”
The Botanic Gardens Cafe at the foot of Mount Coot-tha was the perfect place to meet. Nine editors managed to get there; a few more were prevented by illness and other unexpected occurrences. I caught up with a couple of editors who have volunteered for IPEd for some time. It was lovely to find out some surprising things about each of them, discovering shared interests.
I’m very much hoping to see all those faces again on Zoom and in person.