Hello, folks, and welcome to January's POP Profile! This month, Jack Noel from Walker Books spared a few minutes to give us a wee insight into the life of a designer. Thanks, Jack!
How did you get into children's book publishing? I was working as a freelance designer/illustrator doing occasional quite cool bits like album covers but mostly less-cool bits like corporate identity stuff. To work in children's books was my dream. One day I wrote to my bestest two publishers - Walker Books and Nosy Crow - and asked if I could come and meet someone to talk design. Nothing happened. I'm not really sure what I expected. But then, about six months later, a junior position came up in the Fiction department at Walker. I applied and somehow ended up getting the job. I'm not entirely sure how. I was lucky.
How would you spend a typical day at work? Each day is different, but not wildly so. Generally it's a mixed bag of the following: emails coffee team catch-up develop new cover ideas meet illustrators meet authors custard creams talk to editors meeting lunch tea emails work on interiors twitter artworking attend photoshoots emails
What top two things do you love about your job? 1. Working in a team with talented designers and editors who all care about kids books etc. a lot 2. Ping pong Fridays
Which stories and/or illustration styles are catching your eye right now? There has been a run of famous comedians writing for children of late. This is not a bad thing because famous comedians are cleverer and funnier than your average famous person, or at least that's the idea. Each one gets paired with an illustrator and is given a design that is thought to befit their comedy stylings. So David Walliams gets Tony Ross. Russell Brand gets Chris Riddell. David Baddiel gets Jim Field. I'd like to see Daniel Kitson have a go. He'd need someone obtuse and bearded to do his pictures, like himself.
Have you ever seen a book and thought "I wish I'd published that"? I feel compelled to say Zoella, for the $$$. But my bestest books are the Mr Gum series, so I guess those really.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to work in publishing, what would it be? For both illustrators and designers, I'd say the same thing: make your folio as focused, as consistent and as relevant as possible. This will make it easier for people to imagine you working for them, and everyone likes it when things are easier.
Describe yourself in five words Quiet Mumbly Good at computers
This month's POP Profile is the lovely Rachel Mann, Fiction Editor at Simon & Schuster. Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, Rachel!
How did you get into children’s book publishing?
Well, I beat my friend Jess (sorry, Jessie) to the school work-experience placement at Ottakars, which then became Waterstones. I worked there part-time, specialising in children’s, until I went off to university. At that point my lovely then-boss, Gary Deane, suggested that I might like to think about publishing as a career (thank you, Gary) and put me in touch with some lovely people at Puffin.
I did a few work experience placements with the brilliant Puffin fiction team, going in to read manuscripts for consecutive summers, and immediately knew that I wanted to be finding and shaping stories as a career. It’s still true that publishing is about contacts, but you can build them yourself – I stayed in touch with some of the people I met at Penguin and was, later, lucky enough to get a job as editorial assistant for Puffin Fiction, where I stayed for two years.
My very first job in publishing was actually as a PA and team assistant for a great print and digital start-up called Medikidz – and I’d recommend that anyone looking for a job in the industry considers an entry role in a very small house. It was a really valuable insight into the whole process, and totally exhilarating to be part of a new and innovative enterprise.
How would you spend a typical day at work?
The great thing about editorial is that you really are part of the whole publishing process, so my days are pretty varied. Usually, I’ll spend ten minutes every morning catching up with industry news, and checking my authors’ social media feeds to see what they’re up to! We’re a small and tight-knit team at S&S, so when we get to our desks we’ll usually catch up about the manuscripts we’re all reading, too.
Then it can be anything from attending a covers meeting, writing jacket copy, catching up with an agent or author about the status of a publication, or brainstorming campaign ideas with the marketing and publicity team.
The day will usually involve some actual editing too – either a session of structural or line editing, or compiling proofreads and copy edits ready to send to production. It’s email-heavy, like lots of jobs, but I also get lots of opportunities to speak passionately about the projects I’m working on, and help to get them into the hands of young readers.
What top two things do you love about your job?
I think most editors would agree that there’s a certain buzz that hits when you’re reading a really special submission. It doesn’t happen as often as you might think, but when it does, it’s the most exciting thing. I love being able to pitch passionately for a book that I think readers will love, and help direct it through to publication.
It’s also a total privilege to be working in such a creative and fun environment. I truly believe that reading changes lives, and I’m very lucky to work in an industry that I so believe in, but which is also great fun.
