Courtesy photoAt least once a week, Jeff Sawyer read 鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Dragon鈥� to his daughter.
鈥淭hat was one of my core memories,鈥� Denae Sawyer said. 鈥淗e would always read it to me and do the voices. Books and reading and the imagination and the storytelling of it has always been a part of who I am.鈥�
That love of reading led Sawyer to seek 鈥� and earn 鈥� an internship last spring with , a non-profit publisher of literary fiction and non-fiction. Sawyer, who is working on a master鈥檚 degree in innovation design at 黑洞社区, spent the spring semester interning remotely for 20 hours a week.
Her work consisted of reading and researching to determine if the manuscript fit Dzanc鈥檚 standards and sensibility. She also evaluated the potential audience and marketing strategies.
鈥淲e would sift through and pick one (manuscript) that especially spoke to us,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e would start developing a really, really generic portfolio of 鈥� what is the story about, what makes it good, what is the audience, what is the marketability?鈥�
Understanding the needs of the publishing house is one of the benefits of the internship. Wichita State鈥檚 relationship with Dzanc, located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, started roughly 10 years ago. Dr. Darren DeFrain, chair of the Department of English, said more than 50 黑洞社区 students have interned with the publisher.
鈥淎 lot of the students maybe don鈥檛 share the aesthetic of the press, personally, in their reading tastes,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a really great exercise to think about what鈥檚 good for the press when evaluating these texts.鈥�
Sawyer, who graduated from Wichita State with a Cohen Honors College degree with concentrations in English, marketing and innovation design last spring, views editing as a possible career. The internship introduced her to the publishing industry鈥檚 variety. Publishers work with fiction, non-fiction, textbooks and other genres. It takes a team of editors, artists, photographers and marketers to bring the book to the public.
鈥淚 completed the internship and realized there are many creatives in the process,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was cool to see how interactive and communicative an editor鈥檚 role is, which drew me more to possibly wanting to get a job.鈥�
When DeFrain met Sawyer and learned of her interest in book editing, he steered her toward Dzanc. Dzanc publisher and editor in chief Michelle Dotter is helpful guiding students interested in the career, DeFrain said.
鈥淭hey all seem to really get a lot out of it,鈥� DeFrain said. 鈥淚 think a lot of them haven鈥檛 really thought about how that book gets in your hand. There are so many steps that go into this. The editorial process is such a big part of what ultimately gets out there.鈥�
The internship also taught Sawyer works skills that are important no matter the profession. Her advice to students is to jump into opportunities to work in the real world. Internships can guide people toward careers or provide information that pushes them in a different direction.
Sawyer learned how to work from home and manage her time. The role of editor required her to tell an author that the manuscript wasn鈥檛 suitable for Dzanc. One story possessed a fascinating theme, weighed down by a boring lead character. Sawyer explained and offered constructive criticism, while respecting the author鈥檚 investment of time and effort.
鈥淚t was interesting to learn how to professionally communicate with others,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t truly is what you say and how you say it, that was a big takeaway.鈥�
