No quick read: finding best-selling authors is top priority - Career-At-A-Glance - publishing - Brief Article

Black Enterprise, August, 2002 by Monique R. Brown

Karen Thomas never dreamed that answering a New York Times ad for an editorial assistant position would lead to a top spot as an editorial director for Kensington Publishing Corp. in New York City, the last remaining independent publishing house in the United States. The 28-year-old firm publishes a full spectrum of titles in the fiction and nonfiction categories. "I am responsible for the editorial presentation of the [firm's] books with an emphasis on the Dafina imprint, which focuses on books for the African American community," she explains. "This involves taking an unedited manuscript and shaping it into a book that I believe will appeal to its intended audience."

Thomas' tasks vary depending on the book type. For fiction titles, she shapes the plot, settings, dialogue, language, and characters. For nonfiction books, Thomas' emphasis is on clear, concise, and accurate information.

* The Climb: Thomas charted a typical career path for book professionals. "I went from editorial assistant to assistant editor to editor to senior editor to executive editor and now editorial director." She believes her success is due to some of her smart buys. "The books that I've acquired have just really done well," she proclaims. "For example, there are more than 100,000 copies of Mary Monroe's God Don't Like Ugly in print and more than 50,000 copies of The Divine Nine by Lawrence Boss. I'm also very passionate about two of our upcoming titles, Achievement Matters: Getting Your Child the Best Education Possible by Hugh B. Price, the president of the National Urban League, and Al Sharpton's Al on America."

"There is more of an opportunity for African American authors than there was 10 years ago," she insists. "Now publishers are starting to see the level of commitment from the black reader to African American authors."

* The Challenge. Thomas admits that dealing with authors, particularly newer ones, can be challenging. "As one of the few editors accepting unagented manuscripts, I receive a huge number of submissions. And since I respect anyone who can sit down and write a 300-plus-page story, I read all of my submissions. Of course, this increases the time it takes to review and respond to author queries." That contributes to some of the frustration and anxiousness that some authors feel.

There's also a wait when a particular work has to go through the editorial board's approval process. "That can take weeks to complete," Thomas shares. "My key piece of advice to authors: Be patient. The majority of editors in the industry are hardworking individuals who want to give all authors a fair chance at being published."

* The Joy: "It's such a joy to see something go from a query letter to a manuscript to a bound book in bookstores. I love to read fan mail praising an author, and I enjoy serving the African American community."

Karen R. Thomas

         AGE:   32
  OCCUPATION:   Editorial director, Kensington
                Publishing Corp.
    LOCATION:   New York, New York
      DUTIES:   Shaping editorial content
                into books
SALARY RANGE:   $75,000-plus