A Dream to Inspire

Alyssa DelPrete is a junior at Hanover College in Indiana. She is currently an intern for Book Business and Publishing Executive.

When I told many of my family and friends that I was coming out to Philadelphia for four months (a semester of my college career) to obtain an internship in editing, they seriously questioned my judgment. Philly is about ten hours' driving distance from my hometown of Mishawaka, Indiana, a small town that doesn't even register recognition from many fellow Hoosiers. Most people from home couldn't fathom spending more than a few days' vacation time in a big city, let alone moving to one for nearly half of a year. What added to their hesitation is the fact that I harbor the dream of one day breaking into the world of literary publishing, an industry (as I have already quickly learned during my first month here) that is in a major transitional period.

When asked why I'm so passionate about following this dream, I go back to the summer following my junior year of high school. I've always been a pretty big book nerd, and so it was only natural that I ended up at the library on one of the first days of the summer to select a book to read. I didn't have a specific title in mind, so it was entirely by chance that I stumbled upon a book entitled A Silent Ocean Away by DeVa Gantt, an historical fiction that, for one reason or another, piqued my interest.

Though I was always a speedy reader, devouring books as quickly as I could get my hands on them, this particular book consumed all of my free time for two or three days as I was swept away by the riveting plot and beautiful, captivating prose. I immersed myself in the life of Charmaine Ryan, a young woman who suddenly finds herself working as a governess for a wealthy, powerful family with a dark past that slowly comes to light throughout the story.