For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to help with access to education in some form. Although I have always held a deep love for literature, I had never considered publishing as a career path until I literally stumbled into the wrong meeting one day. What should have been a meeting about school psychology turned out to be about publishing. I remember feeling as if I’ve found the perfect fit—books after all are the foundation of a good education.
Do you have any advice for anyone just starting out?
Don’t ever stop learning. Take the time to be aware of what is happening in the industry and to learn new skills that will inform your work—read, listen to podcasts, ask questions, shadow people, etc. Aim to always be better and to grow with the times. Get to know your colleagues from across all divisions, not just the people you work with every day. It’s so important to build those relationships. Lastly, you should have a life outside of publishing. Your job is just a job at the end of the day even if it is something meaningful and one which you love (hopefully).
What are some of the challenging things about working as an editorial assistant?
I think one of the most challenging things working as an editorial assistant – associate editor is finding the time to do the things you need to do for your supervisors while trying to read and create a list of your own. Also, it can sometimes be harder to advocate for projects you are interested in for a variety of reasons.
What sort of voices and stories are you looking for?
I am someone who swoons over a good sentence. I am drawn to good literary writing across all genres. As a POC in the industry, I am always on the lookout for stories and art by BIPOC creators, especially those from the Caribbean community. I think this sentiment might resonate with a lot of people, but I desperately want stories that showcase BIPOC joy and stories that integrate different identities in a seamless manner regardless of plot.
You did your Master's thesis on diversity in children's publishing. What if anything has changed since you wrote it?
For my thesis, I used the data collected by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center. In 2015, books about people of color (African Americans, American Indians/First Nations, Asian Pacifics/Asian Pacific Americans, Latinx) represented 14.8% of the children’s book market. In 2018, the most recent year data is available for, children’s books about POC represented 28.5% of the market. This is great news—it highlights a slow but steady increase. However, it is worth noting that in 2015, forty-eight percent of children were categorized as a person of color by the U.S. Census Bureau, with that number only expected to rise—marking a stark disparity between what we are publishing as an industry, versus what the market actually looks like.
How do you think managers can be better advocates for retaining people of color?
I think the below can apply to anyone, but, truthfully, POC traditionally deal with so many challenges to begin with, the last thing they should have to worry about is a manager who doesn’t know how to guide them and to advocate for them.
Give your reports the opportunity to do meaningful and impactful work and make sure that they are recognized for it.
Allow your employees the space and time to grow professionally on their own, with your guidance. Make time for that guidance.
Break industry standards and do better. Just because industry pay is supposed to be X, getting a promotion is supposed to take X amount of time, assistants can do X but can’t do Z, doesn't mean that those rules should stay. Advocate for your employees and forget about the status quo.
Don’t be ashamed of making a mistake along the way. Own it and learn from it.
Do you have any advice on how to keep our spirits up during these times?
Do things that you love and want to do, without the heaping of guilt. We are living in revolutionary times and in order to keep making "good trouble," we need to take care of ourselves.
Gianna Lakenauth is an Editorial Assistant at Knopf Books for Young Readers. She enjoys tea, the sound of the sea, a good book, and television. She is an aspiring cat owner, world traveler, and the perfect made-from-scratch chocolate cake baker.
Books and Crannies is an independent bookstore featuring fiction and non-fiction accompanied by a selection of children's books and a wide range of titles.
Books and Crannies is an advocate for those who love literature and believe we play an important role in our community. We hope to continue engaging with the community by bringing new ideas and activities to the area to help expand the minds of the citizens through a shared love for literature for many years to come.
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