9 tips for a successful book publishing career

40 years ago I walked through the big red doors of Andre Deutsch Ltd and started my career in book publishing.?

I feel very lucky and privileged to be working with so many creative talented people who work with books. For so many of us, working in book publishing is a vocation; the need to work with words or illustrations and turn them into beautiful books which can educate, inspire, comfort or entertain. Oh, and make money too; let’s not forget that book publishing is an industry, like any other industry, and to be successful it needs to be profitable.?

There are so many words of wisdom I could impart but here are a few practical reminders for anyone who aspires to have a successful career.?

1.?????Learn how to read and understand instructions. It seems such a simple thing, but really it will change your life, your career, and everything around you. So many people fail to read the whole job advertisement, the whole email, the whole document, or don’t understand what they’ve been sent. As a result, they end up not getting the job, miss critical details, or weren't prepared, or fail to ask appropriate questions. Learn how to read and understand instructions; it will be a life changing experience.

2.?????Proofread everything you send out. Now I know I’m the person who can’t seem to write a post without a mistake, and I regularly maintain the whole of the bookcareers.com website is a proofreading test, but usually all of us are judged, whether we realise or not, by the typos and mistakes we make. We can’t always blame autocorrect. So, if you’re starting out, make sure whatever communications you send out are error free, and when you’re in a job, continue to do this. Your employer’s reputation as a publisher relies on you sending out error free communications.?

3.?????Do not work for free. You do not need unpaid work experience to get a publishing job. Mostly at entry level you need office experience. You need to know how to open a document and start typing, write an email, manage a busy email inbox, prioritise and organise your work, book an appointment or manage an office diary, take minutes at meetings, keep to a schedule, and talk to someone in a professional manner. None of those tasks require publishing experience, yet they probably make up 70% of the tasks in an entry level publishing job.?

4.?????Prioritise your work life balance. People who work all the hours, don’t make good employees, and people who are the most successful in their careers have a good life outside of their job. So even if your role is demanding or there is more work than you can do, then set some boundaries as to what you can and can’t do. If you’re having difficulty doing this, especially if you have work overload, then do get in touch with me.?

5.?????Aim to keep on good terms with everyone.??Everyone in publishing knows everyone else. I am still working with people from 40 years ago, although quite a few have recently retired or are about to retire. You never lose anyone in publishing, they just might go off to be remaindered (publishing in-joke there). If someone you meet is truly an idiot, you can guarantee many other people think they are an idiot too, but still treat them with respect.?

6.?????Treat everyone as you wish to be treated yourself. Every time you go to an event and meet new people, pick up the phone, or respond to someone, remember they could be your next bestselling author or someone who could have direct influence on your career. But even if someone has no value to you, they still deserve to receive the best from you.

The example I would like to give here is speculative enquiry, someone who might get put through to on the phone to the editorial department, asking about how to get their manuscript published or who they should address their email to. Remember the crotchety voice on the other end of the phone could be someone quite famous or influential in you getting your next job. Also, by treating everyone as you wish to be treated, means the industry encourages equality, inclusivity and diversity.

7.?????Be the change you want to see. Whatever job or role you want to aspire to, start acting like you are in that role now in the way you think, behave and make decisions. You don’t need a posh job title to validate your role and, as I was told in my first few weeks of being an Office Junior, a job is what you make of it.?

8.????Be the person who initiates change. The publishing industry has gone through the most immense changes over the past 40 years, most of which have happened in the past 10 to 15 years. Currently, the whole industry is talking about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how that will affect authors, the books we publish, the work we do, and who we employ to do that work.?

Most people think that change is something they must cope with or they will tell you that change is something you have to adapt to. I say if you want to succeed in book publishing, you need to be one of the people who initiates change, the person who sees opportunities and after doing some research, takes those opportunities and moves forward with them.?

Do not remain static. The most successful people are forever changing and evolving along with the world.?

9.?????Never stop learning. The day you stop learning is the day you die. Embrace every opportunity you are given to learn something new. Even if it is something you are not remotely interested in. We never lose experience, but we can bank it and save it for another day. I sometimes have conversations with friends outside of publishing about how I appear to know so much about every topic. And I respond, everything I’ve ever learned I read in a book.

May you all be doing a job you love and being paid the salary you so richly deserve, and if you’re not, do get in touch.

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