MY PUBLISHING LIFE with Yas Langley

Welcome to my latest MY PUBLISHING LIFE feature, an interview with a literary agent, publisher, publicist or editor about their publishing career to date. Some serious questions, and some just for fun!

Today I'm delighted to welcome 

YAS LANGLEY

Intern for Children's Books Department

at
David Hingham Associates

What and when was your first job in publishing? 
This is!

How long have you been working in your current job/role?
I started in January, so coming up to four months now. 

Which qualifications/life skills/experience have helped you get to where you are today?
I didn’t have that much experience specifically in the publishing industry before this job. However, I do have a great deal of general office/admin/reception/hospitality experience (part of my job is on reception and phones), as well as other internships and work experience placements, which have all been hugely relevant. If I have learnt one thing, it's not to underestimate the usefulness of basic administration and people skills.

How do you relax after a busy working day?
I’m still fairly new to London, so I’m making the most of it by going to the theatre, comedy nights and trying all the bars and restaurants on offer - there’s always something going on in this city.

What was the last book you read for pleasure?
Yesterday I picked up Flour Babies by Anne Fine. Although Anne is technically one of our authors, it’s not anything to do with work and I just love her writing – perhaps even more so as an adult. And as you can probably see on the @DHABooks Twitter, I’m also dipping in and out of the Horrible Geography box set. I probably read as much children’s books as I do adults!

Describe your job in 15 words or less...
Amazing opportunity to learn about all aspects of the publishing industry.

What have been the highlights of your publishing life so far

Getting this job in the first place – I know how competitive the industry is, so I’m incredibly grateful to get my foot on the first rung of the ladder. Also, my first signed postcard from Jacqueline Wilson – my favourite author growing up – was a ‘squealing’ moment, and I actually got to meet her at the London Book Fair. Oh and Stephen Fry described my coffee as ‘perfect’ so that was a pretty cool moment and is going straight on my C.V….

If you could try out any other job for one day (with no limits on money, travel etc.), what would you choose?

An astronaut – I’ve done a fair bit of travelling and am slowly ticking off all the countries in the world, but going into space would top it all 

If your publishing life was a book, what would the title be?
And So It Begins (Rachel Abbott) … nothing to do with the plot (thankfully!!) but the title reflects what I hope is just the beginning of an exciting career in the publishing world.

Thanks so much for taking part, Yas!

Look out for more MY PUBLISHING LIFE features coming soon.

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If any literary agents, publishers, publicists or editors would like to take part, please contact me through my blog or Twitter for the full list of questions.