My key takeaways from the 2024 CIEP Conference: Part 2

Read on for my thoughts on some of the (online) sessions at the 2024 CIEP Conference, part two! If you’re looking for the other sessions covered in part one, you need to click here.

Oh, and because I’m a non-fiction editor, my focus was on sessions relevant to my non-fiction editing work

The Impact of AI on writing and publishing

Dr Imke van Heerden from Kings College London presented this session from more of an academic perspective, but it was interesting for editors and writers at the coalface to see where discussions around large language models (LLMs) are going.

Imke referenced Responsible AI UK (RAi UK), which holds creative roundtables to discuss AI’s impact on the creative sector, including writing and publishing.

Imke gave examples of artwork and literature created by AI, and shared quotes from others referring to AI as a ‘wild horse’ that was generating ‘so much alarm, that it’s hard to hear the conversation’. Many writers have said they believe they would see a drop in income because of AI.

The not-so-new normal?

While acknowledging that LLMs rely on pattern recognition (rather than wit, candour or intent), and that they also present major ethical challenges such as bias, disinformation, impersonation and copyright infringements, Imke also gave examples of positive precedents. She emphasised that AI actually has a ‘pre-history’ dating back to 1952.

There was also discussion around three possible future scenarios for creativity + AI: two out of the three of these had a more positive vision. I was especially interested in the third scenario, where ‘human-made’ creativity commands a premium.

Co-creativity

Something that caught my attention was the use of the phrase ‘machine in the loop’, because of its inversion of the other, widely used, phrase ‘human in the loop’ when talking about machine learning. This version positions AI as being one of many tools developed to support human creativity.

An aside: One candid comment from a speaker at the recent FPP Awayday went something like ‘if you believe you’ll be replaced by AI, you will be replaced by AI’. This stuck in my memory because it reminds us that it is our mindsets around AI, and its impacts or threats, that will affect how we respond to it.

Imke’s main message was that technology can be used to expand, not just to copy and replicate.

 

Your editor website is not IKEA: How to attract, retain and convert visitors

This was a more business-focused session (I find these especially great when you’re attending online!) presented by Debbie Emmitt, who is an editor and proofreader, as well as a mentor for website owners. Debbie has a background in web content herself, and is the author of Improve your Editor Website and Improve Your Author Website. She knows what she’s talking about!

The IKEA comparison was an important baseline: as small business owners, we don’t have that massive brand identity behind us so our website strategy needs to be different.

Attract -> Retain -> Convert

You can attract visitors with engaging content by writing about topics not covered in other online spaces. Ideally, this is content that is useful for your customers, for example ‘how to…’, demonstrating our knowledge and expertise.

Next, make it easy for people to find your site – don’t be afraid to share it in other online spaces where you have a profile! It’s an absolute must to include it in your CIEP directory profile and your LinkedIn profile.

SEO plays a big part, of course. Don’t forget about key phrases and always make your site accessible for anyone using a screen reader by using informative alt text, and avoid walls of text.

Retain visitors by keeping your website design simple but attractive. One piece of advice I hadn’t considered before was to use surveys, quizzes and polls within your content. I loved this idea – everyone loves to click!

Convert visitors by using Calls To Action (CTAs) that are meaningful and intriguing. Debbie mentioned that CTAs in the first person had been found to be 90% more effective, so that might be worth trying.

I took loads of notes in this session, including a note to contact Debbie for help in the near future!

Freelancing outside the box

In this session Joanie Eppinga sought to debunk so-called ‘must-dos’ around building a successful editorial career. She believed we should openly discuss and recognise that there are many routes to becoming an editor, many of which are non-traditional. Sometimes new editors are intimidated by all the things they need to do before getting started. So true!

Editors’ signature strengths    

World-class editor Benjamin Dreyer noted in his bestseller, Dreyer’s English, that although formal training can be helpful, a certain sensitivity to language is the underlying necessity for an editor. Our sensitivity to language stands us out.

One particular quote that hit home for me was that, as language professionals, we also need to be sensitive to an author’s feelings – including any insecurities. For example, they may have come to us because they lack confidence about their writing, perhaps they feel they are not a ‘good speller’ and feel shame around that. We are there to offer a solution.

