Networking online and in person has many benefits for freelance professionals. As a global team, we share job ads, discuss software and manuals, improve professional standards, get sound advice on running an editorial business, and more.

 

Conference attendance is a great way to:

• Learn about the latest developments in the field (editing tools, training opportunities, trends in the industries, updates to dictionaries and manuals, etc.).
• Meet editors, writers, journalists, literary agents, and other publishing professionals who specialize in various niches and introduce yourself as a specialist for potential collaborations and referrals.
• Build long-term professional relationships with the colleagues whom you already know via online interactions.
• Get to know the association and consider contributing as a volunteer, e-book writer, or presenter in the future.

 

Some of the highlights of my conference attendance in recent years included presentations about:

• Inclusive language by Sarah Grey
• Editing for the web by Erin Brenner
• PerfectIt functionality by Daniel Heuman
• Editing in PDF by Adrienne Montgomerie
• Pricing and marketing freelance services by Jake Poinier
• Discoverability and the latest publishing trends by Jane Friedman

For this blog post I have selected some of the US, Canadian, and international conferences that are popular among writing and editing professionals. As a specialist in resume writing, editing in the humanities, and writing for businesses, I have left out conferences for life sciences editors and technical writers.

For a list of science-related editing associations as well as other international and local networking groups, please visit: https://bit.ly/2YX1KR6. The page is part of the Copyeditors’ Knowledge Base, curated by medical editor Katharine O’Moore-Klopf, owner of KOK Edit.

 

Writing and Editing Conferences, Worldwide

Organization: Editors Canada

Website: www.editors.ca

Head office: Toronto, ON, Canada

Conference dates: June

 

Organization: ACES: The Society for Editing

Website: https://aceseditors.org/

Head office: Gardnerville, NV, USA

Conference dates: April-May

 

Organization: Editorial Freelancers Association (EFA)

Website: https://www.the-efa.org/

Head office: New York, NY, USA

Conference dates: August

 

Organization: Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP)

Website: https://www.awpwriter.org

Head office: Riverdale Park, MD, USA

Conference dates: March

 

Organization: Modern Language Association (MLA)

Website: https://www.mla.org

Head office: New York, NY, USA

Conference dates: January

 

Organization: Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP)

Website: https://www.sfep.org.uk

Head office: London, UK

Conference dates: September

 

Organization: Mediterranean Editors and Translators (MET)

Website: https://www.metmeetings.org

Head office: Tarragona, Spain

Conference dates: October

 

Organization: College Art Association (CAA)

Website: https://www.collegeart.org

Head office: New York, NY, USA

Conference dates: February

 

Organization: Association of Art Editors

Website: https://www.artedit.org

Head office: St. Louis Park, MN, USA

Conference dates: February, at the CAA conference

 

Organization: Book and Periodical Council (BPC)

Website: http://www.thebpc.ca

Head office: Toronto, ON, Canada

Conference dates: Book Summit, June

 

Organization: Books, Publishing & Libraries Research Network | Common Ground Research Networks

Website: https://booksandpublishing.com

Head office: Champaign, IL, USA

Conference dates: July

 

Organization: Writer’s Digest, a division of Active Interest Media

Website: https://writersdigestconference.com/

Head office: Cincinnati, OH, USA

Conference dates: August

 

Organization: American Booksellers Association

Website: https://www.bookweb.org

Head office: White Plains, NY, USA

Conference dates: BookExpo America, May

 

Organization: Clarity, an international association promoting plain legal language

Website: https://clarity-international.net

Head office: UK, multiple locations

Conference dates: October

 

Organization: PLAIN (Plain Language Association International)

Website: http://www.plainlanguagenetwork.org/

Head office: Canada

Conference dates: September

 

Organization: Association Media & Publishing

Website: http://associationmediaandpublishing.org/

Head office: Washington, DC, USA

Conference dates: June

 

Organization: Association for Women in Communications (AWC)

Website: http://www.womcom.org/wp/

Head office: USA, multiple locations

Conference dates: September-October

 

Organization: American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASPBE)

Website: http://www.asbpe.org/

Head office: Wheaton, IL, USA

Conference dates: GenerationB2B Conference, May

 

Organization: Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW)

Website: http://sabew.org/

Head office: Phoenix, AZ, USA

Conference dates: October and April

 

Organization: International Association of Business Communicators (IABC)

Website: https://www.iabc.com/

Head office: San Francisco, CA, USA

Conference dates: June

 

Organization: Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ)

Website: http://www.spj.org/

Head office: Indianapolis, IN, USA

Conference dates: International Conference on Journalism & Mass Communication, August

 

Organization: Society for Scholarly Publishing

Website: https://www.sspnet.org/

Head office: Wheat Ridge, CO, USA

Conference dates: May

 

Organization: The Institute of Professional Editors Limited (IPEd)

Website: iped-editors.org

Head office: Wynnum, Australia

Conference dates: June

 

Career Advancement Conferences in Canada

 

Association: Cannexus

Website: https://cannexus.ca

Head office: Ottawa, ON

Conference dates: January

 

Association: Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers (CACEE)

Website: https://www.cacee.com

Head office: Toronto, ON

Conference dates: May-June

 

Association: Internationally Educated Professionals (IEP)

Website: https://www.iep.ca

Head office: Scarborough, ON

Conference dates: March

Resources for freelancers:

Job Application Process for Freelancers (Editors Canada blog)
Job Search and Application Strategy for Freelancers (ACES blog)
How to Design a Flyer to Advertise Your Services
Summing up 10 Years of Full-Time Freelancing
Top Challenges Freelancers Face & How to Address Them

About the author:

Tanya Mykhaylychenko is a professional resume writer with a background in content writing, university teaching, and IT staffing. She is a member of Editors Canada and Career Professionals of Canada. For more information, please visit https://tm-editorial.com/about/ or contact her at tetyanam@gmail.com to schedule a free introductory consultation.