Interview with an Intern!

This past semester, our new intern Kelly Neubeiser had the opportunity to intern with Simon & Schuster in London. Today, Kelly sat down with us to discuss some of her experiences at S&S, and we realized that while these two publishers could not be any more dissimilar, there are some elements that this publishing powerhouse and our intimate academic press actually share.

Gigi: What are some responsibilities that you had at S&S that you’re looking forward to continuing Wake Forest University Press? What tasks seem different?
Kelly: At S&S I was given the responsibility of uploading quotes and reviews to Amazon.com, which I am told I may be able to continue doing at the Press. It’s interesting to me to be able to read what other authors and reviewers think about different publications. I also sat in on cover meetings where different covers for books were discussed and voted upon. I’d love to continue doing that at the Press as well. Another thing I did often at S&S was check and edit voucher proofs. I know at the Press this is done as well, which I hope to also partake in. Because I have not been at the Press very long, I do not know how these tasks will differ, specifically. However, because I know that the Press is much smaller in publication and more personal, I feel that these tasks will differ in their time, frequency, and scale.

Gigi: What are you most looking forward to in working with Wake Forest University Press this semester?
Kelly: I am most looking forward to the different feel of the Press. Because the press is smaller, I can tell that the workers are more personal and therefore I feel I will get a less corporate feel. I’m hoping this will teach me even more about publication, because I will be right at the source of all of the decisions. At S&S, many things were so fast-paced and went through so many different departments that sometimes I was confused by the whole process. I’m looking forward to being more hands-on with many tasks and therefore learning more behind the entire publication process. I’m also excited to learn about the different genre that WFU Press puts out than S&S. I know that the Press specializes in Irish poetry, which is very different from the S&S publications. Because I’m an English major, I love reading different things, and I know at the Press I will get a chance to do so.

Gigi: What intrigued you the most about working for Wake Forest University Press this semester?
Kelly: What intrigued me most was the overall operation of the Press. I can tell that it is a place where people feel comfortable working, but also work very hard. Even though the Press is small, their jobs matter to them. I always get notifications on my facebook about the WFU Press and Twitter updates. I wanted to know what there was to tweet about, what was going on in the facebook community, etc. I was intrigued to be a part of it all.