The internship at the Love Yourself Foundation (LYF) has benefited my career by providing me with the proper type of experience required for my career. At LYF, I have been given the opportunity to edit newsletters and blogs, as well as write my own blog posts. This strengthens my skills as an editor and as a writer, both of which make up the very foundation of my desired career of book editing. The internship acts as a stepping stone to my being able to enter the field of editing and publishing. The internship at LYF does tie into my major of study because as an English major, it is essential that I acquire an appropriate amount of skills and knowledge in the literary world. In other words, I not only need to be a capable writer myself, but I also need to be knowledgeable about the principles of modern English grammar. As far as educational requirements went, I am thankful that I took a grammar course before applying for an internship at the LYF. Because of the course, I was able to effectively complete my tasks as an editor. The creative writing course I took in Fall 2020 allowed me to write unique blog posts, without my imposter syndrome creeping through. After completing my internship, I fully understand why I planned to pursue a career in book editing. I realized that it never felt like work for me, rather, it was something that I always looked forward to. Catching the little mistakes writers unknowingly made, the ways I could advise them to make their writing more effective, the different perspectives I needed to read the work through to ensure that the message it was delivering was done in the best way possible—all of these only made me more passionate about continuing my goal to becoming a successful book editor. The education and skills come hand-in-hand when talking about what I need to gain in order to secure a full-time position as a book editor. I need my degree to be focused around the English written language and the skills I need to sharpen and hone are my writing and editing skills; I cannot effectively hone these skills without the proper education that is being provided through university-level English courses. I also know that I need to study up on the different formats of writing—APA, MLA, etc. Although writers all have a unique style of writing, it is only beneficial for me to learn about these different formats as it will make me more knowledgeable in my field. The experiences that I need to gain are the same as anyone else’s. I need actual experience in the field, even if it is a small newspaper or magazine I am working for, in any case, something is better than nothing. The biggest piece of advice I have for upcoming interns is to not shy away from going after what you want. If there is a position you have more interest in, ask to be given more tasks relating to that field. You have to remember that this is your career you are trying to build and there is no better time than now to start making your journey towards your desired career.
The photo that I have included below is the cover photo of the very first blog I wrote for LYF. It took some courage for me to write this blog, and definitely a lot of fighting back against my imposter syndrome, but in the end I am grateful to have been provided this space to write about something that has meant so much to me.
