This blog post is one of a series of Q&As with staff working at Liverpool University Press. We hope through these blog posts that prospective employees and those interested in joining the publishing industry can find out more about LUP and the career paths our staff have taken along the way.
Here we speak with Alice Tradewell, Books Marketing Assistant at Liverpool University Press.
What did you do before this job and how did you get your current role at LUP?
I studied German and Social Policy at the University of Leeds and worked in hospitality since I was 16. I realised I wanted to get into publishing towards the end of university, and when I finished, I completed an internship at Felicity Bryan Associates, a literary agency in Oxford. The internship took place over 3 months, and I did placements at Hachette, Profile, a literary scout, and a foreign rights agency. The programme is designed for people underrepresented in the industry, so they provide a bursary that covers rent and travel costs, whilst also paying the Oxford Living Wage. This made it possible for me, as someone who is working-class and Northern. When I finished the internship, I moved to Manchester and worked in an independent bookshop and café called House of Books & Friends. I was part of its opening team and became a Principal Bookseller during my time there.
What career or job did you imagine for yourself when you were at school?
I loved football and writing so I wanted to be a sports journalist.
What does your job entail? What does a typical day look like?
I am a Books Marketing Assistant, so I help market the academic books that LUP publishes. Each of us in the team works on our own list of books, so I look after Medieval Studies, Ancient History & Classics, Irish Studies, Postcolonial Studies, and Society & Culture. A typical day would be spent making assets for social media, replying to authors about events they have coming up and creating any promotional materials they might like, preparing for any academic conferences, submitting books to prizes and organising review copies to be sent out.
What skills did you bring to the job? Where did you learn these?
I believe I have brought problem-solving skills and adaptability to the job, which I learnt through many years in hospitality and retail. When you work in a customer-facing role, you have to think on your feet a lot of the time, and I have become quick to adapt because of that. Fortunately, in a role like this, there is more time to come up with solutions, but it definitely helps when you can think quickly and clearly.
What is your favourite part of your job?
My favourite part of the job is talking to authors and colleagues in the industry who are based all over the world. It’s also great when a book you have been working on has been recognised through a prize or a review in a magazine, and you can say you helped make that happen!
What advice or tips would you give for anyone interested in joining the publishing world?
Be open to any opportunities out there. It’s an incredibly oversubscribed industry and lots of people early in their career want to work in Editorial in trade publishing. I found this very difficult, especially as I was searching for jobs exclusively in the North, and this meant options were severely limited. Opening up my job search to the academic world was probably the best thing I did, and means I now have a job I absolutely love, and I get to learn new things all the time. I’m now interested in aspects of the industry I didn’t know existed before I started at LUP, such as Open Access and distribution services.
I would also say to apply to any kind of mentorship, internship or anything else that can give you access to real people in the industry. Advice and encouragement are great and can really propel you into a great place in your career, or even just provide motivation to carry on.
Finally, I would say don’t make being a publishing hopeful your entire world – it’s an amazing industry to be a part of, but in the end it is still just a job, and there will be many out there when the time comes.
Learn more about careers at LUP on our website >
Learn more about Alice’s typical day as a Books Marketing Assistant on our Instagram >
Follow us for more updates
Sign up to our mailing list
Follow us on social media
www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk
Liverpool University Press Blog 