What It’s Like to Work at Booklist
Posted by: Daniel Kraus
Decided last night to watch The Best of Everything (1959), a Valley of the Dolls-style movie about three young secretaries slaving away at a New York City publishing house and trying to work their way up to the vaunted position of “EDITOR.” I was dumbstruck by the movie’s unfaltering realism. Why, this is exactly how things play out at Booklist!
When our esteemed Editor & Publisher Bill Ott makes a new hire (always in tuxedo, of course) these are the exact words he says:
And when that excited new employee goes buzzing through the office with the good news, not a single typist fails to offer congratulations:
Oh, but it’s not all hand-shakes and hoorays. You gotta be tough at Booklist. How tough? Joan Crawford tough:
It’s a hard job, but somebody’s got to do it.
August 17th, 2011 at 9:23 am
Kraus, you’re suppposed to be reading (days, nights, and weekends)not watching movies.
August 17th, 2011 at 9:43 am
Interestingly, Miss Bender is shown reading ZERO TIMES after that “Do your reading” speech.
August 18th, 2011 at 6:28 am
HA! You nailed it, Daniel! That’s why my reviews are always late – I’m trying to dress like Joan Crawford and I can’t get my pearls fastened!
August 18th, 2011 at 4:18 pm
I could do it. I could tell a writer, “Your work is no good.” In fact, I have. In a dark bar, when no one is listening.
August 21st, 2011 at 6:08 pm
I could tell an author what I think. So many times I’ve read books by my favorite authors…until they start sounding repetitious. Then I’m finished with that author and onto the next one. I’ve often thought, I could write a book better than this. So I did.
November 23rd, 2011 at 1:54 pm
I’m still wondering why Bill wasn’t wearing a tuxedo when I got hired? Hmpf.