You've sent in questions, and, as promised, here are the first of the answers.
What’s your favorite part of being an editor?
My favorite aspect of the publishing industry is, hands down, getting to meet and work with people who love the same things I do—books. We’re constantly meeting editors, agents, and authors, from those who are just writing their first short story to celebrated New York Times bestsellers. It’s a bookworm’s dream-come-true and a Mecca for those of us who like to discuss word origins, definitions, and plotting.
What’s your typical day like?
As a young editor at HarperCollins, I find that no two days are ever the same. But my typical day is filled with multi-tasking. I spend a great deal of time answering emails; working with authors and agents; managing in-house documents to ensure that book and author information is accurate and up-to-date; writing and reviewing cover copy/ catalog copy/ and anything else that gets printed or sent out-of-house; hauling/shipping/ordering books; blogging; going to a lot of meetings (editorial, marketing, art); concepting cover ideas; working with marketing and publicity to gain exposure for books, and then tracking that exposure; documenting and managing all of the bits and pieces that go into creating a book; working with design and production to achieve the right interior aesthetic; creating the basic documents that contracts are drafted from; assessing numbers and the viability of projects; and generally making sure that everyone has what they need, when they need it for the book to move smoothly from a manuscript to the shelves of B&N, Borders or your favorite Independent. Once all of that is done, I read and review manuscripts that we are considering for publication and edit my own books. And, of course, I'm sure that I have forgotten many, many things.
--Emily Krump
Assistant Editor
Morrow/Avon/Eos
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