HANDY HINTS…

Publishing is a competitive business. It’s essential, therefore, when applying for jobs in the
industry, to have a basic understanding of the various sectors and roles in order to ensure
that your CV is as focused as possible. Here are a few things to think about to ensure you
use your time effectively in advance of applying for jobs:

1 What sort of role suits you best? What do you think you will enjoy the most? There
is a lot more to publishing than editorial! Take some time to investigate the
different departments involved in the publication of a book or journal.

2 What sort of publication would you like to work on? In addition to book publishing
have you considered academic journals or electronic publishing, for example?

1 What sort of roles are on offer within the publishing process?

Editorial: -

Most speculative applications to publishers focus on editorial roles.

Editorial work is largely concerned with building a list in line with the publishing house’s
policy. This entails commissioning work as well as deciding which manuscripts to accept
from agents and which to reject. Commissioning editors need strong negotiating skills for
buying manuscripts and need to be skilled at dealing with authors, literary agents and in
some cases, lawyers.

An editorial assistant role is usually the recognised first job within an editorial department.
An editorial assistant will assist senior editorial staff in the administration of commissioning
or production (editorial process) of books and journals. The level of responsibility and
range of tasks will depend (as many assistant level roles will) on the structure and size of
the company. A lot of the work is routine and repetitive, but vital to the publishing
process.

Desk Editors and Copy Editors fulfil the next stage of the process; reading manuscripts for
repetition, contradiction, and simple spelling, punctuation and grammar mistakes.

Editors can have an influence on everything about a book, from cover design to production
details and can also be involved with the sales and marketing team (dependent on the size
of the publishing house).

Key skills: (what employers are looking for on your CV?)

 Acquire administrative and computer skills – one way to secure your first position in
publishing is through working in a generic administrative role first. Many publishers
will not consider anyone without at least 6 months administrative experience.
 A qualification in editing can help (Chapterhouse (01392 499488) or Bookhouse
(Publishing Training Centre 0208 874 2718) offer these by correspondence)
 Educated to degree level or equivalent
 Word processing skills
  Work experience in a publishing environment (ideally in an editorial department)

You will also need: an eye for detail, retentive memory, sustained concentration,
endurance, patience, ability to check one’s own and others work consistently.

Design: -

Some books from fiction to STM books follow pre-set typographic designs, but for the more
integrated colour books a more complex design function is required. In-house designers
work either in a design department or in a production department, reporting to the design
or production manager.

Key skills:

 A creative mind and an idea for what sells

 A vocational qualification (pre-entry specialist training is virtually essential)
 Technical proficiency
 Educated to at least A’ level standard or equivalent
 A concise and well presented portfolio
 Knowledge of QuarkXpress, Photoshop, or other relevant software packages

Production: -

The production department is the link between editors and designers and external
suppliers. The production department is responsible for the physical process of
transforming the manuscript and artwork into the finished book. This includes everything
from ordering the paper, obtaining estimates for typesetting, printing and binding to
arranging proofs and print-run numbers with an appropriate printer.

All stages in production need to be scheduled to strict deadlines. Fundamental to

production is a thorough knowledge of current technical processes, machinery and
materials. You must be able to consider all options and components whilst costing titles,
set objectives, develop specifications and schedules. Production staff must be able to work
with editors and designers although their priorities must be tight cost control and the
maintenance of dates, which requires excellent communication and people skills.

Key skills:

 A vocational qualification is not always necessary although those with one will
obviously hold the advantage. The London College of Communication (0207 514
6729) offers training courses and there are also NVQ’s in book production.
 Numeracy
 Effective communication skills (in-house staff and external suppliers)
 Computer literacy

Sales: -

Sales involves calling on booksellers and persuading them to stock both new and backlist
titles; their role in supporting the efforts of marketing is critical to the success of a book.
Academic Sales people also have to visit schools and institutes of higher education to
discuss forthcoming publications with teachers and academics, and in some cases establish
where there might be gaps in the market for future publications.

Key skills:
  Articulacy
 An ability to build relationships, and influence people
 A good understanding of the UK book trade.

Marketing and Publicity

Marketing is frequently divided into two separate functions. One focuses on preplanning the
marketing campaign including press advertising and the production of catalogues and
promoting materials, the other is publicity. Obviously the market will strongly influence
the type of marketing activity carried out. There are, for example, substantial differences
in the way children’s books are marketed and sold and the way an adult bestseller will be
promoted.

