Pelican Publishing Company offers a student intern an opportunity to learn the basics of the publishing industry, to receive hands-on experience in a variety of departments, and to polish communication talents in an intimate, supervised atmosphere. Which departments an intern works in depends on the intern's skills and interests, combined with the needs of the company at that time.
The internship position requires an individual who is both responsible and versatile. While an effort is made to show the intern that a variety of skills are needed, many of his or her tasks are assisting the general staff as needed. While the following list of tasks tries to cover all the possibilities, it does not strictly reflect all you will do while here. Interns should provide an "at school" phone number and a home number in case Pelican needs to contact you prior to arrival.
Skills preferred:
The internship at Pelican is an unpaid position.
College Credit: Many interns receive college credit (usually equal to one class) for their time at Pelican. Check with your college advisor on the correct procedure for applying.
Hours: Our regular hours are 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m. There are occasional after-hours meetings (New Orleans-Gulf South Booksellers Association, Greater New Orleans Tourist and Convention Commission) that the intern is invited to attend. Pelican prefers that interns work 40 hours per week, to allow more time to learn all aspects of publishing and the variety of jobs. There are sometimes arrangements made to work less due to school requirements. However, this is set with each intern individually before beginning. Once the hours are agreed upon, the intern is expected to call if something prevents him from coming in at the agreed time.
Books: The intern should be familiar with the current list of Pelican as listed in the catalog and fall supplement. These will be provided in a packet along with other material. Manuscripts or galleys of upcoming titles are available for you to read at home during the internship.
To learn about the publishing industry and the bookselling industry, the intern should read Publishers Weekly, American Bookseller, Bookstore Journal, School Library Journal, and Library Journal trade magazines (copies are received in-house). Pelican also receives other magazines that discuss various aspects of the publishing industry. All of these are available for the intern.
Reports: The intern will be responsible for writing a weekly report covering tasks accomplished. Pelican would appreciate a report at the end of the internship covering all aspects of the internship. If you have questions about the report, please ask the Promotion Director.
Meetings: Intern will be invited to attend
weekly meeting of promotional staff and executive board to report on projects in progress.
The task of the promotion department is to generate interest and excitement in Pelican titles that ultimately result in sales. This is accomplished by book reviews, feature stories, and mentions in the print and electronic media, advertising, and special-event promotions.
This staff works closely with the sales office to coordinate seasonal promotions with sales trips and to plan national and regional convention exhibits. A close working relationship is maintained with the production staff and the editorial staff to see that the release and the promotion of a specific title are scheduled together.
Media contact: promoting book, preparing galley copies for advance reviews, or sending actual book as a review copy. Assistance in author tours. This could be preparing maps for the "local" appearances, using a 150 mile radius around the author's home town.
Writing:
Select promotional pieces as needed. Writing skills test required for this
portion.
Proofing: Checking promotional pieces for prices and typos. (This would then be checked by editorial staff.)
Mailings: Spooling names on computer system, running out labels on printer, actual stuffing and preparing the bulk mailings to customers, reviewers, etc. Forwarding material to authors.
Filing: Weekly filing of correspondence, reviews, ad kits, etc.
Computer: Learning Microsoft Word, Cat's Pajamas. Update reviewers' contact information. Keying in copy that needs to be on the system: press releases, brochures, etc.
Market research: Assist in locating advertising opportunities such as magazines, newspapers, and mailing lists for consumer contacts. Additional library and in-house research may be necessary.
Press kits:
Collating material into kits for mailings or a convention.
The opportunity to shadow the secretary and become familiar with the procedures used for distributing the mail, granting copyright permissions, drawing up contracts, granting foreign translation rights correspondence with authors, and circulating foreign books submitted for possible acquisition by Pelican.
