An overview and description of the jobs and careers in the field of publishing.
Publishing is an exciting field centered on the creation and distribution of written materials. People working in this field are employed in many kinds of different jobs. They may books or edit magazines or review restaurants or advice companies on the best ways to reach readers.
If you are thinking about a career in this field there are several things you should decide in advance. Before you begin you will need to get an education. Most publishers greatly prefer to hire applicants for all job titles with college degrees. Your college major can be equally essential. Many companies give preference to people who majored in the liberal arts, particularly in majors like English or communications where strong writing skills are vitally important.
Another aspect of this field that merits careful thought is exactly where you want to work. Publishing jobs can be roughly divided into the editorial department and everything else.
Editorial jobs are jobs where the employee works directly with written materials. This includes jobs such as copyeditors, managing editors, journalists, authors, agents, designers and fact checkers.
Copy editors typically work for magazines and newspapers where they examine articles closely, searching for typographical and grammatical errors. Mistakes are pointed out using a system of special symbols that are often written in contrasting color on a computer or paper copy. They may also polish the copy by adding or subtracting sentences in order to make the article flow better. As you might expect a copy editor needs to have a great eye for detail and an excellent command of English grammar and spelling. Companies often give potential employees an editing test before they can even be considered for hiring.
Managing editors are often employed by magazines. They hire freelance writers, supervise staff and plan the layout of each month's issue. A managing editor often takes responsibility for the entire look and feel of every single article.
Journalists typically report on the news. They observe events, interview people and write articles that adhere to accepted objective news standards. Journalists can also become columnists where they express their own personal opinions on a subject. Journalists often work in print media but may also work on television or the Internet.
Authors typically write books. Their books are divided into fiction and non-fiction. Fiction is material that isn't true. Non-fiction is largely based on fact, although the author may write the book to promote a controversial opinion. When not writing new books, authors often attend book signings at bookstores to promote their works. At this event they read chapters out loud and take questions about the book's contents.
Agents usually serve as an author's representative. They read submitted manuscripts for publishing houses and negotiate on an author's behalf. A significant percentage of publishing houses will not take manuscripts that aren't vetted by an agent. An agent looks closely at a manuscript to determine if the book is not only reasonably well written but will find readers once on the bookshelves.
A fact checker checks written copy for factual accuracy. Fact checkers may call a writer's sources directly to ascertain that someone actually said what they're quoted as saying. They also consult with books like encyclopedias and atlases to ensure that all assertions made by the writer are true.
The non-editorial field in publishing overlaps with other industries. For instance a newspaper might hire someone to be in charge of circulation or sales. In this instance the employee works on expanding the areas where the paper is seen and read. People working in the circulation area also often work with salespeople to increase the number of advertisements in the paper. They can visit local businesses and ask if they are interested in taking out an add in the paper. Circulation managers also work with customer service representatives to make sure customers are satisfied with the magazine or newspaper's delivery policies.
Other positions often employed in the publishing industry include lawyers, office managers, computer technicians, human resource workers and mailroom clerks.
Whether you like to write fiction, sell advertising space or help people make sure the latest issue of their favorite magazine gets delivered promptly, a career in the publishing field can offer you many opportunities.
