Focus on goal, even when path unclear
Tara Meyers shares her journey to becoming an editor
By Rachel Waterman
It was in first grade when Tara Myers first noticed her love of writing — she had a knack for it. When she was young, she would even practice her handwriting by writing letters of the alphabet in many different fonts. Since then, she has also indulged her love of writing by starting a handful of novels. Meyers always felt drawn to a career in the publishing industry, but finding out how to get there was the problem.
She now works at N2 Publishing and is in charge of three publications: Country Club Neighborhood Life, North Oaks Living, and Twin Cities Real Producers.
Q: How did you become an editor? What was your career path like?
A: In college I had majored in English Literature and Multicultural Studies with a minor in Native American studies and an emphasis in Creative Writing as well.
After I graduated college, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go into grad school right away or try to crack into the publishing industry, which at that time was very difficult to crack into. It’s more like you had to know someone to get your foot in the door. Because I was having difficulty with that, I went to Australia where I interned at a publishing company for an in-flight magazine. That was really cool and was kind of my first taste of this whole publishing world, and I just absolutely loved it. It just made me more and more hungry.
After a year of that, I came back to the states. I job searched for about two months just trying to find something in the industry. About three months later, I had found N2publishing. I started as a part-time writer, and very quickly I became a content coordinator and did that for a few years. Chad, who is my boss and the owner of these publications, had wanted me to go full-time for a while, but I put it off because I didn’t think I was able to make a living wage out of it. Three years later, I decided to take the leap, and I wondered why I hadn’t done it sooner.
Q: What does your typical workday look like?
A: As an editor, I oversee our entire publishing staff — coordinators, writers, photographers, junior writers, interns, pretty much anyone that does anything related to the content side. I also dabble in some of the client concierge side.
On our deadline day I’m the one who pulls it all together. I have a specific tracker, so I know what’s coming in, where it is in the pipeline — so if we have the article but need the photos or vice versa, or if it’s just at an idea stage or if it’s complete. Then I upload everything into our system and lay it out with our design requests, such as the number of pages and photos we want. I go through and edit and reread every single piece of text that goes in our publications, probably on average about 3 or 4 times before we approve it for print.
I also am involved in our social media platforms, which we have just launched. I’m in charge of doing all the posting and scheduling of what goes out when, making sure it’s timely and in sync with our publications as well.
Q: What challenges do you face as an editor and how do you overcome them?
A: We are very limited to the length of articles if we want a variety of stories and a 50–50 ratio of ads to content. Being a writer, I want these articles to be so long, but I know that photos really grab people’s attention, so I have to keep that in mind. I need to be at arms length away from each of these articles to look at it from a professional, objective point of view.
Q: What is your favorite thing about your job as an editor? Are there any memorable moments you would like to share?
A: My favorite part about what I do is hearing the stories from the residents and the realtors we work with. An elderly couple lives in one of the neighborhoods that we write for, and I’ve interviewed them a number of times over the years. At this point I would actually call them friends, which happens a lot with what our company does.
One time in particular, we were putting something together for a November issue about Veteran Spotlights, so I was interviewing Pete who was in the Navy long ago. During the interview, he got emotional and actually teared up a few times, and then I had to choke it back myself.
Once the article had come out and I was dropping off extra copies at his house, he thanked me. He said that a handful of his neighbors had gone out of their way to thank him for his service. Just knowing you’re making a positive influence in someone’s life… there is no better feeling than that.
I have so many memories like that from other stories, too. It’s a big deal for people who are featured, and sometimes I forget because I’m around it all the time. Just knowing that people take you seriously and get excited about what you’re doing… It’s just really rewarding.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring editors?
A: Trusting your gut is really important. If it feels right, go with it. If it feels wrong, there’s a reason. I would say that and persistence. Just keep going. My journey to get to where I am took years. Some people are a little bit more lucky and have connections; some don’t. Obviously things have changed, though. Social media… It’s something that until recently I had only used on a personal level, and being able to use that on a professional level really sets you ahead of the group.
Meyers encourages aspiring editors to not give up on the publishing industry. Like most things in life — the path to where you end up is not always a straight line.
(Edited for conciseness.)
