Working With Shane
Leaving the apartment, I groan at how early it is. I mean, it is only 8 am, but compared to waking up at 8:20 to be at work for 9, this is so early.
Today is a big day. Shane is going to be shadowing me at work to see the ins and outs of an editor, as well as sit through a meeting to be able to see what an author's perspective would be like. He has talent when it comes to writing, but there is nothing wrong with being an editor and an author. If anything, it adds stability which his parents want.
Pulling out of the apartment complex, I drive back to my old college to pick up Shane. The dormitory building looks the exact same as the way it used to look when I lived here years ago. I don't know what I expected, but definitely not for it to look like this. It is nostalgic, however. I would run down these steps because there are so wide and I would basically have to lunge to get to the next one. There was even a fire drill here once and we all had to go across the parking lot to the library at three in the morning.
Finding a parking space near the front of the building, I pull out my phone and call Shane to tell him that I am outside. He says he will be right down before I disconnect the call.
He walks out the door around two minutes later. I expected it to take longer, the elevators are always busy no matter what time of day it is.
"Morning!" My voice still sounds flat no matter how much excitement I try to muster. I am not a morning person and waking up an hour early is not good for me.
"Morning." His tone matches mine and I can definitely tell it is going to be a long couple of hours. Neither of us wants to be up this early.
"Are you scared? Excited? Nervous?"
"I would say all three. I don't really know what to expect. Despite texting you all of my questions, I still have so many more that I won't know the answers to until I get into the groove of the job. Honestly, I just want to start already, you know? The anticipation is the worst part."
"I agree, but there is nothing to be worried about. Everyone is so nice and welcoming. And the job may be hard and very strategic, but you will get the hang of it before you know it."
He silently nods his head, ending the conversation. I wait for a minute or two to go by in case he wants to say something else before turning on the radio. Music always helps with nerves, at least for me.
Pulling into the parking lot, I watch Shane's fingers twist against each other and his body starts to fidget. I was the same way on my first day of work.
"Okay, take a deep breath in. Again, there is nothing to be worried about. When we walk in there, we are going to go straight to my boss's office to get your paperwork that says you can work here and shadow me. You will also be in the system, but you are not going to be paid since you are an intern. After that, we can go to the break room to get some breakfast before starting our day. How does that sound?"
"That sounds good." He takes another deep breath and slowly lets it out. "Okay, I am ready now."
I look at him one more time and he looks more composed than he had only minutes before. He is going to be fine today.
Getting out of the car, we walk in together. Every worker we pass says hello and introduces themself to Shane. I think that is just what he needed as he starts to loosen his body and become more comfortable in this environment.
By the time we are in the elevator, Shane looks ready to tackle this day head-on.
"Are you ready? How are you feeling?"
"I'm good. I think I will be able to do this. You were right, everyone is really nice."
I feel proud of my co-workers at this moment. We all know what it is like to start a new job and even though we are not all friends, we still say hello to each other and make sure we are in an inclusive workplace.
Stepping out of the elevator, Shane and I walk side by side to my boss's office. His secretary stops us and asks if we have an appointment. I'm not sure why she does that considering, my boss will see any of us at any time of the day unless he is in a meeting. After telling her Shane's name and that we do have an appointment, she knocks on the door and peeks her head in. I faintly hear him say that his appointment is here and his deep voice saying to let us in. She returns a moment later and holds the door open for us.
It is over a half-hour later before we walk out of the office again. I don't fully understand what took so long considering my paperwork only took around five minutes, but it is great that Shane is already making friends, and my-now our- boss has taken a liking to him. He is excited that someone so young and new to the field is interested in working at a publishing house. We typically take no one without a bachelor's degree, but since he is offering to work for free and wants to gauge the field, we took him in.
"He was nice, huh? How do you feel about everything now? Do you feel like you have a better understanding of what your day-to-day is going to look like?"
"I actually do. He was so informative about the job overall, and what he does more specifically. I was kinda surprised that he spent so much time talking to us, he seems like a busy man."
"Every day is different whether you are an editor or an author. There are new market trends and every single author, even if they are telling the same storyline, has a different way of writing that makes the story seem so unique. That's one perk of the job, no two days are the same."
"That's a good point. As an accountant, sure every business has its own expenses and profit, but it is all basically the same thing. The same sheets to full out and formulas. At least, working here, you have to use different advertising strategies and read different manuscripts, and writing feedback. You get to have meetings. This is more what I am looking for."
The conversation ends as we enter the breakroom. Shane grabs a cup of coffee while I grab a juice and we both toast a bagel. After we finish eating, we head into my office where my assistant is waiting for me.
She quickly informs me that one of my authors has requested an emergency meeting and will be here in ten minutes. Talk about every day being different. Putting my bagel down on my desk, I ask my assistant, Teresa, to grab the author's manuscript with my feedback so I can see what we previously talked about. Teresa didn't have any information regarding what eh author needed to see me about so I am going in blind.
"Okay, Shane, when the author comes in here, you can take a seat in the chair next to me. I don't like sitting at a desk because it is more formal and I want my authors to consider me an equal because, in the end, we both want the same thing which is for their book to be successful."
He nods his head and finished his bagel before taking a seat. A few minutes later, my fanatic-looking author comes into my office. Her hair is disheveled, her clothes are wrinkles, and mascara streaks run down her cheeks. Uh-oh.
The author leaves around noon. She had just broken up with her boyfriend the night before and went partying. She took a couple of stupid photos and posted them to Instagram. Then proceeded to rewrite half of her manuscript.
In a situation like this where the author has a large fanbase from their first book, damage control is super important and needs to be done right away. By the time she left, we were able to get the photos off of Instagram and have her write an apology letter on her account about her posts. In addition, we were able to fix her manuscript, adding a few of the new things she had written, but mostly it was Shane and I talking her out of her edits because they did not make sense with her plotline.
After that, Shane and I tackled a manuscript together, took a lunch break at Panera, and went to the other departments to see if he would like to work somewhere else. I think he will shine in an editorial position, but this early in the game, it is important for Shane to know that he has options. He could always work with Amelia where the spreadsheets do vary based on how many authors we contract and if books are successful or not.
Finally, at the end of the day, I drop him off at his dorm. The whole car ride he was talking about what we did today and how exciting everything was. For him, even reading the manuscript and f-giving feedback felt exhilarating because he was making a change that people will actually read and appreciate.
We make a plan for me to pick him up, similar to today before I leave. He did very well today and I know he will be a great editor if that is what he chooses to do.
With that thought in mind and a smile on my face, I drive home, ready to go to bed. Today had been a long day and I need a nap before I can think of doing anything else.