Christine Carswell
Chronicle Books
San Francisco, CA USA
"Make your own luck. Yes, a lot of this comes from luck, but a lot of the time, you can make that luck yourself."
Career Roadmap
Christine's work combines: Business, Education, and Being Creative
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
My college experience majoring in English was very focused and, after graduating, I wasn't sure if I wanted to work in a field that was similar. I gave myself a year to figure out what I wanted to do, so I learned how to be a secretary (because that's what women did back then). I eventually realized that the reason I chose to study English in the first place was that I loved to read. This made my transition to publishing very easy and clear.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
English Language and Literature, General
University of Edinburgh
Certification
French Studies
Aberdeen College
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
She started reading when she was three years old, and she was always fascinated by the power of words.
2.
Grew up in Scotland, where moving 13 miles away to go to university was considering “moving away from home.”
3.
In Scotland’s school system, she had to pick her major right away and stick with it; as a result, she studied English literature with an intense focus.
4.
However, even with that specialized study, she still had no idea what she wanted to do when she graduated.
5.
She spent a year working as a secretary, because as a women of her class, that was the go-to entry level career.
6.
After a year, she realized that she didn’t want to be someone’s assistant any longer; she wanted to go back to pursuing her passions for reading and literature.
7.
Naturally, she was led into the publishing industry; she loves her current job as a publisher because it involves a lot of collaboration.
8.
Chalks a lot of her success up to her Scottish work ethic; her school’s motto was, “Nothing without work.”
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Myself:
I don't want to get involved in a career that's similar to what I've been studying for four years in college.
How I responded:
My college experience majoring in English was very focused and, after graduating, I wasn't sure if I wanted to work in a field that was similar. I gave myself a year to figure out what I wanted to do, so I learned how to be a secretary (because that's what women did back then). I eventually realized that the reason I chose to study English in the first place was that I loved to read. This made my transition to publishing very easy and clear.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
I grew up in Scotland and immigrated to the U.S. when I was an adult.
I am the first in my immediate family to attend college/university.