Job Responsibilities
As I am still relatively new to publishing, and have yet to
acquire any of my own titles, I spend most of my time assisting
my two bosses -- one senior vice president/ executive editor, and
one senior editor. Although I spend probably about an hour to an
hour and a half each day handling purely administrative tasks
(photocopying, filing, following up with agents and authors on
various projects, answering phones, etc), I am also closely
involved with all aspects of the publication process, from
acquistion to publication. Depending on the day, I may spend up
to 3 hours reading -- and that involves reading new proposals
that come in, various stages of manuscripts that have arrived for
current titles, or dealing with slush. I also handle most of the
rejection letters we send out, whether writing them myself or
simply transcibing from one of my bosses. A good part of my day
is also spent dealing with various departments: I manage all
incoming and outgoing approvals for the publicity, marketing,
sales, production and art departments, and am often involved in
any changes my editors may make. I am also responsible for
inputting all new contracts into the system, and dealing with any
payments and/or legal questions that may arise. And finally, when
I do have the time, I work on acquiring my own titles, which for
now consists of researching upcoming catalogues from the reprint
houses I cover (which are small, University, or foreign
publishers from whom we look to purchase paperback or mass market
rights).
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Job Requirements
During my undergraduate years, I was an English major with a
psychology minor. In regards to relevant courses that helped me
in publishing, besides taking the required English literature
classes, I also enrolled in an introductory creative writing
class, took the Senior Comprehensive Exams (which was an intense
month-long program which culminated in an oral and written exam
covering the works we'd studied the 4 previous years), and wrote
for the school newspaper.
After graduation, I enrolled in the Columbia University
Publishing Program, which was an intensive 6-week program
covering all aspects of book and magazine publishing. This is
where I learned most of the skills that have helped me in my
career. Working with industry professionals, we learned about
each of the separate departments and even participated in 2 week-
long exercises simulating the creation of a new book imprint and
magazine. This provided me with the most hands-on material for me
to dicsuss in my interview.
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Uppers
The best part of my job is working in an industry that I honestly love -- and
having everyone around me love it as much as I do. I love reading, and having the
opportunity to interact with authors and bounce ideas off of each other to
improve a book is exhilarating and always intellectually stimulating. It is also
always changing, and it is so interesting to watch the trends and see what the
general public is reading, and having a new book on a new topic always coming to
you, then watching as it sparks discussion in the media and in general.
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Downers
Unfortunately, one of the biggest downers is the salary.
Publishing is notoriously low-paying, and sometimes it becomes
difficult to know that even though I love what I do, I would make
a lot more money elsewhere. Also, while some days can be totally
crazy and overwhelming, other days can be kind of slow --
especially when you haven't seen a new, interesting project in a
while.
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Lifestyle
The lifestyle here is very laid back -- we have a 35-work week (although I often
find myself staying a bit late nearly every day, and sometimes bringing reading
home with me), with a liberal vacation policy, which we are encouraged to take
advantage of. The dress code--which is a bit more lax in my department than
others, although no department is overly formal--is also laid back, and I even
find myself wearing jeans a couple of times a week. The position really does not
require travel, but we are encouraged to organize lunches and meetings with
agents often. The diversity here is always stimulating, and while it tends to be
mostly females in the office, having this many creative, liberal people together
in an office provides for stimulating discussion. In general, it is a very
encouraging environment that gives you leeway to explore your own strengths and
really try to branch out and make a name for yourself.
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Compensation
As I mentioned before, the salary is the weakest part of this
job -- although I have received a bit of a raise in the year and
a half I have been here, my base salary is still only about
$35,000. However, we have excellent health benefits that cover
almsot all medical, dental and vision visits, a generous vacation
policy, a $500/year physical fitness reimbursement, free NYC
museum passes, a tax-free transportation option, and frequent
discounts to various shows and events in the city. We really
don't receive bonuses, and as we are still a private company,
there are no stock options.
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Advice to Jobseekers
I honestly think this is a wonderful field to be in. It is such a
comfortable environment, filled with interesting and very
intelligent people, and it really encourages you to be creative
and work so initmately with authors on subjects that truly
interest you. And the most amazing thing about publishing is that
it is constantly changing and adapting. While I don't see huge
growth in the industry's future, there will always be new authors
and new books to work with--each more interesting than the last.
But I think if you really do love reading -- and maybe not
necessarily as interested in writing yourself -- then this is the
perfect place to look at a book from all angles, from a
marketing, sales, advertisting, publicity and, of course,
editorial standpoint, than publishing is a great opportunity to
become involved with books at every level.
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