Accessing wholesaler internet databases to analyze inventory and sales information for Pelican titles
Researching new customer leads
Assisting with author tours
Undertaking competitive market analysis
Providing information on the sales history of Pelican titles for periodic meetings
Obtaining new customer information for fax and email databases
Reviewing Pelican title information on internet retailers such as Amazon.com
The task of the editorial department is to help acquire new titles for the company and to prepare contracted titles for publication. This is accomplished by critiquing submissions, editing manuscripts and computer disks (manuscript editing, line editing, and copyediting), checking artwork for accuracy and relevance, sending editing queries to authors, incorporating authors' final changes into the projects, proofreading the typeset books, editing indexes, checking typesetters' corrections, checking the books' layouts, and checking the printers' bluelines. This staff works closely with the production department to put manuscripts and artwork into correct book form.
Manuscripts: Returning rejected manuscripts.
Manuscript review: This is reading and writing a critique of a manuscript Pelican is considering. Most of this would be taken home and done outside of the office.
Queries: Reading initial submission to determine if additional material should be requested. Requesting additional material. Returning rejected queries.
Proofing: This is determined by the level of the intern's skills. The editor will give a proofing test to determine accuracy level. All proofing will be checked by one of the editorial staff.
Clerical: Filing for CIP Data. Filing for copyright. Faxing letters. Sending out author guidelines and catalogs as requested. Miscellaneous typing/computer inputting.
Final type: This involves checking corrected proofs and layout (Pelican's and typesetter's). An editor will supervise.
Bluelines: This is checking projects at the blueline stage, following a detailed checklist.
Artwork: This involves checking sketches and final artwork for editorial accuracy.
Reprints: This involves drawing up suggested correction pages for departmental review, and then inputting them on the computer.
Indexes: Copyediting and proofing author indexes.
Editing: Under editorial supervision, the intern may "practice edit" any children's books, travel guides, etc., that are in the schedule.
It is the responsibility of the production department to produce quality, marketable books, ads, and supplementary materials in an efficient, cost-effective manner. Production works in tandem with the editorial department in getting book materials ready for type and print production.
Production receives an edited manuscript from editorial, ad copy from promotion, or special requests for sales/promotional materials, and takes them up to or through print production. Materials are transformed via traditional book design and computer software-generated pages.
In-house book designers also create attractive covers with input from the authors and the rest of the Pelican staff.
Computer: Simple computer formatting for posters, page corrections, etc., based on production specifications and style sheets. Help with layout and design of new ads, following established styles.
Design: Using existing formats, layout and design new author posters, routing proofs to promo and editorial, preparing final product.
Shipping packages: Filling out required forms. Packing up the material in a protective manner.
Miscellaneous: Copying jackets and layouts as needed, unstripping films for photos and maps. Filing photos, negatives that production is finished with. Put skid numbers on dead matter, and sort for filing in attic folders.
Dust jackets: Assist in replacing damaged dust jackets
Spiral books: Removing damaged covers and replacing covers or spiral with a new one.
Invoices: Tearing invoices apart, processing backorders. Filing invoices that have been shipped out. Packing up old invoices to open up additional storage.
Correspondence: Answering general questions.
Statements: Preparing end-of-the-month statements to be mailed.
Recommended activities either before you begin or during your internship:
Visit a bookstore to specifically look at covers and how they relate to the title, how some publishers specialize in a certain type of title (look at something in nonfiction).
Intern deadlines
Submission can be sent via e-mail to : promo@pelicanpub.com.
When sending your materials by email, all attachments should be named with your
last name first and numbered. For example Smith.doc, Smith1.doc. The email
should state how many attachments you are sending. For additional information or questions call Kathleen Calhoun Nettleton at 504-368-1175 ext. 312.
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Pelican Publishing Company offers a student intern opportunity to learn the
basics of the publishing industry, receive hands-on experience, and to polish
communication talents in an intimate, supervised atmosphere. The internship
position requires and individual who is both responsible and versatile. An
effort is made to show the variety of skills needed to work in the publishing
industry. While the following tries to provide an overview of the department
cover all of the possibilities, it does not strictly reflect all you will do
while at Pelican.
