What I did today
It took me a lo(ooooo)ng time to get down to the task I had set before myself today. I won't bore you (or gross you out) with all of my procrastination tactics. What's relevant was that I found myself almost completely incapable of doing what I'd spent so much time doing for all those many, many miserable months of summer and fall '05 and winter '06: applying to a job.
Yesterday, I got a tip from a friend who (among other things) used to work at an NYC literary agency. Here are a few excerpts (sterilized for bloggability):
In the interest of your valuable time, I'll cut straight to my cover letter (again, devoid of anything potentially incriminating):
I'm probably more ambivalent to this gig than I've been to anything else I've applied to. Not because I don't think I'd like it--more because I know how these things go (i.e., I won't get it). Feel free to diagnose my defense mechanism. Oops, beat you to it.
Yesterday, I got a tip from a friend who (among other things) used to work at an NYC literary agency. Here are a few excerpts (sterilized for bloggability):
I'm in the market for a new assistant...
Responsibilities include:
Reading and reporting on manuscripts
Writing flap, catalog and promotional copy and preparing fact sheets
Preparing contract requests and processing payments
Communicating with authors and agents about queries, payments, etc.
Trafficking manuscripts through Production, Copyediting, and Marketing, and securing appropriate approvals
Preparing cost specifications for titles
Coordinating meetings and events, including Sales Conference
Performing administrative duties, including: photocopying, sorting mail; preparing packages for shipment; filing, directing/responding to phone calls, etc.
Coordinate special projects as assigned
REQUIREMENTS: Excellent organizational, oral and written communication and administrative skills; Bachelor’s degree in English preferred; Minimum of 1 year of publishing experience preferred (internships accepted); an ability to attend to details and juggle multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment; solid computer skills, including MS Word and Excel.
In the interest of your valuable time, I'll cut straight to my cover letter (again, devoid of anything potentially incriminating):
Dear Editor-
I am writing to you in order to express my interest in the editorial assistant position that has become available at ______. I was informed of this opening by ____ at the ____ Agency.
As I apply to this position, I am keenly aware of how fierce the competition can be for jobs in the publishing industry. However, I am confident that I am exceptionally qualified for this position, and I know that I would make a valuable addition to the staff of ____.
Through a combination of academic, extracurricular and professional pursuits, I have gained extensive experience as a writer and editor, as well as with administrative and organizational tasks. But if I had to list a single reason why I am an excellent candidate for this position, it would simply be my eagerness to work in publishing. To have the opportunity to work in book production would be the fulfillment of a longtime ambition, and my commitment to excelling in all aspects of this position would be unmatched.
My skills and experience are squarely in line with the requirements that you have described. My academic background includes of four years of undergraduate study in the English department at [you know where]. I am confident that my knowledge and appreciation of English language and literature is as strong as any applicant you will encounter, and that my written and oral communication skills are of the highest caliber. Additionally, I am an avid reader, and I consider myself to be highly-attuned to popular culture. I would find it a pleasure to work with authors and manuscripts spanning such a diverse array of topics as your list includes.
Beyond my academic background and interests, I have a significant amount of experience working in an administrative capacity. I have worked as [&c, &c, &c]. In each of these positions, I was responsible for numerous administrative tasks--from copying and filing to answering phones and completing tasks in Word and Excel--and I was often required to manage multiple assignments at once. I was enormously successful in each of these positions and earned high praise from my employers for my ability to manage time and complete assignments with precision.
I have often been told that one of my greatest strengths is my ability to learn new skills and adapt to new situations quickly and efficiently. I am highly motivated, and I am a very fast learner. I'm confident that I will be able to respond successfully to all of the demands and challenges that I may face as an editorial assistant at ___ and that I will rapidly become an indispensable member of your staff.
You will find my résumé attached to this email, formatted as a Word document. Please let me know if I can provide you with any additional information about my experience and qualifications.
Thank you for your consideration, and I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sincerely,
ME
I'm probably more ambivalent to this gig than I've been to anything else I've applied to. Not because I don't think I'd like it--more because I know how these things go (i.e., I won't get it). Feel free to diagnose my defense mechanism. Oops, beat you to it.
posted by temporarily unemployed at 14:45
7 Comments:
Whoa. I really liked your cover letter. It's impressive. (seriously)
The few things that I think you could have stressed more were your astounding package preparation abilities and efficient photocopying skills. You're one of the best preparers of packages that I've ever seen, and yet you didn't stress it. It's smart, though, that you didn't bring up mail sorting (which, we all know, you're only okay at).
Have you had 1 year of experience in the kind of publishing that they are talking about?
It does seem like a fun job despite the tedious things that you'd have to do along the way.
We all know that I do not have the year of publishing experience that is *preferred* for this position (unless, of course, you count this humble chronicle; the button I hit to post a post does say "publish" after all). My only hope is that the six most important letters on my transcript will get me a bye on that (non-)requirement.
Your comment comes dangerously close to violating the "no mocking" rule, btw.
PS-You're weird. ("It's smart that you didn't bring up mail sorting.") In fact, just the other day I was thinking about your particular brand of weirdness (assuming the author of the comment is who I'm pretty sure he is). I forget why. I may have been looking at Facebook photos.
Also:
"I am confident that my knowledge and appreciation of English language and literature is as strong as any applicant you will encounter..."
The grammar of this sentence fragment would appear to dispute the veracity of the claim being made. But you probably already knew that.
Bah. Foiled again.
also: "My academic background includes of four years of undergraduate study in the English department at [you know where]."
Extra word alert--you are "of" happy.
I think this is a great letter. I also think it could be tweaked to be even stronger. If you find yourself in the position of needing to submit another cover letter, I'd be happy to help if you so desire.
Heart.
~C
PS
Is that how you spell "tweaked?"
Well, on my first quick read I didn't notice any grammatical mistakes. I'm sure that
a)they'll be reading it quickly and
b)they don't know much about grammar. (Heck, I edit manuscripts all day and I didn't catch the mistakes).
And I wasn't trying to mock you in previous posts (nor in this one, although I think I might be somewhere close by).
Hmm...someone who edits manuscripts all day? And who's an authority on my package preparation skills? If you're the author of the first comment in this thread, I must have confused you with someone else. (People should sign their comments...or at least develop consistent pseudonyms.)
Thanks, though. You know how after you've read something a dozen times, you start to miss really obvious errors? It's like you're reading what you expect it to say and not what it actually says. Also, I'm just a dumbass.
Honestly, mock (or come close to mocking) all you want. I was only joshing about that. I try to be self-effacing as often as possible lest random readers think I'm a total prick (it doesn't always seem to work). It's only fair that people who comment should get in on that action. Plus: First Amendment. Right, DK?
Of course, I reserve my First Amendment right to delete distasteful comments.
I wrote 1 and 5, and I think you might have had it the first time around because I don't edit manuscripts all day (far from it). I was being facetious. I know that it doesn't work so well over the internet (nor in person, for that matter), but I still give it a shot.
And I like maintaining a degree of thinly veiled anonymity, especially if it protects me from incurring your full wrath in the possible case of straight up mocking.
Perhaps I will see you in a week in a half!
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