Sophia Meimaris (MA in English ’27), Recipient of a GU English MA Program Fellowship to Attend The Los Angeles Review of Books (LARB) Publishing Workshop, Shares her Experience

The LARB lfive-week intensive workshop gives attendees the chance to meet and learn from leading figures in digital and print publishing.  Inaugurated in 2017, the workshop is held each summer in June and July.

Fellows attend lectures, seminars, and workshops each day with 60+ industry speakers covering the book industry, magazine industry, new media (including podcasts, audiobooks, and literary scouting for film and TV), and professional development. The workshop is fully online (M-F, 9 AM – 3 PM PST); sessions are recorded to enable asynchronous participation.

Participants learn about industry best practices and make contacts at publishing institutions. They also have the opportunity to gain practical experience in magazine publication or book production, and can meet one-on-one in office hours with representatives of presses, magazines, and organizations of their choice. 

Fellows learn about the variety of career options in publishing, and receive guidance on résumés, cover letters, and interview skills in preparation to enter the job market.  Alumni have gone on to jobs at a wide range of journals, agencies, and presses; others have launched their own publishing ventures.

Georgetown’s English MA Program was a LARB Fellowship Partner this year, and one of our second-year MA candidates, Sophia Meimaris, received the Fellowship and attended the workshop.  Sophia shares highlights with our Director of Graduate Studies, Prof. Lori Merish:

An Interview with Sophia Meimaris

Hi Sophia!  What motivated you to apply to attend the LARB Publishing Workshop this summer?

I applied to LARB because I’ve been interested in the publishing industry and wanted an in-depth introduction to it–to learn about all the different roles in publishing and what work looks like behind the scenes.

What does a week in the program looks like?

Every week focused on a specific area of the industry—for example, editorial, production and design, and marketing and sales.  Each session started with a lecture or two from professionals in the industry. We would be introduced to people in different roles, hear about their day-to-day jobs, and what led them to their career path, followed by a Q&A. After a break, we would head off into group lectures based on which intensive track we had chosen (magazine or book). During this session, we learned about a specific aspect of book or magazine publishing or worked on a group project.  Some days, rather than work in our intensive tracks, LARB would host professional development workshops where we talk through the process of writing resumes, cover letters, interviewing, and applying for jobs in the industry. Participants also created affinity groups that met throughout the workshop to discuss common interests related to academia, job searching, writing, and publishing.

Did you participate in one of the specialized tracks to gain practical experience in either magazine publication or book production – and what was that like?

In the book production track, we formed small groups (imprints) and practiced bringing a book through the publishing process. We chose well-known books and discussed editorial changes we would recommend and how we would design, market, and pitch our book to audiences. At the end of the workshop, we presented our final reworked product.  In the magazine track, people were assigned roles to work on the LARB annual publication, PubLab. They read and edited submitted pieces, worked on formatting and design elements for the website, and presented the completed website at the end of the workshop.

What were some of the highlights of the workshop for you?

Learning about the process of creating newer media like audiobooks and podcasts, and learning about roles in the industry I hadn’t known existed—for example, subsidiary rights and scouting, which turned out to be really interesting for me.

Sophia, can you tell us some reasons why other GU English MA students should consider attending LARB’s Publishing Workshop?

If you are a student wondering about career paths outside of academia, I highly recommend that you attend the LARB Publishing Workshop. As someone looking for ways to utilize my book knowledge outside of academia, I found it very refreshing and motivating to hear about other people’s experiences in publishing, new areas of the industry that I hadn’t known about, and the different professional paths people have taken. I discovered new career paths that really appeal to me and was relieved to learn that my academic interests and skills could translate to so many different professional areas outside of school.