Get to Know Wolsak & Wynn: Ashley Hisson, Managing Editor

What does a Managing Editor do?

Since Wolsak & Wynn is a small publisher, I do a little bit of a lot of things as managing editor. After a book is signed, I collect information from the author and acquiring editor to create the bibliodata information that is sent to bookstores and libraries so that people can order our books. I also apply for cataloguing-in-publication from Archives Canada so that our books are properly catalogued in Canadian and American libraries. I do a lot of copy-editing and proofreading, and I coordinate with designers to get print files to the printers. I pack up online orders and award submissions, and answer emails sent to our info account. Pre-Covid, you’d often see me in the Wolsak booth at festivals and conferences.

What is your favourite part of your work?

Working with fantastic authors and helping their books be just that little bit cleaner for publication. Visiting different cities for conferences is also great.

What is your least favourite part of your work?

Cold calls from people who haven’t bothered to look at our website or find out anything about us first.

What made you first become interested in publishing?

I’ve always been an avid reader (as so many of us in publishing are), but when I was a teenager there was an error in a book that I was reading and I remember thinking, Shouldn’t catching issues like that be someone’s job? I could do that.

What is one thing you wish people outside the publishing industry knew about how it works?

That with traditional publishers like Wolsak & Wynn, the author doesn’t pay to have their book published. The publisher chooses books they think will do well with their list, and covers all the editing, marketing and printing costs.