LBF Seminar 2008

Posted on April 22, 2008 in Uncategorized

The Marlborough Room was packed tighter than the Northern Line at rush hour for the ‘Getting Ahead in UK Publishing’ seminar. Alison Baverstock (Chair) kicked off with a bit of a general knowledge quiz. Unfortunately not one person in the room was able to answer why the date was a special one. Apparently it was the anniversary of the titanic film, I mean disaster. Alison is a senior lecturer on the Publishing MA course at Kingston University. She began her career in publishing before moving into the realms of education and writing. Her first book, How to Market Books is now in its fourth edition and is often referred to as the ‘bible of book marketing’. Alison launched her brand new title, How to Get a Job in Publishing at the end of the seminar.

Planning was the first topic touched on in the context of publishing. In other industries, such as finance and the public sector, a considerable amount of time and money is spent on career planning; management training, for example. It was also highlighted that skills gained in publishing, especially in the smaller independents, are varied and transferable. So if you embark on a lowly-paid career in publishing, fear not, you won’t be left with no other options if you decide to take your career in a different direction. Options such as literary consultancies, charities and libraries were cited here. Publishing is essentially entrepreneurial, consistently producing a product to match contemporary needs.

(l to r) Iain Stevenson, Ros Kindersley, Jeremy Trevathan

Iain Stevenson opened with a charming anecdote reflecting the sheer overwhelming feeling of awe at events such as the London Book Fair. Iain is Professor of Publishing at University College London (UCL). Iain began his career in 1977 as Publisher for earth sciences, moving to head up Macmillan Reference Books in 1985. He then jointly founded pioneer environmental publisher Belhaven Press, and acquired and ran Leicester University Press concurrently. In 1997, Iain joined the newly privatized Stationery Office as Publishing Director, and has been involved in publishing education since 1999.

Iain explained that education in publishing was a fairly new phenomena, since just over 20 years ago Oxford Brookes University opened their doors to the first MAs in publishing. Iain concurred with Alison’s previous observation concerning the lack of career planning in publishing, and that at least for now, this is something people working within the industry will have to take into their own hands.

Iain submitted that there were three golden rules about ‘getting into publishing’: First, flexibility. You have to be flexible in publishing, in attitude and skills, and this will make you valuable. A lot of people who start off in say, sales and marketing, might later transfer to the editorial department, or move over to rights management.

Second, developing a sense of professionalism. Publishing is an extremely complex business, that’s right, a BUSINESS. A business in which profitability is important, and as such you might develop skills in accounts, or better still, you might learn these skills now in preparation for when they are suddenly needed. Familiarise yourself with balance sheets and costings, know what an ISBN is (you don’t need to remember what it stands for, but you need to grasp the concept of how they work and why they exist). Develop a suite of professional skills and continue to build on them. The basic skills such as those mentioned above will always be needed, but publishing is an ever-evolving industry filled with intuition and risk, and the best way to sell books and to promote good writing among authors can change over time too.

The third rule to keep in mind when approaching a career in publishing, Iain advised, is to develop a network. Socialise; introduce yourself to people working in publishing, get involved with book clubs and societies like the SYP. This is especially important if you were interested in becoming a literary agent, knowing who does what and for who, and being familiar with commissioning editors’ favoured styles and subjects is absolutely vital.

Ros Kindersley, Managing Director of JFL Search & Selection, began her career as a publicist for Quartet Books before joining the Arts Council for a year. She approached JFL for a new publishing job and was instead offered a job as a recruitment consultant by Judy Farquaharson. Following Judy’s retirement, Ros now runs the company, and with the support of her team recruits for all mainstream publishers and a broad range of organisations including charities, NGOs and major corporates.

Ros was an english literature graduate in the 80s, and perceived the art of publishing through rose tinted glasses and was shocked to find that although different from many industries in countless ways, ultimately publishing is a business, it has to make money, sell books. Ros dispelled the myth that 20-odd years ago, the majority of people in publishing had a private income. Although she admits that the poor wage at least played a part in her decision to leave her career in publishing to go into business with JFL, Ros says she realised that the aspects of publishing she most enjoyed were still prevalent in this job: like-minded people, the thrill of the chase and negotiating.

Ros went on to share her professional recruitment wisdom, touching on key areas like work experience (it’s invaluable – if you can afford to do it, do it, if you can’t afford to do it, and you’re sick of rejection letters staring at you when you walk through the door every evening, use your annual leave). Network; go to book clubs and events, join the SYP or uni groups that are publishing related. Develop skills (depending on what area of publishing you want to get into, these skills will differ, but as asserted earlier, the more flexible you can make yourself the better). Ensure that your CV is immaculate; ask a friend to proofread it, and highlight your achievements and your unique selling points. If you get to interview stage, always follow up with a ‘thank you email’.

Jeremy Trevathan, Publishing Director at Macmillan, anchored the meeting. He reinforced what Iain stated earlier about the kind of person you need to be to get on in publishing. Personality goes a long way (as John Travolta once said); intuition and emotion are key factors in the business of publishing, factors that it’s generally advised to put aside in most business contexts. You need to be adaptable, curious and adventurous. You need to be bold enough to submit ideas that are close to your heart, and have the resilience to take the criticism that may follow. You need to be stimulated by having too much to do, and the stamina to cope with it.

Jeremy also reinforced the idea that once you have your foot in the door, there’s room to maneuver in publishing. He spent a decade in the production department, before taking a demotion to move into the realm of rights for a further 10 years. He then decided that he’d like to give editorial a try, and 8 years in he’s happy there, for now.

A career in publishing can be extremely flexible. It’s easier than a lot of jobs to gain part-time employment, and once you have experience and contacts you can freelance pretty easily. Who you know, and who you’re on friendly terms with, can mean a lot. It’s a sociable job, so if you don’t like socialising, you should probably steer clear of editorial and marketing.

Q and A [but really just A because I can’t recall the Q]

· Publishing MAs have a severe shortfall of places compared to the number of applicants, so if you’re serious about applying, treat it like a job application.

· If you’re thinking about getting a nice well-paid job and then moving across to the joys of publishing, it IS possible, but it’ll be easier to deal with the shocking salary expectations earlier rather than later.

· You should expect to spend between 6 and 18 months in a low-level position, and that’s if you’re assertive.

· It’s ok to have a glitch (glitch noun informal 1 a sudden malfunction or irregularity of equipment, 2 an unexpected setback in a plan) on your CV, as long as it’s nicely cushioned by some impressive work experience and longevity. Just frame it in positive terms of what you’ve learned from the experience.

· Don’t fear your annual appraisal, use it your advantage! Tell your employers why you are an indispensible member of staff and what you have brought to the company. You have to make your own chances and take the initiative in this business.

· It’s useful to know digital techniques, but only learn them if you’re willing to use them.

· If you are applying for a job in London and you live outside the capital, it might be an idea to use a friend or relative’s address when applying for jobs.

Melanie Wilson