It is the responsibility of the production department to produce quality, marketable books, advertisements, and supplementary materials in an efficient, cost-effective manner. Production works in tandem with the editorial department in getting book materials ready for type and print production. Production receives an edited manuscript from editorial, ad copy from promotions, and special requests for promotional and sales materials, and takes them through print production. Materials are transformed via traditional book design and computer software-generated pages. The art director oversees the design of the book covers with input from the author and the rest of the Pelican staff.
Have an interest in design and publications
Be detail oriented, resourceful, self-motivated, and team oriented
Have strong organizational and interpersonal skills
Be able to work in a fast-paces, deadline driven environment
Be able to work independently
Reliability and punctuality are essential
The ideal candidate will have two years of college courses and be working toward a degree in a related field or an equivalent background.
Internet research
QuarkXPress
Photoshop
Illustrator
Acrobat
Word
In Design, helpful but not required
Compensation: The internship at Pelican is an unpaid position.
College Credit: Many interns receive college credit (usually equal to one class) for their time at Pelican. Check with your advisor on the correct procedure to receive credit.
Hours: Our regular hours are 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. There are occasional after-hours meetings (New Orleans-Gulf South Booksellers Association, Greater New Orleans Tourist and Convention Commission) that interns are invited to attend. Pelican prefers that interns work 40 hours per week, to allow more time to learn all aspects of publishing. Internships typically run for eight weeks. Arrangements are sometimes made to work less due to school requirements. However, this is set with each individual intern before the start of the internship. The intern is expected to call if something prevents their coming in, once hours have been agreed upon.
Internet research for stock photography
Scan and retouching images
Limited filing
Aid in typesetting children’s books
Updating pages and copyright information for reprints
Designing covers for our print on demand books
Indexing
The intern should be familiar with the current list of Pelican titles, as listed in the catalog. These will be provided in a packet along with other materials. Manuscripts or galleys of upcoming titles are available for you to read at home during the internship as well.
To learn about the publishing industry and the bookselling industry, the intern is encouraged to read Publisher’s Weekly, American Bookseller, Bookstore Journal, School Library Journal, and Library Journal trade magazines (copies are received in-house.) Pelican also receives other magazines that discuss various aspects of the publishing industry. All of these are available to the intern. The intern will be responsible for keeping timesheets covering how they spend their day and writing a weekly report covering completed tasks, things learned, and accomplishments. This will aid in the writing of an exit report, which will summarize all aspects of the internship. Interns will also be invited to attend weekly production meetings and are able to attend other department’s meetings
Interns are encouraged to regularly visit bookstores to specifically look at books, book covers and how they relate to the title.
Send a resume and sample design work to:
Terry
Callaway
Production Manager
Pelican Publishing Company
1000
Burmaster Street
Gretna, Louisiana 70053-2246
Email: tcallaway@pelicanpub.com
All intern applicants from outside New Orleans must include a letter from their parent or guardian indicating they know the student is applying for an unpaid internship in New Orleans.
When sending materials by e-mail, all attachments should be named with your last name first and numbered. For example Smith1.pdf, Smith2.pdf. The e-mail should also state how many attachments you are sending.
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As a mid-sized book publisher with more than 1,500 titles in print, Pelican offers interns a complete overview of the publishing industry, including the sales, editorial, promotion, and production departments. This internship is supervised by the sales manager and has an emphasis on sales activities. Assuming a full work week, the breakdown of time by department would be approximately as follows: editorial ½ day, promotion 1 days; production ½ day; sales 2 ½ days; with perhaps ½ day per week spent in various departmental meetings to get an overview of the operation.
Following are examples of activities that sales interns undertake, broken down by department.
Sales: Maintaining database information on the customer and mailing lists; researching new customer leads over the internet; obtaining new customer information for fax and email databases; researching the school and public library market; reviewing Pelican title information on internet retailers such as Amazon.com; accessing wholesaler internet databases to analyze inventory and sales information for Pelican titles; assisting with author tours; providing information on the sales history of certain titles for periodic meetings.
