<i>Editors, Scholars, and the Social Text</i>, edited by Darcy Cullen

Abstract

Editors often receive little credit and even less respect for the work they do. If the author is deemed the primary creator of a text, the editor is considered the midwife-a key player during the work's production who is forced to slip into the shadows after its realization, unable to fully reap the fruits of her labour. Helen Tartar, in her introduction to Darcy Cullen's Editors, Scholars and the Social Text, writes that the editor's role is "to give voice to others, keeping none for herself" (xvii). Thankfully, it is in Cullen's collection, which is written by and about these elusive figures, that one can finally hear the editor's voice. Featuring essays from practising editors, scholars, and designers, Cullen uses her text to shine a light on editors-whether they like it or not-and reveal the necessarily hidden mechanisms they use to make the author shine brightest. Cullen uses both the form and content of her text to reveal the underlying structure implicit in the editorial process. Mixing perspectives as varied as Joycean scholar Peter Mahon's impression of author-editor relations in Finnegan's Wake and Toronto-based editor-designer Camilla Blakeley's experience navigating the complex relationship between illustration and text in native culture, Cullen's collection truly exemplifies the "social text" of her title. Additionally, she gives her own contribution as editor a prominent place in the collection as a whole, treating her introduction and conclusion as chapters integral to the work, instead of merely afterthoughts. The essays are highly readable and at times perhaps too simplistic for readers of this journal; however, for editors new to the field, Cullen has provided a thorough and detailed introduction. She divides the work to highlight the primary factors competing for an editor's attention: the people, the text, the page, and, a new addition to the editor's slate, the electronic edition. Each of these factors comes with