What I did in September: a conference, a trip to Yorkshire, indexing a book about a Tudor scholar's rough book and more: tanyaizzard.co.uk/2025/10/01/s...

We finished up Day 1 of #SIConf25 with two breakout sessions, one for newer indexers, and one for the more experienced. It's always good to discuss with other indexers how we manage our careers, develop and maintain our skills, and solve problems.

Leaving a foggy Sussex on my way to Birmingham for @indexers.bsky.social's #SIConf25. Reading this beautiful novel which is, appropriately, mostly set on trains.

After a bit of a gap due to indexing duties, a new E.M. Delafield blog post about her uncle, Gerard de la Pasture: emdelafield.org/blog-databas...

Attended a book launch like no other at the Ironmongers' Company last night. I indexed the latest history of the Company earlier this year; last night, Penelope Hunting's book was launched by the Grenadier Guards beating the retreat at London's Guildhall, followed by supper at the Ironmongers' Hall.

Indexing biographies can bring up some particular challenges. How do you deal with the subject of the book? Indexer W. Stephen Gilbert discusses biographical indexing approaches in our blog post

Another useful session this morning with my indexing colleagues #IndexSky

Two weeks left to book for @indexers.bsky.social #SIConf25. With: @carosanderson.bsky.social @djbduncan.bsky.social @tanyaizzard.bsky.social on AI @closereadingie.bsky.social peer-review panel @annkingdom.bsky.social and me on humour plus more. Join us! #IndexSky www.indexers.org.uk/conference-2...

This was a great discussion - reassuring to hear that everyone struggles with passing mentions. I wrote about passing mentions in scholarly texts on my blog: tanyaizzard.co.uk/2024/07/18/p...

This was a really interesting session, particularly in terms of indexer neutrality and having to let go of those things in the index that you really love but you know aren't hugely relevant.

I've made a new list on @bookshop.org of books that explore nature / walking / the outdoors by disabled, neurodivergent and chronically ill writers - Nature Beyond Cure - aka our own narratives are messy and complex. Do share! #BookSky #DisabledWriters uk.bookshop.org/lists/nature...?

This article, while not specifically about indexing, reveals a lot of the problems with attempting indexing using AI tools:

I'm looking forward to presenting at this year's conference, moving on from my previous work on indexing and AI to consider how indexers can respond to it.

Very pleased to have written about the many limitations of AI for book indexing in the current open-access Catalogue & Index from @cilipmdg.bsky.social. Also contains a brief explanation of how human indexers work and the tech that we do find helpful. journals.cilip.org.uk/catalogue-an...

Bookings are now open for our 2025 Conference, The Heart and Mind of Indexing. In person, 19-21 September, at Writers’ Suite, Edgbaston Park Hotel and Conference Centre, University of Birmingham, UK. See the full programme and book your place at buff.ly/DMtUEAN

We found that AI tools - both general like #ChatGPT and research-specific like #Elicit - lack the reliability, relevancy and accuracy to summarise research for teachers. This is important because we have been sold the idea that AI will make research more accessible.

A passing mention? In MY book? On our blog, indexer Tanya Izzard discusses passing or minor mentions in indexing, and why indexers sometimes have to leave things out

This was a really enjoyable day. St Bride's is fascinating and I came home clutching my slightly smudged printing efforts with great pride.

Cats "helping" in dioramas at the Latvian Railway Museum. A thread. In the telegraph room, telling the operator she's doing it wrong. /1

Inspired suggestion of business cards in the form of bookmarks from Morgan Blue at #ASI2025. I have nearly run out and will definitely look into this!

At the @asindexing.bsky.social Spring into Action! online conference this teatime. Currently hearing from indexer Shannon Li about strategies for marketing and booking in projects #ASI2025

You can read my article about generative AI and indexing free for another day or so via this link.

I'm on the @indexers.bsky.social blog for #IndexDay, writing about how indexing gets political and what indexers do about it.

Just leaving sunny Brighton to take part in the @indexers.bsky.social workshops in London for #IndexDay. Looking forward to discussing all things indexy with publishers and my fellow indexers.

Take part in our 2025 conference! The call for submissions is out for The Heart and Mind of Indexing, 19-21 Sept in Birmingham UK. Plenary conference papers, interactive breakout sessions, panel discussions and shorter lightning talks are all welcome #IndexSky

I'm in this issue, writing up the 2024 @indexers.bsky.social conference with my colleague Ann Kingdom

Two weeks to Society of Indexers’ National Indexing Day @indexers.bsky.social 27 March. Our workshop for book publishers has @carosanderson.bsky.social, @tanyaizzard.bsky.social, Rachel Gee, @indexellis.bsky.social, then I’ll get everyone indexing. Bookings close 20 March. Do join us for #IndexDay.

