Help me break into publishing!
April 7, 2011 6:38 PM Subscribe
How can I break into publishing? Details on my situation inside.
I received my journalism degree in 2009. I'm jumping from that ship not because it's sinking but because I've realized that it's not for me. I am, however, interested in book publishing, despite the similar problems it faces. Right now I'm doing the JET program in Japan, and will return to the U.S. (most likely San Francisco) in August of 2012.
I was editor-in-chief of my school magazine, and copy editor (a volunteer position) for an arts and culture magazine; this is really my only relevant experience. I'm willing and prepared to fight my way up from the bottom when I return to the US, but I have a lot of free time right now and I'd like to do what I can to prepare!
What I'm looking for:
1. Things I can do right now to improve my chances later--skills (particularly tech skills, since I am quite lacking in that department) I can build, online courses or certificates I can take, things I can add to my resume. Short of internship experience, what are publishers looking for? Should I try to take on minor editing jobs (newsletters, websites)?
2. Recommended reading! Blogs, web sites, industry publications, books about publishing. Should I read fiction and nonfiction published by houses I'm interested in working for? (I guess that's a no-brainer, but how much should I focus on that versus, say, reading the classics?) Are there books that everyone who wants a career in publishing should read?
3. Tips for how to go about the job search when I do return to the US. What listings should I use? How should I approach informational interviews? How can I network? I've heard that experience working in a bookstore can be a plus, so I was thinking of trying that out to pay the bills while I job-hunt and do internships--thoughts? What about tutoring?
4. Suggestions on narrowing down my goals. San Francisco seems to have mostly small independent publishers--any advice on that specific scene? Right now there are many branches of publishing (editing, production, publicity, working in an agency) that are equally fascinating to me--can I keep my options open, or do I have to narrow it down and pick one to pursue? Is there anything particularly suited to a person of my particular background (journalism, experience working abroad)?
Thanks in advance for any help!
I received my journalism degree in 2009. I'm jumping from that ship not because it's sinking but because I've realized that it's not for me. I am, however, interested in book publishing, despite the similar problems it faces. Right now I'm doing the JET program in Japan, and will return to the U.S. (most likely San Francisco) in August of 2012.
I was editor-in-chief of my school magazine, and copy editor (a volunteer position) for an arts and culture magazine; this is really my only relevant experience. I'm willing and prepared to fight my way up from the bottom when I return to the US, but I have a lot of free time right now and I'd like to do what I can to prepare!
What I'm looking for:
1. Things I can do right now to improve my chances later--skills (particularly tech skills, since I am quite lacking in that department) I can build, online courses or certificates I can take, things I can add to my resume. Short of internship experience, what are publishers looking for? Should I try to take on minor editing jobs (newsletters, websites)?
2. Recommended reading! Blogs, web sites, industry publications, books about publishing. Should I read fiction and nonfiction published by houses I'm interested in working for? (I guess that's a no-brainer, but how much should I focus on that versus, say, reading the classics?) Are there books that everyone who wants a career in publishing should read?
3. Tips for how to go about the job search when I do return to the US. What listings should I use? How should I approach informational interviews? How can I network? I've heard that experience working in a bookstore can be a plus, so I was thinking of trying that out to pay the bills while I job-hunt and do internships--thoughts? What about tutoring?
4. Suggestions on narrowing down my goals. San Francisco seems to have mostly small independent publishers--any advice on that specific scene? Right now there are many branches of publishing (editing, production, publicity, working in an agency) that are equally fascinating to me--can I keep my options open, or do I have to narrow it down and pick one to pursue? Is there anything particularly suited to a person of my particular background (journalism, experience working abroad)?
Thanks in advance for any help!
1) In my experience, publishers are mostly looking for internships, but a passion for books and a knowledge of the industry is a huge plus. Which leads to..
2) Read everything you can about the industry. Agent and editor blogs, industry newsletters -- sign up for PW Daily and Publishers Lunch at the least, as they're free and you'll start to recognize names. Definitely read books published by the houses you're interested in -- I'd say that this is much more important than knowing the classics. (Though I work in children's publishing -- perhaps at a literary adult publisher, they would expect a broader knowledge of the classics.)
3) Jobs are posted through Publishers Marketplace and Media Bistro and probably other places that I'm not thinking of right now. Check out the websites of publishers you're interested in, and don't hesitate to apply even if there isn't an opening posted.
