Publishing

A love of books is not as rudimentary a requirement for this career as you might imagine. Publishing is a huge industry and a considerable amount of business acumen would be much more supportive in your career than a penchant for Dostoyevsky…

Current Climate
You would be forgiven for assuming the world of publishing was heaving due to the sheer volume of ‘celebrity’ autobiographies around. However the reality is not as promising; reading is quickly losing its place in the interests and hobbies section of peoples CVs. This decrease spells negative connotations for publishing firms and as it becomes more difficult for a writer to make a profit, companies are forced to be more restrictive with what they accept and choose to invest in.

Know Your Place
Publishers' representatives: Aim to publicise and sell publications from a publisher's list of titles. The work involves visiting places such as specialist bookshops, wholesalers, libraries and schools. To be a publisher's representative, you will need self-confidence, self-reliance, persistence and enthusiasm. The ability to work independently, make contact with customers and organise your workload, is essential.

Good communication skills are also important for one-to-one discussions and for more formal presentations to groups of potential customers. You need to be persuasive to gain sales. You will need listening skills too to gather information about the market trends and pick up ideas for new publications.

Editors: Usually work as either commissioning editors or copy-editors.

Commissioning editors: Tend to deal with the business side, for example identifying gaps in the market, commissioning authors to write books and liaising with literary agents.

Copy-editors: Are concerned with the unpublished manuscript. They check the text for style, accuracy and grammar.

Show Me the Money
Starting salaries are in the range of €20,000 to €27,000. A qualified and experienced editor earns in the range of €29,000 to €42,000 a year. Top earners may make up to €52,500 a year.

Top Tip
Applying to small companies, where editors do most of the work, will give you greater experience. If you are employed in a large firm the danger is that you won’t learn much and will be confined to filing and making coffee. Working in a closer environment will assist you in developing the skills and knowledge that you will need to rise in the industry.

Further Resources
Irish Book Publishers’ Association
25 Denzille Lane
Dublin 2
Phone: 01 639 4868
Web: www.publishingireland.com
Email: info@publishingireland.com

Penguin Ireland
25 St. Stephen's Green
Dublin 2
Ireland
Phone: 01 661 7695
Web: www.penguin.ie
Email: info@penguin.ie