Editorial Communications Associate, SAE International
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Tell us a bit about yourself. Where are you from, and what did you study? Where are you currently based?
I was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, and spent roughly the first half of my childhood there before moving just over the state border to Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. Following high school, I received two bachelor’s degrees in history and art history from Penn State University (completed concurrently in 2017) and an MA in art history from Stony Brook University (completed in 2020). My thesis, titled “Metaphysical Documents: The Late Photography of Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz,” is an attempt to locate and justify the titular artist’s late photographic practice—one that’s often discounted from his broader creative output—to his own system of aesthetic and ontological theories. Currently, I am the Editorial Communications Associate for SAE International’s scholarly journals.
Describe your current role and organization. What are your main responsibilities? What type of organization do you work for?
SAE International is a professional society, standards organization, and publisher that services engineers working in the mobility and transportation industries. In my current role, I primarily manage submissions and peer review for SAE’s scholarly journals and develop content to engage our author and reader communities.
Share your journey in scholarly publishing. What was your first role in this field, and how did you land it? What path led you to your current position? What unexpected challenges have you faced?
I grew up in a household filled with books, so I always had a material conception of “knowing”—the idea that knowledge is directly related to physical text. I’ve always been a big reader. My father is a working-class guy (now retired), but he enjoys ancient numismatics and history as hobbies. Over the years, he accumulated a serious collection of scholarly literature on those subjects and others, so I got a real, physical sense of how much knowledge was out there on a given subject. That’s all to say that, from a young age, I’ve been aware of scholarly publishing’s importance. My brother and I took that and ran, I guess because we both now have advanced degrees in our respective subject areas (he has a PhD in chemical engineering).
I began to take writing more seriously during my undergrad. I did a bit of writing for an online publication, which gave me a basic understanding of things like SEO and writing for the web. Academically, I became interested in the history of art criticism and theory (which Artforum figured into heavily in the mid-20th century). So, editorial work seemed a natural extension of those interests and a potential career fit. I was able to get my foot in the door by interning at Artforum while pursuing my master’s degree. I’m tremendously grateful for that experience.
Finishing grad school in 2020, during a global pandemic, was certainly not the career transition I expected!
What tools, websites, and organizations are essential for your career growth? How do you stay updated with industry trends and developments?
It probably goes without saying at this point, but becoming familiar and staying up to date with the standard AI tools, the possibilities they afford, and their inherent limitations is essential for anyone at this point (regardless of industry). This is doubly important for early career professionals. Scholarly publishing may be especially vulnerable to manipulative applications of these technologies, but it’s important for those of us working in the industry to understand—from a practical standpoint—the characteristics of AI-generated text, for example.
Similarly, it can be a useful tool for developing your own skills. I’m no expert with Excel, but prompting ChatGPT for tailor-made instructions can be a great starting point to save yourself time while also learning a new skill.
Canva has also been an invaluable tool for anyone working with graphics or is interested in moving toward social media communications.
In general, the world and industry are changing extremely quickly, so follow newsletters and social media content creators for learning. James Butcher’s newsletter, Journalology, has been especially informative. There are tons of free tools, with more emerging every day, and it can be overwhelming to determine what’s worth learning. To that end, browse job listings often to see which skills are in demand.
What advice would you give to aspiring professionals in scholarly communications?
I would say: be versatile and exercise radical curiosity. Always stop and ask: “Why?” This can probably be said for most things in life. You’ll find avenues, pursuits, channels, and opportunities you may not have otherwise found, and you’ll develop skills along the way that could be valuable for your growth and career.
Career Stage: Early Career (0-5 years)
Industry Area: Editorial, Publishing, Sales/Marketing
