By Kristin

Having recently gone through the unpaid work experience and entry-level job-hunting, I have to agree with most of what you have said. I think, however, that your average entry-level pay is a bit optimistic (I would get excited to find a position for £17,000). I have to say I was often apalled at the entry-level salaries on offer - particularly by the 'big name publishers' in London - where it is probably the most expensive place to work whether you commute into the city or live there. The biggest difference between the big and small names, though, was the amount to which the department and candidate's experience/education could effect the salary - namely, that smaller publishers would be more flexible whereas I was told by more than one big publisher that their entry level salaries were 'across the board' regardless of education, experience or department. I think this is a strength of the smaller publishers and often allows them to maintain and even increase their diversity. Apparently the glory of working for X rather than y is supposed to make up the difference in salary - forgetting the fact that you can't afford to feed yourself let alone anyone else. X could certainly stand to learn a few tricks from y.

08 Nov 07 17:08

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By xfmjunky

Pay, in general, is not a big deal. I would imagine that most graduates are spurred on by the promise of pay rises and occupational progess. This article is not wrong in its assertions about female graduates but also prods at the racial and class barriers in publishing? Mainstream publishing in Britain has long been riddled with social elitism dressed up in liberal artistic ideals.

09 Nov 07 10:15

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By xfmjunky

With all due respect to Jen, if I can explain myself, when I wrote 'generally' I did not mean to glaze over the fact that money problems are a universal malady for all students in the UK. Financial worries are the norm for many before they take up grad roles or entry level positions. I wanted to draw attention to specific oversights within the publishing industry. £18000 is a high starting salary and it is possible to live off of it ... but its a dream-start for graduates ... I've seen jobs as low as £11,500. If anything -- without trying to paint myself too bright a shade of red -- the issue of intra-family subsidy which Jen mentioned serves as one example of the inherent social selectiveness of most publishers.

09 Nov 07 12:12

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By Richard Charkin

Emma, It was a compliment. R

09 Nov 07 15:14

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By xfmjunky

Ms. Rushton, as somebody at the foot-in-the-door (more like head-in-brick-wall) stage of a career in publishing I am mildly concerned by your reply to my comments. I would have hoped that opportunities for progression would be plentiful in a job sector that was seeing as much growth as publishing is in the past few years. Rather, I would imagine that the business-minded cannibalistic reactions to changes in the industry among more prominent publishers have stifled the prospects of hopefuls. Somewhat needless to point out that these changes -- the restrictions on investment in talent in all areas and the dash to swallow small rivals – resembles the changes in the music industry in the immediate post-MP3 era. As such, jobs in the publishing industry are going to be harder to come by and initiative from lively newer publishers with will be rewarded by freak and disparate success, or at least I hope that this latter may be the case. The matter of what you call black writers is a cursed one and it’s disheartening to hear of the comments you quoted. The generic issue of “Black Writing” is a cross-sector problem. There would be no “Black Writing” shelf in book shops if there were no “Black Writing” marketing initiatives by publishers. Granted – on the back of the recent Black History Month – such initiatives are still needed with respect to education in wider society and definitively amongst Britain’s youth. Unfortunately, racial tags remain barriers to the non-racial, viz. the white-English, target of the presumably non-Black book. In addition, blackness can easily be seen as a set of circumstances and not an issue of race. In which case those on non-White race in the publishing industry may well not be at all interested in representing a racial minority in anyway. I'm well aware that I offer no solutions but believe that neverthekess, in the adult world of the book industry – from Emma to consumer – the tag of “Black Writing” seems to have ceased to be an effective marketing tool and is becoming an albatross of political correctness and intimidating factor for ordinary book consumers. Equally, I feel inclined to object to the fundamental racial disjunction of applying the term ‘black writer’ to the likes of Zadie Smith (mixed-race surely), Monica Ali and Gautam Malkini (both British Asian, if anything), though of course these are the exceptions to the rule that you highlight. Nevertheless, my intention is not to split hairs but to invite what could be regarded as a common-sense development in public racial awareness.

11 Nov 07 11:32

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By CauseToComplain?

The publishing industry loses a lot of promising young things (like me!), simply because we see all of our friends earning better wages in (often) more tedious jobs, and can't keep up with them because we're broke! Although this can be tolerated when you're fresh out of university, this is no fun at all when you hit your mid-twenties, and beyond. And to have a job in publishing in the UK, it is fairly essential that you are in London, one of the most expensive cities in Europe. We don't really have a choice of location, unlike many other professions. After a couple of years learning the ropes, there is also very limited scope to move on. Publishing generally - and especially on the agenting side where I reside - seems to have a very rigid structure that allows little space to grow and develop. There is a pretty huge gap (age-wise and job-wise) between myself and my fellow assistants, and the higher-ups, and this reinforces not only the status and generational differences, but also means it's unlikely that your boss really knows how expensive life is as a young twenty-something in London, trying to travel miles into work everyday because you can't afford a pad in Notting Hill like they can... !!! And we certainly don't have the privilege of lunching every day on company expenses either! I'll be the first to admit that the discouraging salary is difficult to overcome, and I die a little inside with each year's tiny pay rise, but it's all worth it when I see that book I've helped to publication picked for Richard & Judy, so I can boast to my mum (if I can afford to call her) that I read it at manuscript stage .

12 Nov 07 16:44

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By Keirsten Clark

From a management point of view publishing is extremely underpaid - it seems to me throughout the varying levels. However - if we would like to do something about it - bearing in mind that I can spend two hours in a meeting quibbling over 1p margins - where will the money come from to improve the situation?

13 Nov 07 10:16

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By Imelda

this dialogue has been going on for 25 years and will continue as long as " hoardes of educated and capable young graduates are willing to accept the pay on offer, so salary is dictated by good old-fashioned supply and demand". However I find the comments about "Emmas" insulting and short-sighted. I came from a council house background, I didn't go to uni, I commuted from my parents house in Middlesex to my first job as a Junior Production Assistant and then lived in a grotty flatshare in Battersea - many many years later, I am still enjoying working in publishing even though I am probably earning less than some of my contemporaries . Nothing will change, do the job, moan about the salary but enjoy working in one of the most satisfying careers possible or shut up and do something else!

16 Nov 07 10:52

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By Alyson Hunter

If you do not have the proper diversity in the employees of a business (think of the Hedge Managers in the City) the business itself takes on the charactor of the employees-hi there unpaid privately educated emma.co.uk- that might be uncomfortable for us creatives of all sorts, to deal with as we struggle with writing

08 Dec 07 07:06

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By Sarah

As a soon-to-graduate student and aspiring Emma this article seems to reiterate what I have been told again and again since I first expressed an interest in a career in publishing. What I am having trouble finding out however is how much I could expect the meagre starter-salary to rise too and how soon; I know progression is slow, but how slow? What could one expect to be earning at 30 or 35 for example if you got your first job at 22 and had an average rate of progression? It would be great if someone could help me out with these queries which I would like to think are realistic rather than materialistic. Thankyou.

27 Apr 08 15:05

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By Bunny Sylvester

An Oxbridge Emma myself, I survived my first few years in publishing living on baked beans before talking myself into the US (where salaries are more rewarding). Sales is the place to start out if you want to make some money, and the experience serves you well throughout your career. 10 years on, and a senior executive for a large global publishing company the pay (and bonus) certainly make it worth while. Sticking with it does pay off; and those Oxbridge chums of mine that went off to be investment bankers unfortunately aren't doing quite so well in these uncertain times.

25 Sep 08 23:49

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