Heartland Chapter

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Heartland Events

The Heartland Chapter normally holds two annual meetings and also other impromptu gatherings.

  • Spring Meeting - usually in April, but date varies according to speaker and facility availability
  • Fall Meeting - usually in October, but date varies according to speaker and facility availability
  • Summer Picnic - occasionally the chapter holds summer picnics
  • Peer Review Sessions - local groups sometimes hold special peer review sessions
  • Heartland meetings are open to anyone; chapter or ASI membership is not required to attend meetings.

    Heartland events will be announced on the Heartland email list. Some events will also be announced by printed mailings to members or posted on the website. The best way to keep abreast of Heartland happenings is to subscribe to the email list. Membership is not required for the email list subscription.

    If you have any questions about Heartland events, chapter officers will be happy to assist you.


    Recent Heartland Meetings

    (see main page for current announcements)

    Spring Meeting - Saturday, April 5, 2008

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana

    Carol Roberts - "Marketing: Building a New Business and Enhancing an Existing One"
    In the fall of 2007, Carol Roberts hired a business coach and has since expanded her business, trained a team of indexers, and learned new approaches to marketing. The results have been phenomenal, and she is eager to share with us everything she knows about target markets, print ads, trade shows, tracking results, costs of marketing, networking, and—believe it or not—cold calling!
    Carol Roberts has been indexing for over 14 years and has more than 600 books under her belt. She has been helping her fellow indexers with their marketing for many years. You may have heard of her workshop "Marketing for the Shy" (among others), which she's given both at ASI conferences and to ASI chapters. She is also a past secretary and board member of ASI.

    Fall Meeting - Saturday, October 20, 2007

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana

    Linda Dunn - "The Unbearable “Aboutness” of Periodical Indexing"
    Periodical and database indexing are, of course, similar in many ways to back-of-the- book indexing. But there are also significant differences in the indexing of periodicals and databases (not websites). Linda will briefly explain the similarities and then discuss the differences including the contextual nature of indexing periodical articles and the mysteries of the “aboutness” and the rule of four or more. She will also cover the use of outside authority files and index-specific subject priorities. In conclusion, we will do a short exercise to compare periodical and book indexing for an article from a popular film magazine.

    Linda Dunn - "Everything Is Illuminated: the Mysteries of Controlled Vocabularies Explained"
    Because of the ongoing or “open” nature of periodical and database indexing, and because the indexing is often done by more than one person, it is very important to make use of controlled vocabularies in order to provide consistency to the index. Linda will explain the differences between controlled vocabularies, thesauri and taxonomies and how they are constructed. She will show examples of each and talk about some vocabularies which are available in print and online.

    Spring Meeting - Saturday, April 21, 2007

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana

    Sharon Hilgenberg - "Audience Considerations in Indexing"
    Sharon Hilgenberg has been indexing technical documentation and computer books for over 20 years. She also indexes other topics including cookbooks, gardening books, and college textbooks. When she began indexing, she had no information on ASI or guidelines of what made a good technical index, so she developed her own system of what was necessary to present the information to the reader. The audience became her prime focus. She'll share with us what she has learned about these topics: big indexes, why readers use an index, types of audiences, how to find out who your audience is, universals and universal examples, what's the question?, good indexing practices, and vocabulary.

    Sandy Topping - "Indexing The Geology of Pennsylvania, and Other Topics"
    In 1986, Sandy Topping left a fabulous career in the glitzy church secretary biz. Several weeks later, in her new calling as a temp worker, she encountered a real, live indexer. Ever the curious little mouse, she abandoned temping and embarked on the path of learning as an indexer's apprentice. (Something like a sorcerer's apprentice, but without the bucket and dancing mops.) In a mere three years, she was on her own as a part-time indexer. Starving, she took a second job at a university while she enhanced her skills and enlarged her client base. Four long, dismal years followed: 60- and 80-hour weeks, soul-crushing office politics, co-workers without the sense God gave a goat. One lovely morning, she woke up, marched into her boss's office and gave him.her resignation. Then she skipped merrily home and took up the mantle of a full-time indexer. She has never looked back. Unless something really big was following her. This morning, among other minutiae, Sandy will be discussing the project that led to her most triumphant moment - a standing ovation from an entire banquet hall full of clients. The food was really good, too.

    Fall Meeting - Saturday, October 28, 2006

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana
    Keynote address: Kate Mertes, "NASCAR Indexing: Creating and Maintaining Speed." Synopsis: Time is money, and indexers are business people. We all want to work quickly and efficiently without sacrificing quality. NASCAR drivers don’t win races because they drive carelessly and cut corners, or because they only drive in easy races. They win because they’re good, they’re fast, and they’re good at being fast. Indexers can do that too. This workshop is divided into three parts. Part 1: philosophical aspects of speed in indexing. Part 2: the baseline requirements an indexer needs for speed. Part 3: actual speed-producing skills and practices.

    Spring Meeting - Saturday, April 29, 2006

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana
    Keynote Address: Maria Coughlin, ASI President, update on the status of ASI business, including the Annual Meeting and Conference, to be held jointly with the Canadian indexing society in Toronto, in June 2006. Maria will also give an overview of the ASI Indexing Training Course and the certification issue, and she welcomes questions and comments from attendees, so please don't be shy and give her the benefit of all your thoughts and concerns

    Fall Meeting - Saturday, November 6, 2005

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana
    Speakers:
    Jeffrey Jackson, "Financial Advice for Sole Proprietors"
    Marilyn Augst, "Organizing Your Overhead"
    Peer review session: Term selection exercise from The Purple Guide
    "Indexes from Hell/Interesting Indexes"
    - John Bealle, index of A History of the American Theatre From Its Origins To 1832
    - Cathy Seckman, index of Terrorism, 1996-2001: A Chronology

    Spring Meeting - Saturday, April 23, 2005

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana
    Speakers:
    Fred Leise - "Information Architecture for Indexers" and "Usability for Indexers"

    Fall Meeting - Saturday, November 6,2004

    MCL Cafeteria - Richmond, Indiana
    Speakers:
    Marilyn Augst and John Bealle - Marketing Your Indexing Business
    Peer review session - comparison of participant indexes of a common text

    Spring Meeting - Saturday, April 24, 2004

    Ramada Inn - Angola, Indiana
    Speakers:
    Do Mi Stauber - "Facing the Text: Content Analysis and Entry Selection in Book Indexing

    Fall Meeting - Saturday, September 27, 2003

    Ramada Inn - Angola, Indiana
    Speakers:
    Margie Towery - Extreme Indexing: Aiming for Quality in Every Project
    Larry D. Sweazy - Writing Your Own Paycheck

    Fall Meeting, 2001

    Marten House, Indianapolis Indiana
    Sessions:
    IRS Taxpayer Education for Freelancers
    Ask an Indexer: Experienced Indexers Share Helpful Hints
    The Bigger Picture: Editor-Indexer Relations
    Insurance and Annuities

    Spring Meeting, April 28, 2001

    Methodist Medical Plaza East, Indianapolis, Indiana
    Sessions:
    Ergonomics Presentation by Shane Woedl, Methodist Occupational Health Centers, Inc.
    Peer Review

    Fall Meeting, October 14, 2000

    Web Indexing Conference
    Marilyn Rowland of Marisol Productions, East Falmouth, MA, and David Ream, of Leverage Technologies, Brecksville, OH, presented at the fall conference on Web Indexing.