Publishing expert, Sara O'Connor returns with another set of answers to your questions this month. This time she's focusing on New Adult, switching genres as a writer and offering her tips on how to get a job in publishing. There'll be a break during December, but please continue to send your questions in and Sara will answer these in the January Ask a Publisher Q&A.How easy/difficult is it to get a job in the publishing industry? Does it matter what degree you have, and is the best way in to get an internship? This is a topic I have blogged about a lot on the Hot Key blog. In short, it is pretty difficult. No, degrees don't matter as much as demonstrated commitment. Doing an internship can be a way in, but just as valuable is a project that you've done on your own initiative: publish an ebook, put together an anthology of writing, an online magazine, a regularly updated blog with a decent audience, volunteering in your library, putting on a local lit festival, etc. What you want to do is have a great letter, and then have assets to put on the table once you get your interview. You want to put something awesome down on the table and say, "I did this."
The much longer answer, including tips on cover letters and interviewing, plus a practical example of how one BookTuber broke into the industry can be found on this
link.
Is the New Adult genre becoming more popular/widely accepted? And do you think it is just a fad or is New Adult here to stay? I think the genre is very much an industry term - publishers and writers might know it, but the general reading public isn't really paying attention to those labels. And, yes, I do think publishers will want to continue publishing books with 18-25 year old protagonists, with a bit of racy content.
What are your thoughts on switching audiences and genres as a writer - e.g. as JKR has moving from children's to adult's and fantasy to contemporary. Does it make it harder for the publisher in terms of marketing or does it just give a wider reach to potential readers? Yes and yes, is the answer. It does make it harder for publishers, and I tend to advise writers to stick with one genre for three books, to get a hold in one, before trying another. But if you can write for different age groups, do! Another strategy is that if your current publisher doesn't want to publish you in a different age category, you can always try another. Several authors publish with one age group at one house and a different at another.
If you have any questions for Sara, you can either submit them in the comments section below or you can email them to writers@britishscbwi.org.
Sara O'Connor is the editorial director, print and digital at
Hot Key Books, acquiring books like The Sunday Times Children's Book of the Week
Shrunk! by Fleur Hitchcock,
Tribute by Ellen Renner,
Boonie by Richard Masson and
Clockwise to Titan by Elon Dann. She looks for books that are brilliantly written, that stand out and that have lovely authors behind them, with a slight preference towards the 9-12 age category.
She's also in charge of the digital strategy for Hot Key, working with a brilliant digital team to produce projects like the interactive iBook of Costa-award-winning
Maggot Moon.