Exciting news: E. M. Delafield’s play To See Ourselves is being staged from 1-10 July 2025 at the White Bear Theatre in London. It’s very funny on the page and I’m looking forward to seeing it brought to life. Tickets are already available at www.whitebeartheatre.co.uk/whatson/to-s...

I've just finished the small personal project of listening to all of the episodes of @eggpod.bsky.social, listening to the album under discussion as prep. It's been a real joy to share in others' Beatley enthusiasms. Huge thanks to host @chrisshaweditor.bsky.social and all the participants.

This was great fun to do - I found that Delafield has many existing fans among indexers, and hopefully now some new ones too.

Warming up for my presentation at today's @indexers.bsky.social Coffee Morning on indexing E. M. Delafield's Diary of a Provincial Lady. You can find my index to the book at emdelafield.org/index-to-the...

How do professional book indexers work? What skills and qualities do they bring to an indexing project? And how do they compare with automated options? Explore these questions with indexer @tanyaizzard.bsky.social at our 27 March #IndexDay workshops for publishing professionals

Are you a publishing professional who needs to know more about book indexing? Join us for our #IndexDay workshops in London @PublishersAssoc on 27 March. Learn about indexing and technology, working with indexers, and try indexing for yourself. Some places still available, book at

Meet the speakers for #IndexDay! President @carosanderson.bsky.social opens the event, with @tanyaizzard.bsky.social on the value of human indexing, Rachel Gee on working with indexers, @indexellis.bsky.social on technology, and a practical exercise with @baindex.org. Book now buff.ly/4gZhlV9

Finishing off a project this afternoon, and I'm delighted to find that I have managed to juxtapose "happy endings" and "Hardy, Thomas" in the index.

For National Indexing Day 2025 I'll be talking about the value of human indexing in an increasingly automated world. Looking forward to taking part on 27 March!

National Indexing Day, the annual celebration of indexes and indexing, is on Thurs 27 March 2025. We’ll be celebrating online (follow #IndexDay) and running half-day workshops for publishing professionals in London. Find out more and book your place at : www.indexers.org.uk/posts/nation...

Today's E M Delafield blog post is a long account of her mother's writing career. Mrs Henry de la Pasture wrote 15 novels and several plays. Contemporary critics invariably refer to them as charming and wholesome, but there is more to her writing than that. emdelafield.org/blog-databas...

For the first time, I have received a handwritten card from an indexing client thanking me for my "awesome" index. I can now safely switch off from that vast project and turn my attention to the historiography of the Balkans, which will be the first book indexed in 2025 #IndexSky

For our first blog post of 2025, indexer Susie Marques-Jones writes about how she combines indexing with a variety of other jobs as a multipotentialite:

I wrote this for @indexers.bsky.social about passing mentions and how indexers deal with them:

My latest E M Delafield blogpost is a long account of her mother Betty - better known as the novelist and playwright Mrs Henry de la Pasture. I had so much to say that there will be a separate post about her writing. emdelafield.org/blog-databas...

Very pleased to be continuing on Executive Board and working on the marketing of indexing and indexers, always a satisfyingly chewy conundrum

So who are the indexers? We come from a variety of backgrounds, including library and information science, education, publishing and the book trade and many more. Whatever our background, we share key skills and attributes as discussed in @tanyaizzard.bsky.social's blog post https://buff.ly/3XXWPMr

This was a good session - a lot of us like indexing these sort of texts, it turns out. I remembered I wrote a blog post a few years ago about the only substantial collection of letters I've indexed bit.ly/49ibqHP

My latest E M Delafield blog post is an account of the life of her father, Henry de la Pasture. Elusive in her biographies, he's a more complex man than I thought emdelafield.org/blog-databas...

What happens during the indexing process? In our blog post, indexer @tanyaizzard.bsky.social explains what clients need to provide at the start of a project, and how indexers will carry out a commission

I'm in this issue, writing about AI and indexing.

Settling down with a pot of tea for this morning's Society of Indexers Coffee Morning, which includes guests from @cilip.bsky.social - we'll be discussing the links between indexing and library and information work.

Quite taken with this Index of Afflictions from Oliver Burkman's Meditations for Mortals (Bodley Head, 2024). Very simple and reader-focused - what ails you? Here are some useful chapters for that. I'd like it more if it had page spans for the whole chapter. #IndexSky