This week, we sat down with junior English major Josie Hunter to discuss her internship with Dr. Kerry Spencer.
SU: What is your internship and what are your main duties?
Josie: I’m doing a virtual internship as a Publishing Consultant Research Assistant with Dr. Kerry Spencer. In this role, I analyze young adult literature to determine each book’s marketability and profitability. I read from our third sample (Sample C) and take an after-reading survey about the book’s basic information, plot structure, cover likability, and other factors. Now, I’m compiling the data collected from Sample C into the larger sales analysis spreadsheet so we can compare the prediction of how well a book was supposed to do with how it is actually doing.
SU: What is your favorite part of your internship?
Josie: My favorite part of my internship is reading. My supervisor warned me of terrible books in the sample, but so far, the books I’ve read have been pretty good. So, reading makes the work feel less like work since I like to read. Also, my time is flexible as I read throughout the day.
SU: What are the main takeaways from your internship? Have you learned anything about your career interests?
Josie: So far, this internship has shown me what publishers are concerned about and how readers react to certain covers, insights that I believe will help me as I want to be a bestselling author. Working in publishing is interesting, but I’m not sure if it’s something I want to do.