Magazine Publishing Postgraduate of the Year was Pamela Jane Morris (pictured), graduate of MSc Publishing. This is an exclusive award, open to students who have graduated from MSc Publishing. The event was a great opportunity to get advice on working in the publishing industry. Lecturers advised that it is necessary to be noticed and to make the most of opportunities. Nominees for the Magazine Publishing award recommended applying for internships as soon as possible and taking advantage of any potential placements. Marion Sinclair (Chief Executive of Publishing Scotland) also recommended speaking up and making suggestions when on placements. (Students on MSc Publishing undertake a placement as part of their publishing studies.)

The Scottish Magazine Awards reward excellence in magazine publishing. It was interesting to see the range of magazine publishing in Scotland, trade titles, business to business and charity titles. Two of the most successful publishers of the night were DC Thomson and The Big Issue, both winning several prizes. The overall winner of the evening was Animal Planet, published by DC Thomson.

All in all, it was a truly rewarding evening!

The much loved tale about the boy who never grew up celebrates its publishing centenary this year.

And to mark the milestone MSc Publishing students from Edinburgh Napier University have produced a new edition of J.M. Barrie’s magical tale.

The book has been published with the permission of Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital, who Barrie gave his Peter Pan works copyright to in 1929.

Avril Gray, Programme Leader for Postgraduate Publishing at Edinburgh Napier University, said: “The new book will be delivered to children’s hospitals across the UK to bring the magic of Peter Pan to children at a time when they often feel sad or afraid.

“It’s a beautiful edition of a well-loved children’s classic and this donation of 100 copies is a very fitting finale to the celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of Peter and Wendy first being published.”

Janice MacKenzie, Chief Nurse, Royal Hospital for Sick Children said: “We are delighted to be the first hospital to benefit from this lovely gift.

“The excitement of Peter and Wendy, pirates and fairies is sure to produce smiles across the hospital, particularly at this time of year when being in hospital is even harder to bear.”

The centenary edition of Peter and Wendy has been published by Merchiston Publishing – the imprint of the Scottish Centre for the Book based at Edinburgh Napier University.

The University now offers two masters in publishing – MSc Magazine Publishing and MSc Publishing. This year MSc Publishing became the first and only publishing course in the UK to be accredited by the Periodicals Training Council.

Come along to our informal
Postgraduate Information Evening
on Tuesday 22 November,
any time between 5pm and 7pm.

Meet academic and support staff and find out more about
MSc Publishing at Edinburgh Napier University.

Whether you are looking to study full time or part time, we will be happy to talk about what suits you best.

This year’s events will feature:

•  Information from MSc Publishing programme staff
•  Student support staff on hand to answer your questions
•  Hosted on Merchiston Campus, where you will be studying

Open Evening: Merchiston Campus (in the Glass Box), 22rd November, 5–7pm

Final cover

This year’s Postgraduate graduation ceremony was particularly exciting for staff and students on MSc Publishing as it also marked the day that copies of Peter and Wendy were distributed to all the students involved in its creation.

Our thanks go to Glasgow printers, Bell and Bain, for printing such a high-quality book and to the Edward Clark Trust for providing the funding. This beautiful new centenary edition of JM Barrie’s well-loved children’s story featuring Peter Pan will now be distributed to children in hospitals across Scotland. Find out more…

This year, our class was kindly offered free tickets to some of the events, and on a chilly but sunny Sunday afternoon I thus had the chance to attend a talk by Nicola Morgan called How to Make a Publisher Say Yes! Nicola delighted the audience with an hour and a half of good sound advice about what makes publishers invest – or not – in a book. Nicola is herself an award-winning author but, as she mentioned at the beginning of her talk, she went through many rejections by publishers and suffered from a lack of information and advice before finding success. Fortunately for today’s authors, she has decided to share her tips and tricks on how to write for publication. In addition to providing a one-to-one writing consultancy, she also regularly posts articles on her blog, Help! I need a Publisher! and more support can be found in her book, Write to be Published.

It was very interesting for me to be in the shoes of a writer and, for short time, forget that I might later become one of these frightening and feared publishers whom Nicola Morgan was talking about. Among many topics, Nicola stressed the fact that a published book is not necessarily better than a book which has been rejected by a publishing house, and that the current economic situation is having a serious impact on publishers’ choices. She also pointed out the importance of the manuscript’s submission, providing tips on how to write an effective covering letter and a 25 words pitch on the book, something that I will definitely use when producing copyright content.

