Rick Revelle is the author of three YA novels—I Am Algonquin (2013), Algonquin Spring (2015), and Algonquin Sunset (2017). Published by Dundurn Press, the books recount the adventures of a fourteenth-century young Algonquin man named Mahningan.
Revelle didn’t even know he had native heritage until he was in his thirties, when a relative’s off-hand remark startled him with the news, he told the Whig-Standard in 2015. The discovery sent him on a research quest to find out all he could about Algonquin culture, both present and past. His books are a way of sharing that knowledge.
Rick will be our guest at Editors Kingston on November 8 to talk about his unique vision as a writer, his experiences of being edited, and what knowledge and skills editors need to work with Indigenous writers.
His visit coincides with a growing interest throughout the Canadian publishing community in editing Indigenous writing. Editors Canada’s 2017 conference featured a keynote adress by Cherie Dimaline and a panel discussion of Indigenous writers and editors; Humber College’s Indigenous Editors Circle workshop sold out all 50 spots; and Greg Younging’s The Elements of Indigenous Style, due out this winter from Brush Education, is generating media buzz already. (A recent workshop at Editors BC previewed Younging’s book; member Iva Cheung has posted an excellent summary on her blog.)
“Working with indigenous manuscripts,” Cherie Dimaline told her Editors Canada audience, said, “requires craft, skill, and respect.” We’re looking forward to taking more steps toward acquiring these on November 8!
Rick will also bring books for sale (remember to bring cash so you can shop).
Join Us!
We meet at the usual place and time:
Ongwanada Resource Centre, 191 Portsmouth Avenue
7 to 9 p.m. (Doors open at 6:30)
Light refreshments
Both Editors Canada members and non-members welcome
Free
Make Word Work for YOU: Hands-on Workshop November 18
“I just love Microsoft Word!” said nobody, ever. But after taking Adrienne’s workshop, you might end up liking Word (just a little bit).
Don’t miss this great opportunity to improve your mastery of the tool most editors use every day. Learn tips and tricks to work more efficiently and effectively from Kingston’s own editing tech guru Adrienne Montgomerie, take home a comprehensive handbook (including links to video tutorials), and enjoy the opportunity to network over a tasty lunch.
Check out the details in this post.
Then hurry up and register! Space is limited.
Writers, she said, are so involved in the process of creating that they often don’t have room in their mind to be keenly aware of correctness, clarity, and consistency. Merilyn’s message served to remind that a writer has a starkly different job than an editor’s—writers are responsible for creation; editors, for editing. Merilyn said, “The best editors don’t have opinions but rather help a writer with her vision.” She added that every writer has different needs—that a good editor can still be the wrong one. (Indeed, she told one tale of trying to work with an editor who was so very wrong for the project at hand that many in the audience gasped audibly at some of the details.)
Wayne began his portion of the night by recounting his experience working with editors on his acclaimed debut novel, Emancipation Day, published in 2013 by Doubleday Canada. His inspiration for the novel arrived after learning the startling truth about his family: his father was black, and perhaps didn’t want his family to know. Having decided to fictionalize the story, Wayne, who until then had been a non-fiction writer, found himself unable to know where to draw the line. The novel’s first draft almost reached a thousand pages and encompassed a story told over a century. It even featured a cameo of “Victor Hugo in Vietnam.” Wayne knew he needed help to focus it. He finally found that help when Nita Pronovost read the manuscript and promptly ticked off three specific areas that needed his attention in order for it to work.
ontgomerie has been teaching people to make nice with Word since 2003. This specialized editors’ course has been a sellout since she first offered it in 2012. She is a Certified Copyeditor and a 20-year veteran of freelance editing. She used to work mainly on high school science materials, earning her the moniker of scieditor, and today she can be found on the roster of Canada’s largest remaining publishers when she’s not teaching and writing about editing. 
editorskingston.org 