Which stories and/or illustration styles are catching your eye right now?
In terms of submissions, I’m always envious of/looking for strong contemporary humour. Comedy is fascinating because it evolves so quickly – just look at what Lena Dunham has done for young women, on the adult side, when you consider that Sex and the City was considered cutting-edge until relatively recently.
I also love seeing a real spectrum of characters – culturally, sexually and mentally ‘diverse’ – that are woven into narratives without being denormalised. The world is funny; the world is diverse. Any text that manages to get this across naturally and easily, preferably both at the same time, is winning.
Have you ever seen a book and thought I wish I’d published that?
I think each publisher brings such a unique slant and package to a manuscript, that it’s almost impossible to see finished books in that way. There are always, of course, books that have gone to auction that you’re disappointed not to have won, but generally I think it’s important to look at the things you’ve done well in-house.
If that’s too diplomatic an answer, I’ll add Harry Potter. Because when do you ever get to go to a theme park based on a story you’ve helped to create?! Wow.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to work in publishing, what would it be?
Read. It’s so obvious, but so important. Know the area of the market that you want to work in, and read everything you can get your hands on. Context is everything – once you’re in, you’ve got to be able to spot something fresh whilst helping readers find it based on the things they already know. If there’s a genre you particularly love, seek a job with an imprint that publishes that genre. Passion will get you a long way, and market knowledge will give you the edge. There’s no point applying for a job with a cookery imprint for the sake of it, if you really covet a role in sci-fi.
If you could give one piece of advice to an author and/or illustrator looking to get published, what would it be?
Keep at it. I’ve worked with authors who’ve had 100 rejection letters before they’ve even got an agent, and then gone on to sell hundreds of thousands of copies. The more you write, the better you get. I’d also say that the majority of the rejection letters I send are not as a result of a lack of talent, but because it’s not quite the right time for that particular subject or treatment. Your agent (get one of those!) will help you with this, but hone, resubmit, and resubmit again.
I first realised I wanted to work in publishing when I was sixteen – I was lucky enough to get a two-week work experience placement at Penguin after my GCSEs. When I was at university I realised that I still preferred reading children’s books for pleasure, so in the summer of my second year I did another two weeks’ work experience, this time at Puffin, and I just adored it. When I graduated I applied to every single publishing job going – in rights, in editorial, in publicity, in children’s and adults, in London and in New York (a girl can dream). I got a few interviews but never managed to get a job. I can remember just weeping and weeping after being told I hadn’t got a publicity job I really wanted . . . I was working as a temp at the Home Office and was desperate to leave. But then I spotted an ad for an Editorial Assistant job at Usborne Publishing. I had to write a book plan and the first three chapters of a book about the Olympics to get the job, and luckily I pulled it off. I spent four and a half years there, mostly writing children’s non-fiction (Usborne is quite unusual for a publishing company in that most of their books are written in-house). Then I worked as a non-fiction editor at Scholastic for a year before moving to Walker.
How would you spend a typical day at work?
I work on a wide variety of books, which is quite unusual in publishing, but I think it’s one of the best things about my job. I edit fiction, picture books, non-fiction and pop-up books, and I get to write books, too, which I love.
I always start the day by checking my emails, in case anything urgent has come up. Then I might have a meeting with an illustrator to go through the roughs for a pop-up book, or with an author, to discuss a young fiction book. After that I might write the text for a picture book or pop-up book, or read through some proofs EXTREMELY SLOWLY to check that no typos have slipped through. I often get in touch with our colleagues at Candlewick Press in the States to tell them about a new project we’re developing, or scour the internet looking for inspiration for new books.
What top two things do you love about your job?
Getting to be creative – brainstorming plots, coming up with new ideas and approaching people I think could write brilliant books for kids. And working with incredible writers and illustrators.
Which stories and/or illustration styles are catching your eye right now?
Stories-wise, I just look for things that are brilliantly written, from an author with a strong voice. It’s always exciting to read something genuinely funny, or gripping, or moving. Some of my favourite illustrators are already published by Walker – I like beautiful, contemporary, witty illustrators like Jon Klassen and Vivian Schwartz, and I love artists like Emily Sutton and Mark Hearld who appeal to both adults and children.
Have you ever seen a book and thought I wish I’d published that?