The aim of the Publicity Department is to make the media, book trade, and consumers
conscious of the company and what it offers or a particular new title; and hence stimulate
demand. It concentrates on getting press exposure and organising promotional events such
as book launches and author signing tours to establish a book when it is first published.

Key skills

 Educated preferably to degree level or equivalent

 An understanding of why people want to read books is advantageous in the way to
market them - bookselling experience is often seen as an advantage
 Specialist knowledge of the material being published (i.e. a Maths degree if working
in the Marketing department of a publisher that is printing Mathematics textbooks)

Rights

The selling of rights is a small and specialist career area. Rights departments have
responsibility for the selling of all kinds of rights for published books including serial rights,
foreign language rights, rights to publish in paperback, television and film rights and
merchandising rights and occasionally electronic. Rights staff check and monitor the
contacts made between the publisher and others. The reactive work involves responding to
enquiries and seeking copyright permission to reproduce material. Rights work involves
close contact with all the other departments on a regular basis.

Key skills

 Educated to degree level or equivalent

 Good interpersonal skills
 Languages
 Customer related skills

Contracts: -

In a small publishing house, the editor will probably deal with the author contracts but in
larger houses there will be a contracts department. They will maintain responsibility for
ensuring that these documents are in line with the original deal arranged by the editor.
Substantial liaison needs to take place with the rights department to take into account all
possible markets for the book and therefore organising permissions on relevant materials.

Key skills:

 Meticulous eye for detail

 Legal background could be useful

2 Which sector of publishing do I want to concentrate on?

Trade publishers: -
These make up the most visible part of the industry. They form the mainstay of public
libraries, bookshops and book clubs. Consumer publishing is the high-risk end of the
business - book failures are frequent but possible rewards great.

Children’s publishers: -
Children’s books are published by the specialist children’s divisions of the major consumer
book publisher. They must appeal to both children and adults and are usually aimed at age
bands reflecting the development of reading skill.

Educational publishers: -
These provide materials for schools, chiefly textbooks and sometimes supported by
ancillary printed materials for class use or for teachers i.e. workbooks, cassettes and
teacher’s books. The books are market specific. A knowledge of and interest in the national
curriculum would certainly stand you in good stead as would any teaching qualifications
(e.g. PGCE).

Academic, STM and Professional book publishing: -

Academic publishing can refer to books published in all subjects from 1st year
university/college students and above. The term is often restricted to the humanities
and social sciences.
Scientific, technical and medical (STM) is undertaken predominantly by large publishers.
These publishers are mostly outside central London with a high concentration in Oxford.
Professional publishing serve the “professions” such as law, accountancy, surveyancing,
architecture, engineering etc.
As with educational publishing, it is a distinct advantage to have a qualification in the
subject matter that you are printing. This is especially true of STM publishing.

Journals publishing: -
Journals are published by not-for-profit societies and research institutes and by divisions of
academic, STM publishers including the university presses. The content is not pre-
determined and is based on contributors submitting papers and original research to an
academic editor.

• It is possible at the start of your career to move across to other departments and
areas of publishing, but over time this becomes more difficult, as you will need
specialist knowledge of a subject area and specialist knowledge of the activity and
markets.
• In smaller firms, it may be easier to move around the firm and learn different jobs.
Such knowledge however may not be considered specialist enough by the larger
companies.
• Junior staff in large firms may find it hard to cross the more pronounced
departmental boundaries but will gain in-depth expertise afforded by the greater
resources of the publisher.

Tips

• Do lots of research into the different types of publications and relevant publishing
companies
• Make as many contacts as possible – during work experience placements or join
relevant societies, eg. SYP, WIP etc
• Do as much relevant work experience as you can. This looks great on your CV and
also reinforces your decision about what sort of role you are looking for and type of
publisher
• If unpaid work experience is not possible, then a good track record of
administrative and general office work is also very valuable to prove computer and
 IT skills, and competency in working to deadlines, working in teams, attention to
detail, receiving instructions etc.
• Have a look at jobs being advertised in publishing. This will give you a good idea of
what is involved in specific roles and basic requirements you need to aim for.

************* For further information:

London first jobs in publishing, contact: Amanda Gilbert

Tel: 0207 440 1493 Email: amanda@inspiredselection.co.uk

Oxford first jobs in publishing, contact: Claire Simmons

Tel: 01865 260277 Email: claire.simmons@inspiredselection.co.uk

Research taken from: - Inside Publishing by Giles Clark (third edition)