How to become an intern

I see a lot of tweets on Twitter about people wanting to become an intern and not knowing how to go about it. There are lots of opportunities out there, you just have to know where to look.

So I've put together a very basic FAQ list that will help you decide if you want to be an intern and what steps you need to take to find and get an internship.

What is a literary internship?

Generally, an internship is an unpaid position that helps you learn the ropes of an industry. In literary circles, you can have an internship either with a publisher or with a literary agency. With a publisher you can have editorial internships and you may be able to get publicist internships as well. Editorial internships revolve around providing reader reports to editors and assistant editors on submissions. For agency internships you also get to read slush.

Who should apply for internships?

Aspiring authors, aspiring editors, aspiring agents and avid readers are all suitable candidates for literary interns. As a writer you get to see what type of submissions editors and agents as chasing. When you do reader reports you get to analyse writing, which is great for further your own craft or learning more about editing. And if you're an avid reader you get to read for free!

What do I need to do before applying?

Get a literary resume together. Do you blog? Do you write? What are your future aspirations? Think about all these things before putting in an application.

How do I find internships?

One of the best places to find literary internships is on twitter. Find agents, agency accounts, editors, and publishers' accounts, as well as looking for influential literary tweeters who are likely to retweet opportunities like this.

If you're interested in interning with a publisher then Entangled is a good place to start as they are regularly looking for interns.

So if you're an intern, what tips do you have to share? If you're not an intern, is there anything else you want to know?