English Major Ann Pekata, FCLC '20, Scores Dream Internship
Business casual. What is business casual? The ambiguity of the phrase churned through Ann’s mind as she ruffled through her cramped closet. It might have been the cold sweat that began to dot her skin, or the intensifying din that rush hour had begun to usher in, but Ann abruptly decided on a fresh pair of slacks partnered with a blouse and ankle boots. A deep breath was in order. She glanced once more at her room, her sanctuary. She reminded herself, no matter how her first day went, she had the comfort of her dorm to return to.
Ann Pekata, FCLC ‘20
The elevator was functioning slower than usual, of course. The lobby, once populated with friends, had transformed into to a blur of peripheral characters as she bolted out the door and trekked down 59thstreet. Ann’s only concern was punctuality, always at odds with the unreliability of the MTA. When she sat down on the train, the first bubble of excitement rose within her. Though Ann had been on the one train hundreds of times, the air circulating within was different today—it was pregnant with adrenaline. She couldn’t help but grin at the new briefcase in her lap. She had now blossomed into a sophisticated member of the metropolitan workforce.
After a long half-hour on the subway, she exited at Fifth Ave. Inkwell Management, a Literary Agency, was right around the corner. Once she arrived, she proceeded through a cumbersome security checkpoint and decided to wait in the lobby, as her watch told her she was thirty minutes early. The momentum of excitement had been lost. So, there she sat, just Ann and the butterflies that batted at her insides.
“Hi there! You’re Ann, right?” A radiant figure appeared at the office entrance. Ann introduced herself with a warm handshake. The kindness of the employee soothed her insides as she showed her to her desk for some paperwork. Ann soon learned that this was Eliza Rothstein, the literary agent who oversaw the interns. Eliza handed Ann her first manuscript and explained how to review it. A wave of familiarity washed over Ann. She’d been here before. She was now locked into the task at hand with a brimming motivation.
As Ann ordered her materials, she thought back to the writing salon session when Professor Bly had informed Ann of the open intern positions at Inkwell and graciously wrote her a letter of recommendation. Ann mindfully traced this evolution: a casual conversation had prompted an application which had thrust her into this precise moment, where she sat at her desk. It was these wonderful and fleeting reminders that fueled Ann with a confidence to tackle the 300-page stack that sat before her.
With a pen and highlighter as weaponry, Ann slashed through the forest of pages. She conquered, and the jots of insight in the margin showed for it. Ann continued to conquer at all of her following days at Inkwell, when the nerves had long subsided. She has since established a powerful cycle: pre-quarantine she was in the office three times a week, where she would pound through a manuscript, write a report on it, and repeat. Fortunately, Ann has been able to continue this process at home during quarantine.
Though this process might sound tedious to the casual reader, it is a realized dream to the English major. When I asked Ann what her favorite part of her work was, it came as no surprise that it is the actual revision of the manuscripts, which, for those who don’t know, are semi-finished pieces of literature that are on their way to getting published. And had it not been for the handful of Fordham’s creative-writing seminars, Ann would have been ill-prepared. As a gifted writer, the seminars had allowed her to hone her craft, whereas the internship has allowed her to truly put her craft to work.
Ann articulately recounted how, “A creative writing class is about improvement, what works and what doesn't, and how can the author improve the piece? Professor D’Erasmo said on one of the first days of class that she wants something in progress, not something that the writer is satisfied with, which I think is incredibly valuable advice. As a work in progress, there's room to grow. At Inkwell, with such a high volume of submissions, a manuscript is treated as the best of an author's ability, because the stakes are so much higher on both sides, and as a result it's a different mindset when evaluating. Yet while the end goals are different, the process is still the same, and that process I learned at Fordham in my creative writing workshops, as well as how to vocalize my thoughts on the creative work.”
At Inkwell, Ann is drawing on her creative writing expertise as much as she is adding to it. Her work is indeed a reciprocal relationship: she borrows from her repertoire of creative-writing knowledge while editing a piece, and while perusing (sometimes) great material, she is in turn refining her writing skills. In addition, Ann has now acquired a much more nuanced understanding of the business world, and specifically how the editing industry at large operates. In Ann’s words, all of it is an invaluable and rewarding experience that the Creative Writing department has propelled her toward.
Aside from the mundanity of office life that accompanies an editorial job, I was especially charmed by the moments that enlivened and humanized her experience. Ann fondly recounted things like her daily greeting from the kind receptionist, the cozy copy room where she throws herself into her work, only to get lost in it, the lively conversations with co-workers over the water-cooler, and most of all, her lunch breaks, where Ann sat bookended by the regal lions of the New York Public library next door.
As Ann continues her internship at Inkwell from her home in New Jersey, I like to imagine these lions, her newfound companions, standing watch over the empty city. Perhaps they are still waiting for Ann to accompany them in the afternoon sunshine, but alas. What lucky creatures they are, to have watched Ann’s initial jitters explode into a buzzing mastery for editing. And like the Fordham English Department, these statues stand as ushers to a vast reservoir of knowledge, guidance, and opportunity. Though we have all scattered from this empty city, let these lions serve as a reminder to capitalize on the opportunities that lie beyond. Reach out to the English Department today, and you too can tap into this reservoir.
Lindsay Abel, FCRH ‘21
Written for English Connect by Linsday Abel, FCRH ‘21. Lindsay is a double major in both English and Film and TV, with a concentration in Creative Writing.