Paul Griffith, Jr. ’19

Tupelo Press, North Adams, MA

Paul reading Neruda’s “Canto General” edited by Jeffrey Levine, the founder of Tupelo, in order to find a suitable snippet for Tupelo’s Instagram page.
Paul reading Neruda’s “Canto General” edited by Jeffrey Levine, the founder of Tupelo, in order to find a suitable snippet for Tupelo’s Instagram page.

This summer I worked as an intern for Tupelo Press, a not-for-profit, poetry publisher in North Adams, Massachusetts. Tupelo, unlike many non-profit publishers, has been around for over a decade and owes much of its success to publishing literary talent both new and well-known. For example, Lawrence Raab (a former professor at Williams who is well regarded within the poetry world) and Maggie Smith (best known for the popular success of Good Bones) are published alongside fresh-faced newcomers, many of whom are discovered through Tupelo’s various competitions and prizes. The search for voices, both established and unheard, places a value on diversity and originality that is essential to the press: as a non-profit, Tupelo values the urgency, personality, and beauty of a voice over its potential for success within a mainstream consumer audience. Tupelo has a reputation for publishing writers from a variety of backgrounds and identities that speak to a plethora of experiences in today’s world. It is a platform for unique and important writing; writing that is equal parts thought-provoking and beautiful, as good poetry often is.

The office, spaciously located in one of North Adam’s reconverted mills, was populated by the management team, the founder of Tupelo, and myself. Given the limitations of publishing not-for-profit, Tupelo’s editors work remotely. The small scale of the operation, though, was no loss. It gave me the opportunity to work on a number of jobs and learn the breadth of work involved in publishing. Within the loft, I was often exposed to the business side of things: the housing and counting, packaging and mailing of books; fielding calls from customers; sending thank you notes to donors; tracking sales and costs. And, by connecting with our editors online, I also helped out with a number of editorial tasks. I got the chance to read submitted manuscripts, write reviews, and express to the editors whether I thought a given work should be considered for publication. Many times, the hands on aspects of working in the loft combined with editorial work, such as when reviews from our various editors needed to be checked, compiled, and sent out to publishing magazines and houses.

Alongside these more structured activities, I was able to take on a number of more personal and creative tasks as well, the most engaging of which was the curation of Tupelo’s online presence. Tupelo engages with its audience on a number of platforms—Facebook, Twitter, Instagram—in addition to its website. But, given the number of personnel running this small and busy organization, the press does not always update its social media in a way that maximizes it potential for audience engagement. So, I began posting a “poem per day” on Tupelo’s Instagram with pictures of interesting verse and beautiful book-covers along with brief captions to relay the mood of a work. This task was a quick education in online advertising. I learned when to post, how to grab attention with an image, and how to write captions that were catchy and thoughtful for our poetry reading audience. Curating a post every day for the press was truly a lesson in knowing our audience. I had to find the right material and present it in an interesting way, a challenge that allowed me to pick out any collection of poetry from Tupelo’s catalogue—an opportunity that I did not let pass me by—read it closely, and write concise comments. On top of that, it was a great way to practice writing in a professional, social atmosphere (not to mention brushing up on my photography skills.)

This task in particular provided me with skills that I can carry into a variety of work experiences. It is common knowledge that image and audience engagement are essential aspects of business practice across industries. Today’s online culture, however, is a unique moment of connection between people and organizations. For better or for worse (often, I feel, for worse), online personas create the networks through which people, well known personalities, and organizations interact. Crafting an online image for Tupelo that felt authentic, representative of the amazing poetry they produce, was excellent exposure to this aspect of business practice (even necessary for non-profits) that is uniquely tied to our social-cultural moment. Amidst much of the clutter that fills social media, it was rewarding to produce content connected to the work of beautiful, often unheard, writers.

Paul and his coworker Sarah (on the left) exploring a new potential work space for Tupelo.
Paul and his coworker Sarah (on the left) exploring a new potential work space for Tupelo.

In addition to the skills I gained that relate to publishing in particular and advertising in general, it was enjoyable and empowering to work in an industry that relates directly to my studies as an English major. I often think about the soft-skills a degree in English provides: clear, persuasive writing, reading comprehension, textual analysis, etc. But, in this case, I was able to use specific knowledge that I have learned in English classrooms to talk on social media about the poetry that Tupelo has published. For instance, I would take a picture of a short poem from one of our collections and then comment on some particular quality of the poem in the caption. Given Tupelo’s audience of avid poetry readers, I was able to talk about particular styles and techniques, using technical terms in a conversational, open way. Of course, knowledge of poetic terminology is not a skill that is especially transferable across industries, nor a way of speaking that is useful if an audience is unfamiliar with, what is often, esoteric terminology. But, finding an opportunity to use the knowledge I have gained as an English major within a social and commercial space was exciting, and it gives me confidence that in whatever work I pursue my experience as an English major will inform the way I communicate with people and the work that I produce. In that regard, working at Tupelo validated my interest in English as a discipline that is valuable in itself and applicable, if only in certain moments, to almost any line of work that I might pursue.

I am incredibly thankful to Tupelo Press as an organization and my wonderful co-workers this summer. It was a joy to work in the press. Sarah, Marlee, and Emily were instructive and light-hearted, as quick to help me with any task as they were to share their knowledge of the best swimming, hiking, and dining spots. I am thankful as well to have had the opportunity to work in North Adams, a community so close to college I rarely find time to engage with. And, a special thanks to Jeffery Levine, the founder of Tupelo and a contributing poet, for creating this opportunity and for his eagerness to talk.

A final thank you to the ’68 Center for Career Exploration for their work in organizing and orchestrating the workings of the ASIP program, and of course a very special thank you to the Kraft Family for their continued generosity and support. Your giving has made possible so many opportunities for students that would not have otherwise been possible. ASIP funding is crucial for so many, and has been for me an amazing gift as I gain experience in the professional world. Thank you to everybody who was a part of this experience, who made this step in my career exploration possible.