(no subject)

[changeling]

I started work at my second job today! I'm working a few hours each week in a second-hand bookshop, mostly because I need the money, but partly because it's my dad's best friend's place, and I kept nagging him to nag her, because I've always wanted to work in a bookshop.

Random thought today:

I bet that now I have bookshop experience, Borders will take me on ...

Which is crazy, because I LOVE working here so far. And I don't think I'd love Borders as much. Can you tell I've been thinking a lot recently about trying to get a leg up in the publishing industry??

Funnily enough, lots of publishing jobs say that a background in a bookshop is a bonus. So this might be the next step in my career, strange as it may seem. And I bet it'll be more fun that my other, more industry-relevant job. Though unfortunately I don't have the time for writing my novel that I thought I might ...

NaNo wordcount update: 1.2 day's worth of 4 ...

Comments

[mawaridi.livejournal.com]

Borders don't tend to care where you got your retail experience, as long as you have some retail experience. Both the people I know who got jobs there did so with previous experience working at a supermarket. Your second-hand bookshop job is probably much more enjoyable than a Borders job, though - the pay is crap and they don't tend to treat their staff very well (although staff do get an awesome discount on books).

I'd love to work in a bookshop :)

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I applied for Borders three times (from memory). The final two times I had retail experience from working at Target for over a year, and they still didn't take me.

I really think my job is better. I bet Borders doesn't have a swanky coffee machine behind the counter for staff. :)

Bookshops rock! I'm sure you could come work for this one when I have to more on. ;)

[erl-queen.livejournal.com]

I don't know if it's different in Australia, but I worked for Borders (two different locations) for almost seven years, and I would NOT recommend it. The pay is substandard (around here you can make more working for Walmart or fast food places than Borders), they treat you badly, and they don't actually care about books very much - they care about profit alone. You can be extremely knowledgeable about books, and they'll still put you on register or even in the cafe for hours on end, when anyone could do those jobs. (No, I'm not bitter)

The only thing I really liked about it was the employee discount. And I was only working part-time mostly through those years - it would have been worse if I had been full-time.

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I can imagine it would suck. I worked for Target, and that was bad enough. I think caring about the stock might make it harder. I was trying to get a job with Borders for awhile, before I got my current small-publisher job, because of the fact that publishers like bookshop experience, and I was prepared to put up with almost anything to get into the industry.

The employee discount would have been nice, but on the other hand I'd be supporting Borders instead of all the awesome little indie bookshops around Melbourne.

[youraugustine.livejournal.com]

Thirding the Borders horror-story, at least on the American side; I've had two friends work there, both with years previous of steady experience at other jobs, and both of them quit (one in tears) after three months or less. And they were on opposite sides of the US, so it wasn't that it was the same shop or anything.

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

I can't imagine Borders would be worse than the mind-numbing tedium of working in Target, but I solemnly promise to you all never again to try and get a job there. ;)

[spirail.livejournal.com]

Maybe it will sound totally stupid coming from me who hardly reads, but i think i would like to work in a book shop too.
Your recommendations will change peoples lives. Glad to hear that you are having fun.

[delirieuse.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Dave. That's sweet.