If you’ve read my little bio on our site, you may have seen that I was a flashlight reader growing up. This was something my mom called me because after it was time to be asleep, I’d grab a flashlight so I could get a few more pages in after my parents turned off the lights.
I’ve always loved stories, and there were some that I’ve struggled with (Grapes of Wrath was a big one…), but I never thought I’d do anything with that love. I went through college taking only one English course and as graduation crept closer, my friend mentioned a program for a Master’s in Library and Information Science. I had no idea this existed. But I chatted with one of the professors a few months later and before I knew it, I was a librarian.
I worked in school libraries for almost 10 years before shifting to stay home with our child. I was incredibly lucky to find a remote position that fit my skills as a librarian before COVID changed the world and knew my hermit-like-tendencies would never want anything that wasn’t remote ever again!
Next, I stumbled upon ARCs, or Advanced Reader Copies. I was reading voraciously through the Libby app and found some groups where people could request these magical early copies! From there, I got to know some incredible Indie authors and their PAs. At one point, I knew some authors whose work I had already fallen in love with were swamped, so I offered to help them with their ARC management.
That first step happened in late August 2021 and I left my other job to pursue this work as my sole employment in late November of that same year.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Keep exploring your passions, you never know where they might lead,
-Emily
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