Future of Terrasen

London Book Fair

Hi guys,

I went to the London Book Fair yesterday and thought I'd tell you all about the experience.

1. it's international - literally hundreds of people from around the world were there.

2. publishing companies, authors, universities, agencies and printers were all there.

3. if you feel like going but cannot afford the £50 ticket, get a ticket and enter your information claiming you're a student (doesn't matter if you're not; my mum managed to get in for free so they don't really care) and when it says where is your business/employer pick your school/college/uni.

4. people can be snobby and fob you off if you aren't a trader - if you aren't there to do business most of the companies don't want to know you. But if you find the right people or go to the children's section upstairs or Author HQ they'll talk to you.

5. just by chance I managed to speak to a lovely lady from HarperCollins' HR department. She gave me some useful advice about applying for jobs (I'll note them in my job-tips section).

6. I then spoke to the Publisher's Association. Now these are more for people already in the industry, like freelancers, however, I've heard of them before at uni and explained that. Another lovely woman, showed me to Oxford University's stand and they discussed a Masters course (MA) in publishing who then go on to provide you with work experience, etc. However, Oxford was too far for me and I have already been to uni and have too big a debt and don't wish to add to it.

7. I went upstairs and a really nice author named Ana Nac, who founded Fun Space Books, and is releasing a new children's book called Pancakes to the Moon. I know I'm not a child anymore but she kindly gave me a free copy (and signed it!) and I just have to say the detail of the artwork in that book is amazing. I looked through some of the writing (I haven't read it properly yet) and it's very appropriate for young children and the story seems very sweet. If any of you know any little children and want to get them reading, give this one a go!

8. Author's HQ - had SfEP (Society of Editors and Proofreaders) and SoA (Society of Authors) that provide courses for those who either want to improve their writing or learn how to edit & proofread whether its for your own work or someone else's. These courses aren't free (neither are their memberships) but if you can, it's still worth looking into. I certainly will be once I've saved up.

9. Freebies - lots and lots of them! Badges, pens and bags....

Job Tips:

Tips I learnt from the lectures they had & from speaking to people.

- it took someone three years to even get into a role within the company

- booksellers in a bookshop is a good starting point as many come from that background

- twitter is a must-have

- do your research: you must know their current best-sellers, their company values, the company's mission, authors, etc... you will be tested on it!

- tailor your covering letter to each company you apply for: you cannot use the same letter for each company, so yes. you. will. have. to. do. the. extra. work. Make sure you include the company's name (and spell it correctly) if you don't mention some of the research you've done into the company (don't say "I researched blah blah....") then it will go straight in the bin.

- TRANSFERABLE SKILLS: this was a big one that came up. If you do not come from a publishing background but have customer service skills, time-keeping skills, etc..etc... USE THEM. Demonstrate you have these skills and that they can be transferred to the role you're after.

- if you are going to contact someone regarding a job, do it on Monday morning 10am this is because they are refreshed from the weekend and are in that 'let's get down to business' mind frame. 10 am means you won't be the annoying first email, the one that makes them groan, but you'll be earlier enough they won't be tired to answer.

If I can think of any more, I'll let you know!! I'm at work currently so don't have the notes I took.

Hope this helps anyone looking to get a career in publishing!! :)(: