Typical Day of an Editorial Assistant

[solace_aderyn]

Well, technically there is no such thing as a typical day, as more often than not there are deadlines to be met NOW, but generally it’s like this.

In at 9.30, check emails and post: at the moment, for example, there’s a fair few from authors, as I’m the first point of contact for them till my boss gets back from holiday. I rarely get contacted by agents: the majority of them are smart enough to head straight to my boss, who has the final say on any submission anyway. If you have an agent, and they’ve contacted me, it’s not a good sign for you.

Anyway, as well as existing authors, I get on average 3-5 from hopeful authors too. These are immediately placed in the Submissions folder to be looked at later on in the day.

About 10.30-11: shift to various tasks through the day. These can consist of:

Contracts: making sure everyone has payments up to date, depending on how far their manuscript has got
Arranging gratis copies
Creating advance information sheets on titles
Writing cover copy
Suggesting rewrites
Updating author details: photos, contact details, etc. And no, I won’t give out Esteemed Author’s Address, no matter how much of a fan you are.
General tidying up (though this is rare now)
Circulating cover for opinions/approval
Anything else that people need help with, and that I can do

2.30: break. Yep, I take lunch late. At first it was because I simply kept forgetting, and now I’ve settled into a routine. Today, I haven’t shifted from my desk once, as it’s been a Busy Day. It’s a bizarre world where you can be completely exhausted and yet still feel your ass grow.

3-5.30: My submissions time. It’s becoming apparent that 2 hours a day isn’t enough to spend on them, however, and this is probably going to expand.

I also occasionally volunteer for events that the publisher offers, though this is rare for an assistant to do.