The Slush

The dawn of a new millennium, the advent of sophisticated technology, and my family’s coincidental relocation to Seattle, WA were all possible factors that contributed to my mother’s pivotal change in careers. I remember as a child I would awaken to the sound of her tinkering with a computer, and I would fume over my expulsion from her study. She had to go back to school for computer science, and by the time I was ten she was working for large corporations. In my mind she had always occupied a place on the rising tides of technology, and I rarely asked about her enigmatic history as a book editor for Knopf and Pantheon. I have come to realize, however, that her time spent at Knopf shaped the woman I know as my mother. She was just a Midwesterner straight out of New York University, naïve to the inexorable madness of the city, yet she was always loyal to her own moral probity. This is my effort to articulate her story.At all major publishers there were, and still are, two distinct types employees: the “old” and the “new.” These seemingly forthright labels were deceiving; the “old” were in fact also new, but with many more connections and funds. The “old” worked in tandem with top publishers, met authors of unimaginable prestige and recognition, and had a proclivity for a supercilious tone when speaking with the “new.” Laura Mack, unfortunately, found herself thrown in with the latter group of workers within the first few months of her employment at Knopf-Pantheon. While the “old” were adroit at avoiding all forms of exertion, Laura adhered to the tacit obligation of the “new,” and often spent hours reading through countless pages of manuscripts. These undesirable documents were affectionately named “the slush pile.”
She would routinely peruse the drafts, which were mostly young adult, picture books, or light literature. After reading a page or two, consulting the ending, and discerning that nothing is “extraordinary,” she would perfunctorily write a brief but polite letter informing the author of his or her rejection.

To the distinguished author of this book,
We at Knopf-Pantheon Books for Young Readers (a division of Randomhouse publishers) regret to inform you that we are unable to publish your book at this time. We urge you to continue in your pursuit and wish you the best.
Sincerely,
Laura Mack

There was one instance of cursoriness, however, that enlightened Laura Mack to the puzzling nature of book publishing. As is custom when working with “the slush,” Laura had already “read” five or six manuscripts and written five or six little letters. Without breaking suit, she read the seventh and sent out her final correspondence before lunch. Within five days she was called to her superior’s office and told that she had rejected a manuscript by one of the authors already signed with Knopf. “The author is extremely offended,” said her boss. “Have you not become acquainted with ‘the list’ after all this time?” “The list,” Laura knew, was the complete index of all the authors already published under her company’s name. She also was aware that she had not fully memorized it.

“I’m afraid for my job,” she told her coworke.
“Don’t worry,” she said, “I know you wouldn’t have rejected it if it was anything worth saving.”
“It certainly was not!”
“You should let him know, and incase he does let you go, Knopf will have one less egregious children’s book under its name.”

So she did. And after much “handholding and coddling” the agency decided to reject the manuscript, against the author’s fervent remonstration. Laura continued at the firm and learned from her mistakes.
Granted, the quality of writing in “the slush” remained excruciatingly ordinary, Laura began to recognize her own power in discovering that which was not common. After two years of virtually uninterrupted monotony, she stumbled upon a children’s book that was funny. Funny in the sense that it had a sarcastic swagger and dealt with the profound tale of a young boy wishing to “dump” his annoying little brother. “Authors of children’s books often forget that their target readers are generally above the age of eighteen months and have already conceptualized plain but apparent evils such as the malevolence of one’s younger sibling.” Laura knew that she enjoyed the book, but she was dubious of other’s opinions. However, having acquired confidence from her last encounter, she presented the book as a “keeper” and was pleasantly surprised with her superior’s concurrence. She would later come to see that author publish many novels, all imbued with the unconventional wit she had discovered herself.

While Laura’s ten-year perseverance in book publishing did not dissuade her from changing careers, it engendered a proclivity for “telling it how it is.” People often say that success is only achieved by working within the system, and that a few years of monotony is a small sacrifice for prestige and recognition. My mother has taught me that there is no such thing as a small sacrifice, and that courage is a valuable virtue. Whether in an avant-garde children’s book, or a precocious “new” employee, taking risks is the only way to achieve success, and that is something I hope to one day exemplify for my children to see.