Each month, we will interview one employee to get their opinions on the publishing industry, hear what it’s like to work at Technica, and learn a little bit about them. This month we are interviewing Bonnie Meyer, an editorial assistant who started working with us after graduating from UNC this May.
This is your first publishing job. Did you always want to work in the publishing industry?
This is kind of a yes and no answer. I have a random vivid memory of being in elementary school and sitting in class thinking about my future. It hit me that the absolute worst job that anyone could possibly have would be a writer. So of course, in middle school, I started writing short stories and decided I wanted to become a writer when I grew up. When I got to high school, I started taking creative writing classes with my favorite teacher, and I became the editor of our school’s creative arts magazine. It was at that point that I started to go in that direction and realized that that’s what I wanted to do. I actually almost dismissed the idea in college because I didn’t want to move to New York City. So when I got this job, I was really excited because it meant I would get to work in publishing and stay in Chapel Hill, which is my favorite place.
I went through that too, thinking about moving to New York, and then I got this job and was very glad I did!
Yeah, I’m very glad I get to stay in Chapel Hill! It was a great surprise to get to start a career in publishing and get to be here after graduating. I went through that indecisive thing as a kid where I wanted to be a park ranger, an astronaut, a person who names paint colors — I’ve pretty much wanted to do everything, but being interested in publishing has been a constant in my life, except for that one moment in elementary school.
You graduated from college in May — how has the transition from college to working full-time been?
It was interesting at first, because I started working two weeks after graduation. It was very much diving straight into things, and I love it. I really enjoy this job, and it has been awesome. It has also been a bit weird because I’m going straight from living on campus to living a couple hours away from my friends, so that’s been both interesting and a bit stressful. I think a lot of people don’t really think about that aspect of it. Everyone has been super helpful here and has gone out of their way to help me transition to working full-time, giving me their advice and helping me learn. Everyone has been super nice.
What do you like doing when you aren’t at work?
I really enjoy writing, and I studied creative writing in college. I actually figured out through one of my classes that I like travel writing. I’m not well traveled, but it’s a fun hobby, and I love traveling even if it’s just within the state. I also love hiking and kayaking, and just being outside in general. I like coffee. I’m a little obsessed with cats, and basically anything involving animals.
Related to the travel writing, what is your favorite place you have visited, and what is your dream destination you haven’t been to yet?
My favorite place I’ve ever been to is Heidelberg, Germany. There’s an amazing castle ruin there that inspired a lot of the German Romantic painters and writers. It’s a gorgeous city, it’s very historic, and there’s a river — so between the hills and the castle and the university and the German food, it’s amazing. For my dream destination, this is much closer to home, but I really want to do a waterfall tour of the Blue Ridge Parkway and go to every waterfall that I can in one big road trip.
That would be cool! Do you know how many waterfalls there are?
No idea. I would at least want to go to the major ones. I’ve been to a couple of them and there’s some that you can swim in and stuff like that. There’s one near App State’s campus that you can jump off the top of, and that’s really cool. It’s called Trash Can Falls, which was probably nicknamed by the same students who named Snake Pit, but it’s really pretty.
What is your favorite book?
This is a really hard question. Because I just graduated and studied English, I’m currently working on a couple of books that past professors have recommended to me. I’m really enjoying Tess of the d’Urbervilles. I haven’t finished it yet, but I love it. It has really beautiful language and raises a lot of interesting questions—and I’m a huge nerd, so I love the historic part of it too. Pride and Prejudice is a really obvious answer, but it’s one of the best books ever. I love fantasy and science fiction, but I’m still in English major mode. Basically, my favorite book is the one I’m reading at the moment.
If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
This is my favorite question to get to answer because I have a very specific answer. I’ve thought about this a lot. I would want to be able to use force fields like Violet in The Incredibles because you can use them to protect yourself, to move things around, to control the environment around you, to protect someone else. I don’t even want to turn invisible, I just want to be able to make force fields.
What is your favorite thing about working at Technica?
A lot of people have said that the people working here is their favorite thing about this job, but I’m going to say it again. Everyone here has been extremely helpful, especially when I was just starting. There’s such a great opportunity to learn and grow. Especially during training, people have been so helpful and have gone out of their way to make sure I have everything I need to do a great job. There are opportunities to pursue the projects you’re interested in and would like to know more about. Jack and Arlene especially have done an amazing job of making sure that everyone has an opportunity to learn new things. They go the extra mile and are very considerate. It’s a great, fun environment.
