Margaret Sadler | Editor-in-Chief , news & views

Among my colleagues , we speak of “ accidental editors .” Few of us picked editing as a professional direction fresh out of high school . Although , I may have been editing friends ’ assignments that early .

I was originally headed professionally toward librarianship — and eventually made it there , for a while . Ending up in a school library , I was drawn in to teach English and edited lots of student papers , of course . My next job took me into a university library — one specializing in audio-visual media , both lending it and developing it . That ’ s where I was introduced to instructional design and set off on a post-grad degree , where I was back to editing fellow students ’ papers .

With an MEd under my belt , I worked in the Alberta Educational Communications Authority ; that ’ s where editing became specifically part of my job assignment , with bosses who valued it as part of the office ’ s priorities .

Working at the U of A ’ s Faculty of Extension , my instructional design skills took centre stage , and I hired editors to work with the curriculum we developed for local government training .

When big university cuts pushed me out

of full-time employment in 1992 , I was encouraged to join the Editors ’ Association of Canada . I thank an Edmonton Public School teacher ( thanks , Ann !) for making that referral . Having the local Editors Canada branch as a resource gave me the confidence to strike out on a freelance career that ’ s kept me going ever since . Continuing education courses and conference workshops — then in person , now by webinar — help hone my skills .

Like instructional design , editing opens new subjects with every assignment . I ’ ve edited documents — usually educational — dealing with real estate , the literature of Rabindranath Tagore , surveillance and society , calculus , eulogies , property assessment , Canadian hymnody , public legal education , childcare , energy return on investment in China , personal fitness , a play about a mother raising a gay son , international development , and a family history . Contracts vary from a letter to a 150,000-word manuscript . It ’ s fascinating to take a deep dive into any one of these topics . Both instructional design and editing allow me to start out with little knowledge about the subject and ask all the “ stupid ” questions , drawing on the author to clarify and improve their writing .

As the editor-in-chief of news & views , I continue to learn from other editors , our writers , and the ARTA staff , particularly the team that puts this magazine together . By nature , editing grants daily opportunities for learning — something I ’ ve appreciated my whole life long .

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