The Publishing Careers iPod Playlist

Wondering what to listen to on those occasions when you're feeling a bit bookish? Here's what's playing on my iPod:

1. "Everyone Needs an Editor": Mates of State
2. "Unwritten": Natasha Beddingfield
3. "The Book of Love": The Monotones
4. "Ed! It! Or!": Dan Melchior
5. "Book of Days": Enya
6. "Bookstore Girl": Common Shiner
7. "Paperback Writer": The Beatles
8. "No More Words": Berlin
9. "The Book I Read": Talking Heads
10. "Every Picture Tells a Story": Rod Stewart
11. Anything by the Editors
12. "Every Day I Write the Book": Elvis Costello

Lindsey Pollak: "I'm a Literature Major...Help!"

Today author and careers blogger Lindsey Pollak answers a reader question that could have come from any of us: What can you do with a literature major?

Her advice is solid and exactly what I would recommend:

• Learn about career options other than teaching.
• Take classes in other, more marketable areas to supplement your literature major.
• Get an internship.
• Join related professional associations.
• Get a related part-time job.
• Find a mentor.

Have a Publishing Panel Discussion!

I read this article a few days ago in the student newspaper for Southern Methodist University in Dallas. The career center at SMU sponsored a panel discussion of alums who have worked in publishing. They shared their experiences with current students interested in learning about jobs in the publishing world.

Their advice is interesting and helpful (if not a little superficial--but it's a newspaper article, after all). It made me think how easily this could be done on other campuses. If you're a student interested in publishing, go to your college career center and ask whether they can bring in an alum (or two or three) to give a presentation on the subject. Maybe you can even volunteer to help set up and publicize it. (Something for your resume!)

There's a lesson here for those of you who already have a job in publishing, too. Why not volunteer to go back to your alma mater and give a presentation for the students in the English and journalism programs? Your university will be grateful (but don't be surprised if they start asking for more—like hiring students as interns, buying an ad in their publications, or being a sponsor for a job fair). It's also a wonderful networking opportunity. It can never hurt to get chummy with your former school's career staff. They often are aware of job vacancies suitable for older alums.

I do practice what I preach. I've spoken to University of Evansville students about publishing careers (although just informally in a class). I also met recently with their alumni/careers liaison when she was in town and I told her I'd be willing to come back again and speak about publishing careers and critique some resumes (I think I've read close to 5,000 of them in my years as a resume-book editor—and I am not, as Dave Barry says, making this up).

Roving Indexer Finds Herself in the Middle of the California Wildfires

Former coworker Joy Dean Lee has a unique lifestyle. She is a freelance indexer and copy editor; and thanks to the magic of the Internet, she doesn't have to stay in one place to do it. So several years ago she sold her home and took to the road. She is also a house- and pet-sitter, so she travels all over the country to watch people's homes for them while they are on vacation, all the while keeping up with her freelance work.

It's been an awesome thing for her. She gets to visit friends and family and see all sorts of new places. This week, however, word came that she is in the San Diego area as the flames approach the house she is sitting. She has the great responsibility of saving what she can of her client's possessions (and her cat) if the flames get too close.

We have been anxiously awaiting updates. This morning she e-mailed a link to her blog, where you can keep up-to-date on her current saga and read about some of her past exploits.

Napping at Workman

My Google alerts just turned up an interesting article from the The New Yorker. Apparently, after publishing a book on the benefits of napping on the job, Workman Publishing (one of the largest and most celebrated independents) decided to give it a try themselves. So now they're all jamming themselves into nooks and crannies to catch a few Zs, not unlike a scene from Dr. Seuss's Sleep Book.

I dunno. On one hand, this could be a boon on those days when you're not feeling well or were up at all hours with a teething toddler. But something like this seems like it would be easy to abuse--on both sides. Hungover slackers might take more than a short cat-nap. Employers might use the priviledge to justify asking people to work extended hours. I think I'd rather just get my work done and then go home and sleep in my own bed.

The Society for Scholarly Publishing

If you are interested in learning more about jobs that are available in scholarly publishing (at universities, professional associations, and even mainstream publishers), check out the job board at the Society for Scholarly Publishing. This organization, founded in 1978 and headquartered in Colorado, is "a nonprofit organization formed to promote and advance communication among all sectors of the scholarly publication community through networking, information dissemination, and facilitation of new developments in the field."

The Chicago Book Clinic

Thanks today to my former boss Michael Cunningham, who is now publications manager at the University of Chicago Press Journals Division. He alerted me to the existence of the Chicago Book Clinic, a professional organization founded in 1936 to "encourage excellence in publishing by providing a platform for educational, social, and professional interaction of their members." Those members include professionals in media and book publishing, printing, editorial, design, and all business aspects of the industry.

That's all well and good. But what you're probably most interested in is their Jobline. Although it's not super-active (maybe just a few posts a month), reading the older postings gives a really good picture of the companies in the Chicago area, their jobs, and their hiring requirements.

The CBC's big event for the year is coming up in just a few weeks. The 56th Book and Media Show is an awards ceremony, exhibit, and dinner celebrating the outstanding quality of publishing in the central U.S. and Canada. It's November 8 at the Chicago City Centre Hotel.