Insights from an intern: Behind the scenes at UQP

Ever wanted to lift the curtain on one of Australia’s leading publishing houses? Missy Burrell, Master of Writing, Editing and Publishing student at the University of Queensland, reflects on her time learning the ropes (and wrangling the pages) at UQP.

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying ‘never meet your heroes’. It was certainly something I was aware of heading into my first day of a 10-week internship at UQP. As a born and bred Gold Coaster, I tend to moon over UQP and its standing as Queensland’s only major publishing house with domestic and international distribution. I am an unashamed creep and commenter on UQP Instagram, it’s the first logo I look for on spines in my local bookshop, and I have been steadily stalking the team on LinkedIn for months. If your hero could be a brand, UQP would be mine.

But I know well enough that things are not always as they seem from the outside. Despite holding the position title of Intern, I am more Robert De Niro in The Intern and less fresh-faced uni student. I’ve worked professionally for over 18 years and have spent time within some of Australia’s biggest media brands, so I know firsthand that many jobs aren’t as glamorous or enviable (or ego-free) as one would think.

So I went into my first day fully-armed. ‘No, working at UQP was not going to be like an episode of Younger,’ was my mantra. I steeled myself for the possibility of cool co-workers, of meaningless tasks, of becoming the office joke. Or worse – that after shifting my career goals and diving back into study, I’d discover the world of editing and publishing was not really for me.

I needn’t have bothered. From the very first moment I entered the doors of UQP’s Brisbane offices, I felt truly welcomed. My mind spun as UQP Managing Editor Jacqueline Blanchard sat me down for an initial chat about current projects, my goals during my placement, and the importance of the editor/author relationship. I was being given unfettered access to UQP’s key personnel, and with a friendly smile and encouragement to boot. I don’t know if I have ever asked so many questions.

Over the weeks that followed I enjoyed weekly chats with Publishing Director Madonna Duffy, in addition to sessions spent with the wider team, covering everything from editing techniques, to publishing schedules, book rights and author contracts. I was like a sponge absorbing as much information and knowledge as I could in what I now regard as one of my most valuable learning experiences to date.

I guess the only way to pay it forward is to share some of the insight into the editing and publishing process that I’ve learned during my time at UQP.

Read the full article here.