2008 Tom Fairley Award short list announced

Media Contact:
Michelle Ou
Communications Manager
Editors’ Association of Canada
Association canadienne des réviseurs
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Toronto ON  M5B 1L2
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1 866 226-3348
communications@editors.ca

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Toronto, May 14, 2009—Today the short list of candidates for the 2008 Tom Fairley Award for Editorial Excellence was announced by the Editors’ Association of Canada (EAC). Each year, this $2,000 award is given to an outstanding editor who has demonstrated exceptional skill and talent in helping to produce a work published in Canada in English or French.

The following finalists have been selected by judges Patricia Buchanan, Victoria Neufeldt and Saeko Usukawa. The finalists have been invited to attend a banquet on Saturday, June 6, 2009, at the 89 Chestnut Conference Centre in Toronto during EAC’s 30th anniversary conference. At that time the winner of the 2008 Tom Fairley Award will be announced and the $2,000 prize presented.

SHORT LIST

Robert Clarke of Peterborough, Ontario, for Gold Dust on His Shirt: The True Story of an Immigrant Mining Family by Irene Howard (Between the Lines)

The judges commended Clarke’s complete reorganization of the author’s manuscript and his ability to bring out themes the author herself had not recognized. “In spite of the major changes, the author praised the editor for respecting her intent and voice, an important testimony to the high quality of the editing,” said Neufeldt.

Andrea Ellis of Toronto, Ontario, for Bold Visions: The Architecture of the Royal Ontario Museum by Kelvin Browne (Royal Ontario Museum)

Ellis was responsible for all editorial processes, from development through fact-checking. The judges praised her for keeping her cool in the face of tight timelines and multiple bosses. “The end result is certainly a gorgeous book,” said Neufeldt.

Leah-Ann Lymer of Toronto, Ontario, for Driven to Kill: Vehicles as Weapons by J. Peter Rothe (University of Alberta Press)

The judges lauded Lymer’s treatment of a 246-page book after the author rejected the work done by a previous editor. “She managed to restore the author’s trust in editors and worked with the original manuscript and the previous edit to find a middle ground,” said Usukawa.

Melva McLean of Vancouver, British Columbia, for TRIUMF Five-Year Plan  2010–2015: Building a Vision for the Future (TRIUMF)

From the beginning, McLean took control of a huge, complicated project with 50 contributing writers and an unusually tight deadline. Buchanan praised her “superb version control and diplomacy together with patience and firmness.”

The judges for the 2008 Tom Fairley Award are experienced and respected Canadian editors. Patricia Buchanan is a veteran freelance editor with 25 years of experience. Her indexing credits include the Canada Year Book for Statistics Canada. Victoria Neufeldt is a linguist and lexicographer whose editing and writing credits include co-author and editor of the Gage Canadian Dictionary (1983). Saeko Usukawa, the winner of the 2007 Tom Fairley Award, is recently retired after working for 25 years (most recently as editorial director) for Douglas & McIntyre.

The Tom Fairley Award for Editorial Excellence was established in 1983 and is presented annually by EAC. The cash award of $2,000 is made possible by grants from EAC and several publishers: HarperCollins, Random House of Canada, Breakwater Books, Orca Book Publishers, UBC Press, Madison, the C. D. Howe Institute, New Society Publishers and the University of Calgary Press. Further information can be found on EAC’s Tom Fairley Award web page.


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About the Editors’ Association of Canada

The Editors’ Association of Canada/Association canadienne des réviseurs began in 1979 as the Freelance Editors’ Association of Canada to promote and maintain high standards of editing. EAC is the voice of editors in Canada, with 1,800 members, both salaried and freelance, who work in the corporate, technical, government, not-for-profit and publishing sectors. EAC’s professional development programs and services include certification, an annual conference (June 5–7, 2009, in Toronto), seminars, guidelines for fair pay and working conditions, and networking with other associations. EAC has six regional branches: British Columbia, Prairie Provinces, Saskatoon, Toronto, National Capital Region and Quebec/Atlantic Canada. Please visit www.editors.ca.

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