five years later: the denver publishing institute 

Note: This article was written in 2017, five years after graduating with my Certificate in Publishing from the Denver Publishing Institute at the University of Denver.

some background

I graduated from the University of Florida in 2009, during a less-than-stellar economic climate. Job opportunities were supposedly few and far between, and I was a music major (gasp!) with no professional experience, outside of 8 years in childcare. And yet, somehow, within two weeks of moving from Florida to Charlotte, North Carolina, post-graduation, I landed my first real-world, full-time, salary-paying position.

The title? Customer Relationship Manager for Direct Digital, an e-commerce startup based in Charlotte, North Carolina. I was one of their first outside hires. There were five of us hustlin' away in an ultra-modern office, complete with a kitchen island and an indoor waterfall. We all wore sneakers, jeans, and hoodies—and when we needed a breather, a Ping Pong table and arcade games were within arm's reach.

I had no idea how lucky I was to snag that gig. Since we all wore multiple hats, I jumped at opportunities to copyedit marketing materials and draft press releases—my first try at professional writing/editing. I loved it.

In 2011, adventure brought me from Charlotte to Denver, and for a while my luck followed me. Direct Digital co-founder Brandon Adcock allowed me to work remotely, which was a godsend, because the Denver job market was exponentially more ruthless. I was applying to thousands of jobs, but nothing was panning out. A fun aside: In my search I discovered Colorado Homes & Lifestyles and Mountain Living magazines and tapped them as my dream job, but there were no openings at the time (nor would they have had any reason to hire me).

I ended up accepting the first job offer I received in six months, mainly because I knew Brandon probably secretly preferred to have someone in-house, and even my introverted self was ready to interact with people. Moving to a new city and working from home is a surefire recipe for cabin fever.

That first offer? A receptionist position at a Mad Men-esque accounting firm. Cringe.

Let's just say that there is nothing like a soul-draining job to motivate you to figure out what you want to do with your life. I started creating the intention to notice what I loved about my job and what I didn't. I loved editing documents and proposing marketing ideas; I hated answering phones and compiling giant tax returns. I remembered how much I loved tackling those communications projects in Charlotte, too.

One day, while reading someone's self-published book and feverishly taking a red pen to every other sentence (I couldn't help it), a light bulb went off.  I should be an editor! After researching how to become one, I concluded there were two significant steps to take: 1.) attend a graduate publishing course, and 2.) get some freelance editing experience.

What were the most prestigious publishing institutes in America (that were typically four to six weeks in length)? 

The Columbia Publishing Course, the NYU Summer Publishing Institute, and... the Denver Publishing Institute. With one of the top-three courses just minutes away from my house, I knew I had to take action. I applied, was accepted, and gave my two weeks' notice at the accounting firm. Nothing was more liberating and exciting! I also found a standing freelance editing/proofreading job with Minerva Medical Communications to bring in a little income. Within weeks of earning my Publishing Certificate, I bagged my first editorial title: Associate Editor with Summit Professional Networks (now ALM). And two years after that, I applied and got my dream job with WiesnerMedia, working with design content and managing the two brand-new websites for Colorado Homes & Lifestyles and Mountain Living magazines.

It's been a little over 5 years since I graduated from the Denver Publishing Institute, but it feels like a lifetime. 

what is the denver publishing institute?

The Denver Publishing Institute is a graduate-level course in book publishing hosted by the University of Denver every summer. During the four-week, full-time schedule, around 100 bright-eyed students receive not only a solid foundation in the wonderful world of book publishing, but also an intricate network of insiders for their eventual job search. The course is taught by an array of qualified industry professionals who work at trade, university, textbook, and small independent publishers throughout the country (many in New York, the publishing mecca). Projects and field trips offer hands-on experience, too.

what does the curriculum look like?

BEFORE YOU START

In the weeks leading up to the course, we were given multiple advance assignments to complete: technical editing, a little creative writing, and some marketing concepts/observations.

WEEKS 1 & 2

Editorial professionals from Big Six houses (Random House, Penguin, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster), university presses, textbook publishers, and children’s book presses spoke to us about the ins and outs of their jobs: publishers, literary agents, editors, and copyeditors (thankfully we learned about all the different types of editing). We learned about the process a book goes though from query to print—many aspects I'd never considered before and found incredibly interesting.

Note: At the start of the program, the Denver Publishing Institute director Joyce Meskis told us to stay flexible with where our publishing paths would take us. I took this to heart early. Later on in the program when Daniel Brogan from 5280 came to speak about magazine publishing, I knew that's where I wanted to be. Until then I aimed to keep an open mind, toying with all facets of publishing.

WEEK 3

Marketing, marketing, marketing. So much of book publishing is ensuring that it sells, a simple idea that most wannabe-editors don't ponder until, perhaps, they attend a course like this. We learned about social media marketing, print ad campaigns, publicity, and public relations. We crafted our own marketing projects and presented them to the class. At this point, my interest had evolved from book editing to literary representation, so I reached out to local literary agent Jody Rein, nervously met her for coffee, embarrassingly used the word "swagger" when I meant "swag," and yet somehow she allowed me to be her social media marketing intern. She taught me a lot about Twitter in those early days. (Thanks, Jody!)

WEEK 4

The final week taught us how to secure a job in publishing, no holds barred. We went through a series of mock interviews, resume evaluations, and then real interviews in a giant conference room with numerous publishers and companies set up at booths and tables. Denver Publishing Institute alumni returned to participate in a panel discussion, sharing their stories about breaking into the industry and finding their way. 

do i need to attend a course to break into publishing?

No, you don't. Some of the best and most marketable skills I have on my resume have been self-taught, accumulated over years of faking-it-til-you-make-it, and gleaned from others who have more experience than I do. But the course gave me instant confidence applying to editorial jobs right out the gate, and I've been going ever since.