Penguin Random House interview questions

I interviewed for a position under two editors who work in separate imprints but share an assistant. I spoke with the first editor alone, where she asked me questions and gave me a manuscript sample to read. Then I had a chance to speak to the second editor who also gave me two samples to read and review. The first editor worked mostly with literary and upmarket fiction while the second editor was exclusively into non-fiction. They really needed an assistant who could manage this very broad workload. After speaking with both editors I also had a chance to talk for a while with the current assistant and ask her questions about the job, her likes, challenges and advice.

Two one-on-one interviews, each lasting about an hour. Fairly informal, lots of discussion of the publishing industry, what my likes and dislikes are about working in editorial, and what my goals are.