Editorial: manuscript review, evaluating submission proposals, returning rejected manuscripts, proofreading (depending upon the intern’s skill level), checking corrected proofs and layout, checking books at the blueline stage, copyediting author indexes.
Promotion: writing book jacket copy, press releases, author biographies, and other promotional pieces; assisting with media contacts by preparing galleys for advance review or sending out actual books; helping prepare bulk mailings; updating the media database; filing of correspondence, reviews, etc.
Production: formatting posters, page corrections, etc., based on production specifications and style sheets; helping to design and layout new ads; routing proofs to the promotion and editorial departments; copying jackets and layouts; unstripping films for phots and maps; filing photos, negatives, and other materials no longer in use; shipping materials;
Miscellaneous: Interns may work in other departments, such as customer service, executive support, and warehousing, depending upon availability.
Pelican prefers summer interns who are able to work 40 hours per week (8:30-5:00), though we can work around the intern’s schedule when necessary and do not always require 40 hours per week. This internship requires a commitment of at least six weeks, though we prefer two months or longer; the exact length of the summer internship is flexible depending upon the intern’s plans. The internship is an unpaid position. For more information about Pelican, go to www.pelicanpub.com.
Please send resumes and a cover letter to jbillingsley@pelicanpub.com. Because interns are expected to write jacket and promotional copy, we will request a writing sample at the time of the phone interview. The start date of the internship is flexible, and we can accommodate a wide range of alternatives depending on the intern’s needs. Applicants should have a strong interest in the book industry and be both responsible and versatile.
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Pelican Publishing Company offers a student intern opportunity to learn
the basics of the publishing industry, receive hands-on experience, and polish
communication talents in an intimate, supervised atmosphere. The internship
position requires an individual who is both responsible and versatile. An effort
is made to show the variety of skills needed to work in the publishing industry.
While the following tries to provide an overview of all of the possibilities, it
does not strictly reflect all you will do while at Pelican.
The task of the editorial department is to help acquire new titles for the company and to prepare contracted titles for publication. This is accomplished by critiquing submissions, editing manuscripts and computer disks (manuscript editing, line editing, and copyediting), checking artwork for accuracy and relevance, proofreading the typeset books, editing indexes, checking typesetters’ corrections, checking the books’ layouts, and checking the printers’ bluelines. This staff works closely with the production department to put manuscripts and artwork into correct book form.
Internet research
Microsoft Word
Compensation: The internship at Pelican is an unpaid position.
College Credit: Many interns receive college credit (usually equal to one class) for their time at Pelican. Check with your advisor on the correct procedure to receive credit.
Hours: Our regular hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pelican prefers that interns work 40 hours per week. Internships typically run for eight weeks. Arrangements are sometimes made to work less due to school requirements. However, this is set with each intern before the start of the internship. The intern is expected to call if something prevents their coming in, once hours have been agreed upon.
The intern should be familiar with the current list of Pelican titles, as listed in the online catalog.
To learn about the publishing industry and the bookselling industry, the intern is encouraged to read Publishers Weekly, American Bookseller, Bookstore Journal, School Library Journal, and Library Journal trade magazines (copies are received in-house). Pelican also receives other magazines that discuss various aspects of the publishing industry. All of these are available to the intern. Interns will also attend weekly editorial meetings.
Send a resume and two-page essay sample to:
Nina Kooij
Editor in Chief
Pelican Publishing Company
1000 Burmaster Street
Gretna, Louisiana 70053-2246
Email: editorial@pelicanpub.com
All intern applicants from outside New Orleans must include a letter from their parent or guardian indicating they know the student is applying for an unpaid internship in New Orleans.
When sending materials by e-mail, all attachments should be named with your last name first and numbered. For example Smith1.pdf, Smith2.pdf. The e-mail should also state how many attachments you are sending.
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