Hear it from the Students
Three 2012 DPI grads share their thoughts on the program:
"I thought DPI did a thorough job of exposing the different avenues through which a publishing professional could start his or her career. I never knew there were so many job options out there within the field; marketing, publicity, editorial, production, literary agencies, and more. By the end of the program, I was able to narrow down the fields I wanted to pursue post-DPI. What's more, I think our almost $6,000 tuition also covered what went unsaid, but was ultimately what helped land me my first publishing position-- networking. Coming out of DPI, you are connected to--and can network with--not only 90-some other students from your own class, but also with all past and future DPI grads. Considering this program has been around for more than twenty years, that's saying a lot. The Denver Publishing Institute is THE way to break into the publishing world."
-- Alexi Garrett, Editorial Intern at Oxford University Press
"It was great being under the guidance of Joyce Meskis and learning from all the presses, authors, and others how important independent bookstores like the Tattered Cover are to the industry to day. DPI also did a great job of showing us that publishing can and does occur outside of New York City."
-- Kathy Kosiniski, DPI Grad
"For me, the most interesting lectures were those that present new and imaginative ways to display quality content; those that rely on idea meetings and brainstorming sessions; and those that seek out creativity as a marketable skill. DPI Director Joyce Meskis emphasizes the necessity of an open mind to all the possibilities of the publishing world – sales, marketing, trade, non-fiction, book producing/packaging, digital design, printing, etc."
-- Autumn Jones, Candidate for the Master of Arts in Journalism
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The University of Denver Publishing Institute
A Graduate’s Perspective
There aren't a whole lot of places that are better than Denver, Colorado in the summer. Perfect blue skies every day, mountains on the horizon—oh, and one of the best publishing programs in the entire world.
The University of Denver Publishing Institute (DPI) was established in 1976, and is one of the few post-graduate publishing programs available. Each year, DPI accepts about 100 students to attend the four-week course on the book business. Speakers from all over the country come to impart wisdom on the aspiring publishing professionals, knowing that the students will soon be their coworkers and competitors.
I spent four weeks of my summer out at Denver, soaking up everything I could about the industry. We heard from speakers from trade houses, scholarly journals, literary agencies, and printing companies. We met editors, marketers, publicists, and authors. Plus, we were meeting our fellow students. I would not be surprised if my classmates went on to be the CEOs of Big Six houses, publish the next great novel, or reinvent the digital revolution.
I think DPI is one of the best-kept secrets in the publishing industry, and you would be surprised to learn how many people have come through the course. More than 3,000 students of all ages and interests have graduated and moved on to careers in book, magazine, and journal publishing (not to mention the tons of other opportunities open to a DPI grad). The lectures are inspiring, the assignments are challenging, and the atmosphere is incredible. For one full month, you eat, sleep, and breathe books in all of their various stages. We spent days on the intricacies of copyediting. We spent hours perfecting marketing budgets. And every day had something new.
Here are some of the highlights (and I should mention that two of these folks are DPI grads themselves):
· Keynote Address/Overview of Publishing: Michael Pietsch, Executive Vice President, Hachette Book Group and Publisher, Little, Brown and Company.
· The Role of the Editor: Andrea Schulz, Vice President, Editor-in-Chief, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
· Editing Workshop: Directed by Karl Weber, President, Karl Weber Literary, former Editor and Publisher with McGraw-Hill, John Wiley & Sons, and Nan Gatewood Satter, Independent Book Editor, former Editor with Doubleday.
· University Press/Scholarly Publishing: Peter Dougherty, Director, Princeton University Press.
· Copyediting: Alice Levine, Freelance Editor and former Copy Chief, Westview Press.
· Reference Publishing in the Digital Age: Larry Baker, Senior Content Project Editor, Gale/Cengage Learning
· Children’s Books: Virginia Duncan, Vice President, Publisher, Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins Publishers
· International Publishing and Subsidiary Rights: Kristin Kliemann, Vice President, Subsidiary Rights, John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
· Trade Books Marketing Workshop, Overview of Marketing: Carl Lennertz, Executive Director, World Book Night U.S. and former Vice President, Marketing/Independent Retailing, HarperCollins Publishers.
· Social Media Marketing Strategies: Erica Barmash, Marketing Manager, HarperCollins.
· Magazine Publishing: Daniel Brogan, Editor and Publisher, 5280: The Denver Magazine
· A Day with Independent Publishers: David R. Godine, David R. Godine, Publisher; Gary Groth, Fantagraphics Books; Jack Jensen, Chronicle Books; Carolyn Sakowski, John F. Blair, Publisher; Marina Tristán, Arte Público Press; and Peter Workman, Workman Publishing
· Commencement: Dominique Raccah, President and Publisher, Sourcebooks, Inc
We took field trips to the Tattered Cover, Frederic Printing, and Fulcrum Publishing to see the business happening first hand. DPI scheduled career planning, mock interviews, and even networking workshops to help prepare their students for the post-graduation world. And, nearly a month after leaving Denver, I am still receiving notifications of job openings and opportunities for the Denver grads.
Of course, none of this would be possible without the work of a few dedicated, talented, and fantastic staff members. Joyce Meskis, Jill Smith, and Jennifer Conder know what it takes to make this program work. I’m sure many of you are familiar with Joyce Meskis: champion of the independent booksellers, enemy of censorship, and all around inspirational figure in the book world. In addition to being the Director of DPI, she is also the owner and president of the famed Tattered Cover Bookstore. She is a role model for every student of the Institute, and we were lucky to learn from her knowledge and commitment.
Joyce and Jill gave me a bit more insight into their end of the program. Here’s what they have to say about DPI 2012:
IP: What do you think made DPI 2012 stand out?
Jill: First, We kicked off with Michael Pietsch, the publisher of Little, Brown and editor of the NY Times bestseller The Art of Fielding. We were also pleased to be able to add a fantastic workshop on book production, taught by Jim Becker of becker&mayer!, which provided the students an alternative view of how books can be created and find an audience.
IP: What are some of the elements that go into making the DPI happen each year?
Joyce: The Institute happens as a result of the successful confluence of a million details, small and large over the 12-month period. It takes a full 11 months to prepare for the 4 weeks in class. As soon as one class is finished (actually, even before) we are preparing for the next year.
IP: Why do you think this course is important, both for recent college grads and for professionals looking for a change in careers?
Jill: The Denver Publishing Institute provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the field of book publishing. Students can take that knowledge and use it to find their own place in the industry, a career that is the best suited to their skills and interests. Attending the Publishing Institute demonstrates to employers that an applicant possesses a commitment to the field of book publishing, as well as the understanding of the industry that would take years to train “on the job.”
DPI caters to book lovers of all ages and backgrounds, and it is one of the best places to learn about and enter the book publishing industry. For more information, visit their website at www.du.edu/publishinginstitute and learn more about the application process here.
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Jillian Bergsma is a writer and contributing editor for Independent Publisher. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in English. She welcomes any questions or comments on her articles at jbergsma (at) bookpublishing.com.