Working in Publishing with Eleanor Rose

Eleanor Rose is a Production Assistant Apprentice at Bloomsbury through LDN Apprenticeships.

For Work in Publishing Week 2019, Eleanor told us about how she started her career in publishing through the LDN Apprenticeship scheme.

Work in Publishing aims to inspire young people aged 14-24 to pursue a career in publishing.

I got into the industry by applying on the LDN Apprenticeships website, where I found the Production Assistant role for Bloomsbury listed – one of the 16 roles to be offered in the new apprenticeship scheme. I had to go through an interview process but eventually received the good news.

I started in October and, since then, have learnt an incredible amount. Not only have I been trained to use various software, but I have also had inside knowledge of the whole production process. This includes making contacts both inside and outside the organisation.

The apprenticeship requires us to complete various training activities; research tasks, projects, assignments, online learning etc. With this, I have gained so much knowledge in the other departments of the industry. I believe this is one of the main strengths of the scheme; that although I am working in production I get to study modules on finance, law, sales/marketing and more.

Publishing is definitely underappreciated. There is a substantial amount of work that goes into getting a book on the shelf, but it is all behind the scenes. There are so many different roles available and young people should definitely consider one of them.

I would like to develop my career in publishing. I have already gained the basic skills to become a production editor, which is the next step up. I have started in a ‘lower’ position but there is potential to progress. I initially thought a university degree and years of experience would be a requirement to even get the role I have, but this apprenticeship has proved otherwise.

Having spoken to other members of staff from different departments, it has been made clear to me that there are many different pathways to get into publishing. All those I spoke to enjoy their job here at Bloomsbury and would encourage young people to work in publishing.

Read about the Publishing Assistant Apprenticeship here.

For more information on the Publishing Assistant Apprenticeship, please head to the LDN Apprenticeships website or contact publishing@ldnapprenticeships.com.

Work in Publishing Week

Work in Publishing Week takes place in November each year. Details of this years campaign can be found here.