Announcements

Conference 2023: See also Newfoundland. Come share with us!

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Call for Proposals

The Conference Committee invites your proposals for ISC/SCI Conference 2023.
Proposals are being accepted until October 3, 2022.

The committee is seeking proposals in the following areas:
▪ aspects of running an indexing business (social media for marketing, profitability, project scheduling, websites, etc.)
▪ technology related to indexing such as devices or equipment, non-indexing software, or apps
▪ improving/assessing index quality or usability from broad topics such as improving your speed to niche topics on specific languages, communities, or subjects
▪ non-back-of-book indexing such as taxonomy, controlled vocabularies, thesaurus development
▪ any niche or specialty topics you feel passionate about

This is an in-person conference taking place in St. John’s in early June. Attendance is expected unless conference plans need to be changed closer to the date. Sessions will be 50 minutes in total (35–40 minutes for presentation followed by a 10–15 minute question-and-answer session).

Application form and more information can be found here.

2022 Tamarack Award: Lisa Fedorak

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The Indexing Society of Canada / Société canadienne d’indexation (ISC/SCI) is pleased to announce the 2022 recipient of the Tamarack Award. Lisa Fedorak (Vancouver) is being recognized for her contribution and commitment to the society.

Lisa was chosen for her warmth, her diligence, and her independent spirit. Lisa’s colleagues had the following to say about her:

I wanted Lisa to be given the Tamarack Award to acknowledge her courage and stamina. Through Lisa’s initiative and her untiring efforts, we are on a path to becoming better at our business.

Lisa is highly conscientious and has donated an enormous amount of energy to the ISC/SCI. Lisa is a team player who is always doing what she can to make things better for others.

[Lisa] is someone in the world you’re so grateful to have crossed paths with, and I appreciate her gifts of compassion, human values, and warmth.

Co-Presidents Alexandra Peace and Tere Mullin said: “We are thrilled to present this award to Lisa, and we are honoured to have her as a member of our society. Thank you, Lisa, for all you have given to the society and its membership.”

The Tamarack Award was instituted to recognize members who go “above and beyond the call of duty” in their volunteer work for the Society. Past recipients can be found on the website here: https://indexers.ca/isc-awards/

ASI Webinar: Establishing Yourself as an Expert

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Marketing Strategies No One Talks About
with Jen Weers and Gwen Henson

Wednesday, June 29, 2022

A good marketing plan for indexers should include more than a letter-writing campaign and the dreaded cold calls. Even savvy marketers are often missing a key part of their plan: establishing yourself as an expert. When faced with a multitude of indexers in the mix for a single project, you need to be proactive in proving you are the right person for the job.

In this webinar, you will:
• explore out-of-the-box marketing tools for establishing yourself as an expert
• learn how to be seen as an expert even with limited experience
• identify different audiences for your message
• hear from experts who have successfully used this concept
• explore imposter syndrome and ways to see yourself as an expert, even if you don’t believe your own message

If you are a member of ISC/SCI, you can receive the member discount using the coupon code on the Member Benefits page.


Register and get more information at
https://www.asindexing.org/webinars/expert-weers-henson/

2022 Ewart-Daveluy Award

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The ISC/SCI will not be presenting the Ewart-Daveluy Indexing Award this year. While the committee is pleased with the number of submissions and the diversity of trade and scholarly books, we agreed unanimously that none of the indexes reach the level of excellence that merits the award.

All of the indexes do some things well. Specifically, most of the indexes are clearly structured and easy to navigate, include multiple and relevant access points, are clearly worded, and accurately map the contents of the text. These are qualities we expect in all professional indexes. All of these criteria and more are listed on the ISC/SCI website.

What we are looking for is that elusive quality of elegance. Elegance is that sense that there is an unusual clarity, a memorable ease of use, a succinctness, or even a strikingly simple presentation of difficult ideas. Another view of indexing elegance appears in the criteria for the ASI Excellence in Indexing Award: “Succinctness; the right word in the right place—even if the word isn’t found in the text; a certain ‘charm’; visual appeal; a sense that the index contains exactly what it needs to, no more, no less; simplicity; grace.”

We encourage indexers to strive for elegance. Take the extra time to go over the index once more. Tighten up the phrasing; search for the precise word, and imagine what readers might look for that you have not included. The index does not need to be perfect, but it does need to stand out. Give your index that final polish to make it shine!

Next year we will begin again to look for an elegant index. As you write indexes this year, look for that index that is almost there, the one that needs a bit more care, and then consider giving it the extra polish so that you can send it when submissions open in the fall.

Thank you to those who submitted indexes. As mentioned in the submission form, we will send summaries of our comments and suggestions.

ISC/SCI Members Receive the DReam to Index Scholarship

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Congratulations to Matthew MacLellan, Jessica MacLeod, and Laurel Rush of ISC/SCI, and Heather Pendley of ASI on their win of the DReam to Index Scholarship.

From the DReam to Index team:

The four recipients of 2022 DReam to Index scholarships intend to use the funds for either the Indexing Society of Canada (ISC/SCI) virtual conference (scheduled for May 12–14) or for the American Society for Indexing (ASI) virtual conference (scheduled for April 29–30).  

In 2018, the Friends of Dave established a fund to honor David K. Ream who passed away at the end of 2017.  Dave, who was well known throughout the indexing communities of the world, provided computer-programming, database construction, and typesetting to indexers and abstractors for more than 30 years. Dave gave so much to the field of indexing and was especially interested in helping indexers succeed in their work.  That is why we have chosen to honor him by recognizing new people coming to the field and helping them on their indexing journey.

Thank you to all of the contestants who applied for the 2022 scholarship. Friends of Dave wish much success to them all in their future indexing careers.

The recipients of future DReam to Index scholarships can apply the funds to national conferences of the American Society for Indexing, Society of Indexers, Indexing Society of Canada, Australian and New Zealand Society of Indexers, or Association of South African Indexers and Bibliographers. In 2023, the DReam to Index scholarships will be offered for the final time using the same criteria – for more information about Dave Ream and the scholarships please see www.dreamtoindex.com.