My name is Megan Carney, and I come from a town in the south-west of Ireland called Tralee. Despite the well versed warning not to, I have always been very much guilty of judging a book by its literal cover. There is nothing I enjoy more than walking into a bookshop and finding refuge among the colours and textures which encase each story as it sits on a shelf, just waiting to be read.

While I have always been an avid reader (quelle surprise!), it is in fact the world of theatre which led me to pursue a career in publishing. For the past few years I completely immersed myself in theatre, studying English with drama at University College Dublin, working in a theatre in Dublin’s city centre, acting in plays, directing shows, and building and designing sets. During this time, I learned a lot about the process of taking an idea or a vision and seeing it through to a physical piece of art. When nearing the end of my undergraduate degree I took some time to consider what it was about this work that I loved, and I realized that it was that collaborative process of bringing about the best possible end product, which still retained its artistic integrity. This led me to consider applying the same concept to literature. I began to wonder more about the journey a book takes, from the original manuscript, through editorial and design, all the way to being a tangible book, sitting on a shelf in a bookshop.

And so here I am, less than a year later, embarking on my journey to learn as much as I can about the publishing industry. While I joined the course hoping for a career as an editor, each week I find that as I learn more about the industry, each area of publishing becomes more and more enticing! I hope to get as much hands on experience as possible so that I might find which department I click with best, but for now I am leaving my options open as I take it all in.

Twitter: @migcarney