4) Chronicle Books is in San Francisco, and they're a great publishing house. I believe they pay their interns (a low hourly rate, but still), so if you can get an internship there, that would be a great start. I think that editorial may be the hardest to break into, so if you're equally interested in other aspects of the field, you may get an advantage if you focus on those. I'm not sure what you'd be especially suited to, but "experience working abroad" tells me that perhaps you might be interested in selling foreign rights for a publisher or for a literary agency. Just a thought!
Good luck!
posted by cider at 7:27 PM on April 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
2) Read everything you can about the industry. Agent and editor blogs, industry newsletters -- sign up for PW Daily and Publishers Lunch at the least, as they're free and you'll start to recognize names. Definitely read books published by the houses you're interested in -- I'd say that this is much more important than knowing the classics. (Though I work in children's publishing -- perhaps at a literary adult publisher, they would expect a broader knowledge of the classics.)
3) Jobs are posted through Publishers Marketplace and Media Bistro and probably other places that I'm not thinking of right now. Check out the websites of publishers you're interested in, and don't hesitate to apply even if there isn't an opening posted.
4) Chronicle Books is in San Francisco, and they're a great publishing house. I believe they pay their interns (a low hourly rate, but still), so if you can get an internship there, that would be a great start. I think that editorial may be the hardest to break into, so if you're equally interested in other aspects of the field, you may get an advantage if you focus on those. I'm not sure what you'd be especially suited to, but "experience working abroad" tells me that perhaps you might be interested in selling foreign rights for a publisher or for a literary agency. Just a thought!
Good luck!
posted by cider at 7:27 PM on April 7, 2011 [1 favorite]
Shelfawareness is a great industry newsletter too. More when I'm not on my phone!
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 8:11 PM on April 7, 2011
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 8:11 PM on April 7, 2011
Even a 2 month internship at a big name publisher will get you in the door for a paying job at a small publisher. The industry sucks (which is why I left it) and there are a ton of people who love it enough to do it for very low pay so working your way up from the bottom unfortunately means the real bottomy-unpaid-bottom.
Unless you know people.
Talk to everyone you know and see if anyone they know is in the industry and can get you in the door. I got my first real job through a friend who I had met freelancing's second cousin. Basically if someone has vaguely even heard of you, you're a better bet than a random off the street who might be crazy. I don't always agree with that, but that is how I have found the job market to be.
posted by rmless at 9:08 PM on April 7, 2011
Unless you know people.
Talk to everyone you know and see if anyone they know is in the industry and can get you in the door. I got my first real job through a friend who I had met freelancing's second cousin. Basically if someone has vaguely even heard of you, you're a better bet than a random off the street who might be crazy. I don't always agree with that, but that is how I have found the job market to be.
posted by rmless at 9:08 PM on April 7, 2011
Oh and of your options Production is the easiest to break into but the farthest away from reading books, if that is your goal. Production is great for organized people who can see the big picture of a project and keeping the overall scope and timeframe in mind while also paying attention to the little pieces so nothing slips. If you are like that, mention those things in your interviews.
posted by rmless at 9:11 PM on April 7, 2011
posted by rmless at 9:11 PM on April 7, 2011
Best answer: /works for a small independent publisher. This will be skewed toward the editorial side of things, since that's what I do.
You'll probably have better luck with this if you can narrow down your search a little. Multiple aspects of publishing are interesting to you, which is awesome--being interested in your industry is a good thing--but what ones appeal to you? What ones do you have existing skills in?
General advice, I guess, would be to read a lot. Read a lot in the genre in which you hope to work--if you want to work in romance, scifi, middle grade, cookbooks, whatever, you should be reading those books every day. If you don't have a preferred genre, you should read indiscriminately. I'd argue that you're going to be best served by covering the most well-known classics of the genre and then devouring stuff that's being published now, or at least recently. Conventions change a lot in ten years, let alone fifty or a hundred, and in my opinion, this is one of those times when knowing where you've been isn't actually all that helpful.
Read stuff from houses that you're interested in working for, but don't limit yourself to them. Familiarity with houses is good, but you never know where you're going to end up, and familiarity with genre is likely to be more useful in the long run.
Learn about how publishing works and what's happening right now. Do you have an opinion on agency vs non-agency pricing? About DRM on ebooks? You should--not because it's some Big Deal, but because it indicates that you're paying attention to and engaging with things that are important to the industry. This may or may not help you land a job, but it's good background to have.
Familiarize yourself with some style guides, or at least with The Chicago Manual of Style. If you want bonus points, learn MLA or AP, as well.
