Best of Ask the Agent: So You Want A Job In Publishing...
Internships, job advice, types of jobs, oh and ALSO a very funny pig!
Welcome to another edition of Best of Ask the Agent (the Newsletter). A perennial hot topic in my #AskAgent inbox is How To Get A Job In Publishing. I’m just going to be blunt with you: Publishing jobs mostly include long hours, and they pay for sh*t. Like, if you want a “good job” that will make your parents stop worrying about you—I suggest you run away from publishing. That being said! I know that whatever I say won’t stop you from asking, so I’ve detailed some of the *lesser known* job opportunities in publishing below. And here are some links that might be of interest for job-seekers:
Andrea Brown Literary Agency is seeking applicants for our first ever official ABLA Mentorship Program. This is a PAID position during Summer 2020 based in our San Diego, Los Angeles or San Francisco offices, in which you will receive a crash course in many aspects of the agenting world. 17+ hours per week.
We Need Diverse Books has announced their 2020 Internship Grants. If you meet the eligibility requirements, you can apply for one of these grants that will give you supplementary money and support as you pursue your summer internship (whether that is at ABLA or one of the other affiliated companies!)
BookJobs.com is a good resource to find job listings as well as internship opportunities in publishing.
Chronicle Books Editor Ariel Richardson wrote this in-depth article about how to get a job in Publishing — it’s a few years old, but the advice is still great, and it’s a must-read. SERIOUSLY!
“Hi! I was wondering what kinds of jobs there were in publishing besides agenting, authoring, or editing, since those are the main three we hear about.”
Ah yes. The publishing ecosystem can’t exist without authors, of course. And Editors and Agents are the more visible professions. But there are others!
Agents: You already know about literary agents. They are the author/illustrator’s liaison with the publisher, they sell books to publishers, negotiate contracts, among many other things. But there are also “specialty” agents that you may not know about. There are Foreign Rights agents, who focus primarily on selling rights to foreign publishers. And there are Book-to-Film agents, who focus on selling published books to Hollywood. There are also…
Scouts: Book scouts have to be insanely omnivorous readers - they generally read dozens of books a week, as well as collecting gossip and info from their assorted sources. Scouts are hired by foreign publishers and film studios to hunt for the newest, hottest, most awesome stuff, so that the people they report back to can “scoop” the competition. More on scouting here
Within the publishing house, you know about the Editor: Also sometimes known as the “Aquiring Editor” — they are the ones that agents send manuscripts to at the publisher. They then become essentially that book’s shepherd and the point of contact for both the author/agent and all the other people who will later be involved in the process. They are probably any given books biggest advocate for it in the publishing house. But there are other folks involved at the publisher, too!
Copyeditor: When you think “editor” you probably think “that person who makes marks on manuscripts.” Welllll… yes, BUT, the acquiring editor, above, usually does what we call “developmental” editing. That is, helping shape the entire book in a big picture kind of way. For the finer details of grammar and style, a copyeditor really gets in there and makes sure there are no inconsistencies or problems. You have to have a real attention to detail for this job.
Production Editor: Yes, yet another kind of editor! The production editor makes sure that the book actually is getting made on a schedule, that all the many pieces in play from design to typesetting to proofreading to printing ETC are all on-track.
Designer: The book designer is in charge of, well, the design of the book! This may mean the book jacket, primarily, which we all know - but also how the chapter headings look, what font and paper and special stuff like gloss or deckled edges are used, etc.
Art director: In the case of illustrated books/picture books, the art director may be the liaison for the illustrator. The art director pretty much does for illustrators what the editor does for writers.
Publicist: These folks book authors into bookstores and onto television shows and other kinds of media, sometimes escort authors to tours/events/appearances, do outreach to make sure people know about the book, as well as being the go-to person for anyone wanting to write or talk about the book, among many other things. The publicist is basically the liaison between the publisher/author and the media.
Marketing: These folks make sure the book is visible at trade shows and in bookstores - they do things like create those cunning displays that big books are featured in at bookstores. There are also subsections of this job, such as “School/Library Marketing” – which, of course, specialize specifically in those areas.
Sales: Many publishers have sales reps. These hardworking folks have “territories” where they literally go to every bookstore and other kind of shop that might sell books, with a wheelie suitcase full of samples, and talk to book buyers about them, and take orders. They also appear at trade shows. (There are also phone sales reps). Sales and Marketing are the liaisons between the publisher/author and accounts who are buying the book.
Other categories of publisher job: Contracts/Permissions/Subsidiary Rights/Legal/Finance/Production/HR and I’m sure I’m forgetting plenty! And don’t forget about BOOKSELLER and BOOK BUYER and EVENT COORDINATOR, all of which I’ve done, and all of which can be great opportunities on the retail side, if you are lucky enough to live near a good bookstore. (Yes, a background in bookselling CAN help you get a career in publishing down the line, if you want one.)
Good luck! xo
Coming Soon…
DO NOT *EVER* BE A BABYSITTER! by Michaela Muntean and Pascal LeMaître. Available at fine bookstores and libraries from Scholastic Press, April 7, 2020.
Fans of How to Babysit a Grandma and How to Babysit a Grandpa will love this hilarious misadventure in babysitting!
Uncle Pig is babysitting his nieces and nephews, and he is clueless about what to do His sister left him a handy list of ideas for how to entertain them, but Pig has a flair for misinterpretation (think Amelia Bedelia). When his tidy home erupts into messy chaos, what is a rookie babysitter to do? Turn to the reader for help, of course…
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