Publishing careers

Departments - Production

Book production is obviously a critical stage in the publishing process, but it's often viewed as one of the less glamorous ones.

However, there is the potential to learn some very useful skills, such as familiarity with certain software packages and how to prepare electronic documents for print. Also crucial are management, scheduling and negotiation skills, as you deal with the book printers, who may well be based overseas.

In some companies, the production department is merged with the editorial department, arguably allowing for smoother workflow and less conflict when deadlines are missed or schedules squeezed. It is therefore just possible to use a starting job in production as a way into a job in editorial. Some people try this because fewer people are likely to be competing for production jobs. If you do this, you should ascertain that the role really would give you skills that you could transfer to a future editorial job, but it's obviously not something you should mention in your application or interview!

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