Taking on small jobs now can only help--starting to build a network now instead of eighteen months from now is probably a good thing. Many small presses contract out much of their editorial work to freelancers--depending on how much time you have to spare, it's possible that you could pick up some work like that, which would build your resume, skills, and connections.
There are about ten billionty sites and blogs about publishing, but these are some from my Google Reader subscriptions--no descriptions, sorry--I'm going to turn into a pumpkin soon. This is so far from a comprehensive list that I'm almost hesitant to post it, but whatever. Hopefully others (Peanut_McGillicuty? Sidhedevil? Scalzi? Ocherdraco?) will pop up with recs, too.
Algonquin
Beyond Her Book
Big Bad Book Blog
BookEnds
Booksquare
Editorial Anonymous
Galleycat
Genreville
The Knight Agency
Nathan Bransford
A Newbie's Guide to Publishing
Pimp My Novel
Pub Rants
Publishing 2020
Publishing Perspective
ShelfTalker
Whatever
On the offchance that you're particularly interested in romance or sf/f, memail me and I will send you the much, much longer list of genre-specific blogs (including many, many more author blogs) that I follow.
posted by MeghanC at 9:35 PM on April 7, 2011 [10 favorites]
You'll probably have better luck with this if you can narrow down your search a little. Multiple aspects of publishing are interesting to you, which is awesome--being interested in your industry is a good thing--but what ones appeal to you? What ones do you have existing skills in?
General advice, I guess, would be to read a lot. Read a lot in the genre in which you hope to work--if you want to work in romance, scifi, middle grade, cookbooks, whatever, you should be reading those books every day. If you don't have a preferred genre, you should read indiscriminately. I'd argue that you're going to be best served by covering the most well-known classics of the genre and then devouring stuff that's being published now, or at least recently. Conventions change a lot in ten years, let alone fifty or a hundred, and in my opinion, this is one of those times when knowing where you've been isn't actually all that helpful.
Read stuff from houses that you're interested in working for, but don't limit yourself to them. Familiarity with houses is good, but you never know where you're going to end up, and familiarity with genre is likely to be more useful in the long run.
Learn about how publishing works and what's happening right now. Do you have an opinion on agency vs non-agency pricing? About DRM on ebooks? You should--not because it's some Big Deal, but because it indicates that you're paying attention to and engaging with things that are important to the industry. This may or may not help you land a job, but it's good background to have.
Familiarize yourself with some style guides, or at least with The Chicago Manual of Style. If you want bonus points, learn MLA or AP, as well.
Taking on small jobs now can only help--starting to build a network now instead of eighteen months from now is probably a good thing. Many small presses contract out much of their editorial work to freelancers--depending on how much time you have to spare, it's possible that you could pick up some work like that, which would build your resume, skills, and connections.
There are about ten billionty sites and blogs about publishing, but these are some from my Google Reader subscriptions--no descriptions, sorry--I'm going to turn into a pumpkin soon. This is so far from a comprehensive list that I'm almost hesitant to post it, but whatever. Hopefully others (Peanut_McGillicuty? Sidhedevil? Scalzi? Ocherdraco?) will pop up with recs, too.
Algonquin
Beyond Her Book
Big Bad Book Blog
BookEnds
Booksquare
Editorial Anonymous
Galleycat
Genreville
The Knight Agency
Nathan Bransford
A Newbie's Guide to Publishing
Pimp My Novel
Pub Rants
Publishing 2020
Publishing Perspective
ShelfTalker
Whatever
On the offchance that you're particularly interested in romance or sf/f, memail me and I will send you the much, much longer list of genre-specific blogs (including many, many more author blogs) that I follow.
posted by MeghanC at 9:35 PM on April 7, 2011 [10 favorites]
If you want an ongoing career in book publishing, you will almost certainly have to move to NY eventually. Consider if you're willing to do this on an arts industry paycheck. Or if you're willing to live with the restricted opportunities elsewhere.
posted by libraryhead at 5:36 AM on April 8, 2011
posted by libraryhead at 5:36 AM on April 8, 2011
Chronicle Books also employs copyeditor freelancers, but the work probably won't be constant enough to make a living from.
I've hired copy editors and proofreaders at the papers I've worked at. I look for curiosity about the world and extreme attention to detail. Lack of experience doesn't necessarily count against you.
A lot of S.F. Bay Area publications have a web element -- do you know basic HTML or blogging software? (We use Movable Type, InCopy, and InDesign. I recommend you brush up on your skills in all of those, because you might end up overseeing the web and print versions of a publication. You won't need to become an expert in these, but a working knowledge helps.
