Before I started my internship, I expected there to be a lot of meaningless work. I also felt that I would learn bits of information often. I was subconsciously preparing myself for the worst possible scenario. I have never been an intern, and I wanted to make sure that I was being as realistic with myself in regards to the effort needed to successfully complete an internship. Prior to now, I worked as a salesman for AT&T and I had become accustomed to a fast-paced work environment, one that changed its direction weekly, if not daily. I had no idea what I would get myself into with this new internship.
I envisioned a very hectic and busy publishing office with tens of people frantically working to meet deadlines. I figured I would be sent into a tailspin with menial tasks and generally overlooked due to the busy publishing pace.
Looking back, I see that I had a dramatic expectation. The media and Hollywood often portray an intern’s life as a chaotic one that is less about learning and more so about being worked unreasonably. I bought into that idea.
Yet, the reality is that I haven’t been overlooked and I learn something new daily! It’s less the notion of work and more the feel of an experience. My first task as an intern was to clear out the website’s spam comments. There were 1500 comments to filter, and only 20 could be removed at once. Assignments became more interesting such as the Reader’s Report that I completed. A Reader’s Report is a summary of an author’s submitted work for publishing and whether or not it is suitable for the publishing company. I have also written an informative blog on Copyrights and gained insight into an editor’s work schedule/calendar. I’m lucky enough to have two mentors, April and Corey, to see me through this process. I look forward to learning more as my internship continues. Check back on the blog for further updates about my journey as a press intern.