I have to say that once the talk was over, I was happy to be on the publishers’ side. However, Nicola’s talk was very optimistic and full of very good advice for writers, and I truly recommend anyone interested in getting published to have a look at her blog on a regular basis. To finish, I would also recommend that anyone interested in books attend next year’s LennoxLove Book Festival and enjoy quality talks and a wonderful venue.

Last week saw Publishing staff and students head to the land of Sunset Song, where clear blue skies frame the rich red soil of North East Scotland. Our ‘home from home’ is an eighteenth-century estate house, with large drawing room, dining room, library, TV room, indoor games room and 18 bedrooms!

Away from the huge roaring fire, comfy sofas and overladen plates, the stunning scenery of this 190-acre estate is captivating. When dusk fell and the red squirrels left the croquet lawn, bats flitted past our drawing room windows as whisky swirled in our glasses. Stopping to marvel at the volcanic dyke in glorious autumn sunshine, we marvelled at the seemingly tireless salmon leaping the dramatic rapids and waterfalls of Gannochy Gorge.

Like the salmon, we will fight hard to return to this beautiful location next year!

The MSc Publishing team are delighted to wish the following students every success in their new roles …

ANGELA ROBB who has now started her new job with Oxford University Press! Earlier this month Angela started as Production Editor in their English language teaching division, working on OUP’s series of graded readers. http://ukcatalogue.oup.com

GEMMA GREIG who fought off over 80 applicants to secure a long-term Editorial Internship at Edinburgh University Press. www.euppublishing.com

CHRISTOPHER WILSON who was snapped up by global media giants Haymarket publishers in London at the beginning of the summer. Chris is working on their recruitment brands. www.haymarket.com/home

KATY SHIELDS who was appointed Publishing Manager at Editions as early as June this year! www.editions.co.uk

Congratulations also to all our other students who are now in publishing – do keep in touch and let us know how you are getting on!

Best wishes,
MSc Publishing team
Edinburgh Napier University

Click here for more info

Marion Sinclair, Chief Executive of Publishing Scotland, opened the door on the exciting world of publishing and provided a taste of the calibre of speakers who regularly give of their time to talk to our students.

There are some places on the one-day Writing for the Web course on offer to students for only £50+VAT (first come first served). The course will be held on 15th September from 9.30 to 4.30 at the Scottish Book Centre in Edinburgh.

Writing for the Web is different from writing for print and this is a great opportunity to add to your skill set as almost all publishers now have websites and engage in online social networking.

Book online at Publishing Scotland as a PS Member.

At Black and White Publishing, tea is the first beverage distributed in the morning (though some days I’m sure we wish there could be something stronger in our cups!) and the last beverage to drain into our mouths before grabbing our jackets and heading out for the day.

I’ve noticed that tea builds our sense of community because it is at these times of the day when we uncoil from the desk, look away from the manuscript or latest cover design on our computer screens, and relax into each others’ company. For a few minutes every few hours each day tea brings us together and encourages our social natures.

There are other times we speak to each other, of course, but I believe at tea breaks we socialise in a way that we do not at other times of the day. Here we tell stories from our lives outside the workplace, share memories about crazy Scottish weather, or discuss the latest breaking news according to Twitter.

However, tea is only one of the great parts about working at Black and White. There are other perks to the placement as well. For instance, Black and White has offered a great opportunity to complete the placement over the course of two months as opposed to ten days.  During my time there, I have developed experience in a variety of areas, including rights, editorial, and marketing.

My tasks thus far have included reading and evaluating manuscripts for submission, organising marketing campaigns for forthcoming titles, and researching various editors in the US to whom B&W can direct some of their titles and arrange for these companies to purchase US rights. These opportunities have been central to forming my understanding of the publishing industry in Scotland and the UK as a whole.

I appreciate every learning experience that has been presented to me, and more importantly, I appreciate every member of staff who has helped me develop my own abilities and knowledge of the current publishing industry. I look forward to continuing my placement at Black and White, and I am very grateful for every opportunity presented to me there, and everyone who’s offered me a cup of tea.

© Black & White Publishing, 2011