You are here
History of Editors Canada
Freelance Editors’ Association of Canada
In the late 1970s several young Toronto editors began talking about their shared problems and goals, and by May 1979 the Freelance Editors’ Association of Canada (FEAC) had been officially launched. There were approximately 50 people involved, with Maggie MacDonald serving as the association's first president. Within the first year, the association had a logo, a constitution, and a directory.
By 1981 Ottawa was hosting a group; three years later Montreal formed a committee; and in 1985 British Columbia did the same. However, until 1990, FEAC operated as a Toronto-based organization. During 1990 and 1991, a new national structure with four separate regional branches was established. The branches were Quebec-Atlantic Canada, National Capital Region, Toronto and Western Canada (which was essentially BC).
Association canadienne des pigistes de l'édition
In 1982, FEAC adopted a French name, Association canadienne des pigistes de l'édition, and thus committed to being a bilingual association.
Editors' Association of Canada/Association canadienne des réviseurs
During the first 15 years of its existence, FEAC primarily addressed issues that were uniquely of concern to freelance editors. However, over the years that emphasis had gradually changed. So in 1994 the association's name was changed to the Editors' Association of Canada/Association canadienne des réviseurs, and in-house editors were invited to join.
In 1996, the Editors' Association of Alberta came under the umbrella of EAC, becoming the Prairie Provinces branch. And in 2005, a group of editors in Saskatchewan formed a sixth branch, Saskatoon (renamed the Saskatchewan branch in 2011).
In 2011, EAC announced a new twig structure to help editors in smaller centres connect with each other. The first official twig was launched in 2011 in the Kitchener-Waterloo-Guelph (KWG) region in Ontario. Within three years, EAC had six twigs.
Editors/Réviseurs Canada
In 2015, the association began using a new logo and the Editors Canada name (Réviseurs Canada in French), although its legal name remains Editors' Association of Canada/Association canadienne des réviseurs. The shorter name was introduced to emphasize Editors Canada's position as the only national association committed to developing and promoting professional editorial standards, increasing awareness of the value of editing, and providing products and services to editors throughout their careers
2019 marks the 40th anniversary of Editors Canada. Check out this interactive timeline to browse through significant events in the organization’s history.
To celebrate the Editors Canada 40th anniversary, Gael Spivak asked Marie-Lynn Hammond if she would write a special song. Marie-Lynn agreed and asked James Harbeck to help her with this task.
Together they wrote the words, and Marie-Lynn wrote the music, for "Rime of the Ancient Editor."
You can see the English and French lyrics, as well as a photo and a video of James singing the song at the 40th anniversary conference.