Jess Herdman

Dr. Jess Herdman (she/they) is an indexer at Ideas on Fire, where they craft indexes that are attuned to the nuances of interdisciplinary texts.

With a passion for all things publishing, Jess also runs their own indexing, editing, and design business.

In their dedication to supporting creative, innovative, and timely scholarship, Jess enjoys wearing an array of hats—including managing editor for Intersections: Canadian Journal of Music, copyeditor for the Canadian Journal of Music Therapy, and administrative coordinator for the Canadian Association of Learned Journals. Before moving into freelance work, Jess worked as the design, production, and administrative coordinator for Fernwood Publishing, and coeditor for the Indigenous-led Red Rising Magazine.

Jess’s sensitivity to the needs of interdisciplinary manuscripts is rooted in their own research on music, gender, poverty, religion, violence, and colonialism.

Jess holds a PhD in musicology from UC Berkeley, an MA in ethnomusicology/musicology from the University of British Columbia, and a BMus in violin performance from the University of Ottawa. They also hold a certificate in editing from Queen’s University and have significant training in indexing and design through SFU and OCAD.

Jess’s amazing 6-year-old inspires them to foster creativity, inquisitiveness, and empathy in everything they do.