At the start of my internship, I was asked to write a blog post outlining what I hoped to gain from my time at BookNet Canada. I wrote about wanting marketable skills and my desire to have a better understanding of the publishing industry as a whole. Now, after nearly five months, I am pleased to report that my time at BookNet has proven to be just the learning experience I was looking for.
Just kidding! Jamie does so much work that we are going to be lost without her.
My main role as a research intern involved pulling data and writing research reports that help inform industry professionals about book-buying behaviour and trends in Canada. I was fortunate to work on several major research studies, including Canadians Reading Winners and our juvenile study on discoverability of kidlit. Not only were these reports fascinating to work on, they also showed me the importance of understanding data while providing me with the skills to interact with it.
Sometimes interacting with Data is more fun than other times.
Apart from preparing research reports, I was also responsible for managing the Catalist Twitter account; creating monthly market share reports for SalesData subscribers; designing infographics; and contributing to the BNC blog for our Ask a Reader campaign (more to come!). And, I recently delved into the world of bibliographic testing in an attempt to further understand one of the greatest enigmas of the publishing world: ONIX.
I'm ending my internship with a great deal of practical knowledge about the publishing industry: I learned not to be afraid of data; ONIX is a misunderstood monster; and colouring books aren’t just for kids. I also learned a lot from past BookNet interns—I owe you guys a big “thank you!” because your previous work has been a guiding force throughout my internship.
The four lessons you can and will learn as the BookNet intern.
But most of all, I have to thank the BNC team for making me feel welcomed and for teaching me things I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to learn anywhere else. I am quite fortunate to have worked with such an enthusiastic and exceptionally knowledgeable group of people. I’m going to miss listening to their many debates about all things publishing (it’s quite the educational experience) and getting utterly annihilated in PubFight each week (okay, last part not so much).
No Jamie, thank you for everything.
I’m sad that my time as a BookNet Intern has come to an end, but I leave knowing that the publishing world is small and I will likely see the BookNet staff again soon.
Once again, thank you, BookNet!