Amy Einsohn's The Copyeditor's Handbook is still invaluable. I recommend the short classes at Editcetera in Berkeley, too; they will look good on your resume.
Memail me if you want to talk more, or do an informational interview when you come back to the USA. (I've worked as a copy editor, editor, and proofreader throughout the Bay Area; I might have some ideas and useful contacts, but would rather not fully out myself on the green.)
posted by vickyverky at 1:51 PM on April 8, 2011
I've hired copy editors and proofreaders at the papers I've worked at. I look for curiosity about the world and extreme attention to detail. Lack of experience doesn't necessarily count against you.
A lot of S.F. Bay Area publications have a web element -- do you know basic HTML or blogging software? (We use Movable Type, InCopy, and InDesign. I recommend you brush up on your skills in all of those, because you might end up overseeing the web and print versions of a publication. You won't need to become an expert in these, but a working knowledge helps.
Amy Einsohn's The Copyeditor's Handbook is still invaluable. I recommend the short classes at Editcetera in Berkeley, too; they will look good on your resume.
Memail me if you want to talk more, or do an informational interview when you come back to the USA. (I've worked as a copy editor, editor, and proofreader throughout the Bay Area; I might have some ideas and useful contacts, but would rather not fully out myself on the green.)
posted by vickyverky at 1:51 PM on April 8, 2011
Excellent advice given above (sorry it took me so long to come back to this!). I'll reiterate some of it.
Read widely in the genres of the companies you're applying to and be familiar with their recent and upcoming publications and any placements on the New York Times list. Unless you are interviewing for a job at Penguin Classics, no one will be asking you about classics.
While you should definitely be familiar with issues such as agency pricing and DRM, do not voice them unless you're asked and if you are asked, do not criticize the house's position. These are very sensitive issues and unless you know the position of both the house and the interviewer on them, you could easily wind up saying the wrong thing.
Some other links
Mike Shatzkin's blog
Digital Book World
Publishing Point
Marketing/advertising/promotions is another area that's generally pretty easy to break into, and pays a lot better than editorial much quicker. Being really familiar with social media and publishers in the social media space is helpful here. (Mediabistro just posted another directory of influential tweeters today; if you're on Twitter here are tons of people to follow.)
Many people I work with, myself included, have done time in bookstores and I think that would definitely be a boon to have as opposed to, say, Starbucks.
If you're interested in additional schooling, I graduated from the Pace publishing program and it was excellent. I already had a job in the industry, but they will help you find an internship if you're not already working in it, so that's a big plus. They're based in New York but do online courses. I also have friends who love the NYU program and the Denver course.
Good luck!
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 6:33 PM on April 8, 2011
Read widely in the genres of the companies you're applying to and be familiar with their recent and upcoming publications and any placements on the New York Times list. Unless you are interviewing for a job at Penguin Classics, no one will be asking you about classics.
While you should definitely be familiar with issues such as agency pricing and DRM, do not voice them unless you're asked and if you are asked, do not criticize the house's position. These are very sensitive issues and unless you know the position of both the house and the interviewer on them, you could easily wind up saying the wrong thing.
Some other links
Mike Shatzkin's blog
Digital Book World
Publishing Point
Marketing/advertising/promotions is another area that's generally pretty easy to break into, and pays a lot better than editorial much quicker. Being really familiar with social media and publishers in the social media space is helpful here. (Mediabistro just posted another directory of influential tweeters today; if you're on Twitter here are tons of people to follow.)
Many people I work with, myself included, have done time in bookstores and I think that would definitely be a boon to have as opposed to, say, Starbucks.
If you're interested in additional schooling, I graduated from the Pace publishing program and it was excellent. I already had a job in the industry, but they will help you find an internship if you're not already working in it, so that's a big plus. They're based in New York but do online courses. I also have friends who love the NYU program and the Denver course.
Good luck!
posted by peanut_mcgillicuty at 6:33 PM on April 8, 2011
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Alternatively, I would recommend that you start making contacts with publishers in Japan and look for something -anything that catches your eye- that you think you could actually publish for an American audience. Put it somewhere, make a book and sell it at trade shows. Send it to be reviewed. Get it into magazines. You might have to beg, borrow and steal but you'll be a publisher. Good luck and write me if you want to hear more about the exciting world of publishing.
posted by parmanparman at 6:50 PM on April 7, 2011 [1 favorite]