Alumni - Corinna Parker

Every summer I was at university, I tried to find a month or so of work experience to gain an insight into a different industry, including film production, film distribution and in the editorial department of the Cornerstone division, part of Penguin Random House. After I graduated, I got in touch with the contacts I had made there to find out about job vacancies and I succeeded in getting a maternity cover position as an Editorial Assistant at the imprint Hutchinson, Cornerstone. I learned a lot there about editorial and publishing processes and I was lucky enough to be formally trained in copywriting, copyediting and proofreading. 

When an Assistant Editor job on the fashion list came up at Thames & Hudson, I was immediately drawn to it, firstly because I’ve always been interested in visual culture and fashion, and secondly because the job listing said that speaking Italian would be an advantage! At Hutchinson, I had always particularly enjoyed working on the cover artwork and with the graphic designers, and so moving to an illustrated publisher seemed to really align with my interests and skillset. 

Our team produces around 7 books each year and I manage the whole fashion list.  We collaborate with major fashion brands on our books and it’s always a great feeling when the final product arrives. Some of our books are huge tomes, such as our bestselling Catwalk series – each title in the series is 632 pages long and filled with over 1,200 images! 

If you want to get into publishing, I would really recommend getting some experience by working on the student newspaper or magazine (in my final year I was Film Editor of Pi Magazine). It’s worth trying to secure an internship too but nowadays, these should definitely be paid! Networking is also key. Go to as many free talks or exhibitions as you can to meet key figures in the industry. Try and find a way to stand out from other applicants. It’s a good idea to pursue a personal project in your field (for example a zine, a podcast, a curated Insta profile) to showcase your interests and work ethic.