Navigating a Mid-Career Transition
When I realized that I seriously wanted to make the transition into publishing, I had to deeply consider what it meant to leave a field I not only loved, but one I nurtured for ten years. I had to also plan for what it meant to, in some ways, start over; and at the same time, what I needed to do to ensure it wasn’t really fully “starting over.”
The first thing I did was come to this career shift aware of my professional assets and comparable knowledge, and I expressed these transferable skills with a frank conversation with my agency about my timeline – right when I was formally hired via internship. I knew that I was coming into the industry with a foundational understanding of 1) what comprises strong literature and 2) what strong editorial work looks like. By playing into my strengths as an almost ex-literature professor, I negotiated my trajectory of growth – what benchmark experiences I expected when and at what pace I expected promotions to happen (of course, contingent on performance and not to be duly withheld).
I firmly believe that it was because of the professionalism at the beginning of my journey and the proven expertise as I moved through my first two years that I was able to move forward at a capacity that made sense to me – in those first two years, I was still teaching and, therefore, exploring publishing at a part-time basis. To breakdown my exact actions:
2021; Or, Six Months of Exploration
Los Angeles Review of Books Publishing Workshop: In the summer of 2021 (amidst covid lockdown), I had a lot of time on my hands with little else to explore beyond the household, and what was a short five weeks compared to the long months already cooped up in the home?. Given the remote work mandate, I could peripherally see publishing positions opening up beyond New York, and I didn’t think it would hurt to at least learn more.
BIPOC Mentorship: Through the workshop, I learned of different mentorship and internship opportunities, and because of my past experiences in residencies and fellowships, I was aware of the dearth of access available to marginalized communities. So though there was much to choose from, I ultimately chose and stuck with a program geared toward addressing the difficulties BIPOC might experience in navigating this field. This was a short, seasonal three month mentorship and, again, I had the time to invest as “pandemic teaching” was…well, nothing like teaching before it.
2022, Or, Making Solid Moves
Transitional Internship: The mentorship became a very short internship, which then became the assistantship that would drive the rest of 2022. It was at this time, I decided it was a viable career change for me, and I scheduled that conversation around my possible growth trajectory. If forward momentum wasn’t going to be available, given my circumstances, I wasn’t going to waste my time being stuck in an entry-level role.
2023, Or, “Becoming” a Publishing Professional
Agenting Experience: I expected my agency to hold up their promise to promote me, and they did! I became an Associate Literary Agent at the top of the year, and as you’re learning now, I am on track to promote to Literary Agent soon.
In terms of timing, it’s just hit a little more than two years as an Associate, which in some ways was long that I planned for, but at the same time, I hit a few personal snags that had me prioritizing my teaching career, and so, arguably, I had to scale back on my publishing load, minimizing the opportunity for needed growth.
Ultimately, I recognize that this slower movement is directly correlated with my availability. Knowing that I’m shifting into a new position has had me reassessing the viability of this shift in that, I have to start thinking of this shift through a full-time perspective – and the closing chapter of my old career. There are still many moving pieces, but what I can confidently say is that for both better and for worse, for learning and adapting, for choosing my priorities and sometimes choosing wrong, all along the way, I was the one controlling my tempo of my career transition.