Loads of them: the Mr Gum books, the His Dark Materials trilogy, the Mog books . . . before I worked in publishing I picked up a copy of Michael Rosen’s Sad Book in Waterstones and burst into tears. I still cry every time I read it. To me the marriage of text and illustrations is just stunning - it’s a perfect picture book. And James Dawson's new book - This Book is Gay – I know it’s going to be brilliant. Amazing, amazing cover.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to work in publishing, what would it be?
Try and get a work experience placement – though I realise that might be easier said than done. You could apply directly to publishers, but you could also try getting in touch with editors or designers on Twitter. Publishing people are friendly and often want to give people a chance, so it’s worth a shot.
If you could give one piece of advice to an author and/or illustrator looking to get published, what would it be?
Try to get as good as possible at writing/illustrating before you try to get published. Writing is HARD. Illustrating is HARD. Do courses, read loads, do your research, and then just practise for ages. And then, when you think you’re ready, try to find an agent. (Get a copy of the Children’s Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook, try to find out who represents writers/illustrators you admire, follow them on Twitter and find out what they’re looking for!)
Welcome to the very first POP Profile post! I'm not gonna lie, I'm very excited about this! In these posts, I'll be pestering lots of lovely publishing folk into sharing little snippets of information about their jobs. If you want to work in children's book publishing, then these posts are for you! And, hey, even if you don't want to work in children's book publishing, you will love having a read. The industry is filled to the brim with wonderful, talented, interesting people, and I hope you'll enjoy finding out more about them.
First up is the rather marvellous Louise Grosart . . .
How did you get into children’s book publishing?
I have always loved books, especially children’s books, and I was in my last year at university when it dawned on me that I could work in publishing. It only took two minutes of research to work out how competitive the industry is, but even that didn’t put me off. I applied left, right and centre for work experience, hearing nothing until the following October, when Random House Children’s Books offered me a two week placement in the editorial department. It was the best two weeks of my life and I knew it was the job for me. I made sure I did the best job I could on everything I was given, asked lots of questions, talked to all the editors and found out all I could about working in editorial. After the work experience I had to get a normal job (as a bowls tours organizer) but I kept in touch with the editors I’d worked with at RHCB. Six months later they called me to say a PA role had come up in the department and asked if I would like to apply. The skills I’d honed whilst organizing tours were very transferable to the PA job role, and after going through the interview process I ended up getting the job! I could not have been happier and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. Since then I have worked my way up the editorial ranks to editor in the picture book team.
How would you spend a typical day at work?
I check my emails first thing and make a list of all the urgent things to get done. Then I will brief books, check layouts, go to meetings about the books I am working on. We work quite far ahead in the picture book team, so the books I am working on now will be coming out Spring/Summer next year. At the moment we are all in book fair lock-down, getting everything ready for the Frankfurt Book Fair in October.
What top two things do you love about your job?
Working with authors and helping to create beautiful books!
Which stories and/or illustration styles are catching your eye right now?
I’m looking for stories that are quirky and have something different about them – perhaps they’re classic stories told from a different angle or something new, fresh and exciting. The same goes for illustration styles – we’re looking for lots of different things – an illustrator of one book may or may not be perfect for other projects we’re working on. The style has to work for all our sales teams too.
Have you ever seen a book and thought I wish I’d published that?
I love Quentin Blake, Oliver Jeffers, Jill Murphy, Ed Vere and Simon Rickerty – so anything by them!
If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to work in publishing, what would it be?
Really think about what area of publishing you’d like to work in – a lot of people who are new to publishing think that they would be happy working on any type of books, but when it comes down to it, where would you most like to be? Also make sure you read everything big in that genre and look in all the bookshops to see how the shops are displaying these books; look at the covers and ask yourself what makes them part of the genre and what’s different about the ones you like. If you are fortunate enough to get a work experience placement then make sure you research the publisher you’re going to, and if you can find them, check the Twitter of the people you will be working with. That will give you an idea of what they are working on at the moment.
The best thing you can do is get a foot in the door and see how the publishing business works. I started as a PA and learned things about the company that I would not have learned if I had started as an editorial assistant.
If you could give one piece of advice to an author and/or illustrator looking to get published, what would it be?
Be yourself – and don’t follow the trends. Be as quirky, silly and interesting as you can and that will shine through in your work and everything you do.
Describe yourself in five words
Positive, curious, conscientious, loyal and friendly.