This experience has been invaluable to me. I feel that careers in literature tend to carry some sort of enigmatic element to them, which I now think stems from the elusive nature of the job itself. I don’t think anyone in the field intends to gatekeep information about it; rather, it’s such a different job for nearly everyone in it that it’s hard to describe.
The meeting with Harper’s was a perfect first meeting, in my opinion. I wasn’t anticipating to find myself so captured by the world of magazine publishing, considering I entered the course with a preference for book publishing. However, the close-knit feeling of the Harper’s staff and their willingness to share advice was so touching, and it gave me the perfect amount of motivation for the rest of the trip.
Obviously, the MacMillan trip was a massive opportunity, and I’m still so thrilled to have been able to visit their offices and meet with so many people from the company. Aside from Harper’s, it was this meeting in particular that gave me the most confidence. As much as I enjoyed the indie presses we visited, I couldn’t see myself working for any of them more than I could at MacMillan (perhaps that’s just wishful thinking, or attempted manifestation lol).
Above all else, my greatest takeaway was the support each person from each publication we met with. They all genuinely wanted to help us get our feet in the door, so long as we were interested in pursuing a career in publishing. It was simultaneously reassuring and daunting to hear over and over again that the best way to score a career in publishing is to just keep trying. Facing rejection is an essential part of the job, and one I’m certainly attempting to prepare myself for. The most valuable information to receive is the insistence from everyone that most of publishing is persistence and networking. Who you know is everything, and a commitment to making and maintaining professional relationships is such an important piece of information to keep in mind. Overall, the most reassuring and motivating thing that rings true through not only our meetings but also our readings, is that the main thing you need to get a job in publishing is a genuine love of reading. That if you’re truly passionate about books, something will come along. I’m endlessly grateful for this opportunity and for the connections it has offered me. I’m excited to utilize the information I’ve learned from this trip in my search for a job in publishing, no matter what that may look like from the jump.