Harnessing Technology for Superior Editing

This was a session by a representative from ProWritingAid software, presented by Hayley Milliman, their  content lead but also an author and editor herself.

It was useful for writers and authors in different ways. I was wary that it may be too focused on selling the software (even though I was curious about it, having tried it a few times). But there was a lot of discussion around how we humans can use the tool to elevate our work, rather than as a tool to replace human editors.

An editor’s back office?

Hayley accepted that all software has its inherent limitations. But there are also things it is good at. For example, it satisfies our human craving for statistics to measure everything. The buzz of instant feedback for the win! It reassures us when it can quantify repeated words, give percentages for grammar and spelling errors, etc. It can also be used by writers to help them build their confidence if they are nervous about spelling, grammar and punctuation.

It can find patterns within writing, as long as they are numerically quantifiable. But once you move beyond the more basic spelling and grammar mistakes, the ‘errors’ it finds are not always genuine red flags – many of them are not actually wrong, it’s just that the software can’t discern context or voice. Plus it cannot check consistency at informational level – only human editors can check if a fact is actually true and properly cited.

Or tools in the word cleaning cupboard?

An attendee pointed out that the statistics and reports the tool produces might be used against human editors – with clients quoting the stats and asking for each problem on the list to be ‘fixed’ in a sort of ‘computer says no’ scenario, with no room for nuance. There’s also the concern that more inexperienced editors might take the tech’s suggestions at face value.

Hayley acknowledged that could become an issue but said that the idea was for the software to tidy up writing before an editor steps in to work more intensively on higher-level changes. For example, software cannot identify whether a text will create an emotional connection with readers. She said she does not think these tools will replace humans. She made the joke that, if they do, hopefully they can do her washing-up for her too. 100%.

 

Thorns on the rose: Tricky editing issues

Laura Poole talked about the fact that, no matter how much we train and build up experience, we are often still flummoxed by tricky text problems that the style guides don’t cover. These can include product names and trade names, song lyrics, biased language and plagiarism.

How editors support authors with biased language

Most of the time, authors will not realise they have used biased language. Our job as editors is to make the author look good, so we want to alert them to this unintentional and unknowing use of bias. Once again, this means being sensitive to and questioning of language use. The three key pillars of this are checking that the language is inclusive, respectful, and welcoming to all. The Conscious Style Guide was recommended as an additional resource.

I recently read a book (in translation) where the use of language was deliberately misogynistic, in order to create an atmosphere of toxic masculinity. This was important for the book’s character building, but I found the language extremely uncomfortable to read and I would question whether the translation had strayed a little too far in how it portrayed cultural nuances. As an editor, I would have alerted the author and we could at least have had a conversation with the publisher about the palatability of this language for readers. A friend in my book club said she found she did not enjoy the book because of this language. This is surely counterproductive, from the author’s point of view.

One thing I loved about Laura’s talk was that it was full of quotes that neatly captured why editing is so important:

Editors must be creative problem solvers every day.

‘You write, I’ll clean it up’.

Taking something good and making it great.

The closing plenary

This year’s closing plenary was by CIEP Conference veteran Lynne Murphy, linguistics professor at Sussex University. I’m always excited to hear Lynne speak, and as always she got us thinking.

The title of her talk was (provocatively, for a room full of word people!), ‘No such thing as a word’. She explored the questions, ‘What is a language?’, ‘What is an error?’. As someone who studied linguistics as part of my MA, these are questions that speak to me. Loudly.

Words don’t just mean one thing: we cope with the world by making categories for things, then conceptualise these categories. And some things seem more ‘wordable’ than others.

But there is also a feedback loop: if we introduce a new word, can we change the concept? Disagreement is when our categories clash. Think Jaffa Cakes. I hadn’t heard about ‘category fights’ before, but look them up online for a bit of fun reading.

I felt that the attendees in the room particularly loved the closing phrase (on a mug) used by Lynne in her presentation: Don’t be a pedant, be an expert. That’s exactly who we want to be as editors. I might just put that on a mug myself!

Were you at this year’s CIEP Conference?

Let me know your highlights in the comments.