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.