26/07/2023
Shortlisted for the Australian publishing industry’s Rising Star award in 2023, meet Kajal Narayan, head of marketing at Pantera Press.
A natural creative, Kajal has led Pantera's most successful marketing campaign to date achieving unprecedented online engagement. Always keen to learn more Kajal says she is particularly looking forward to the upcoming BookUp conference 'It's so fantastic to see sessions at the conference this year on metadata and responsibly publishing books from First Nations authors', as she also shares insights into her career to date and hopes for the future of the industry.
What achievements are you proudest of in your career so far?
Aside from the brilliant authors I’ve had the privilege to work with and the friendships I’ve forged, I think I’m most proud to have stayed in publishing for so long. While publishing is a wonderful industry, there are real challenges to sustaining a career – especially one that allows for change and growth.
This year's BookUp program has a strong focus on professional development – what kind of training would be useful for your career or your peers in the industry?
It’s so fantastic to see sessions at the conference this year on metadata and responsibly publishing books from First Nations authors, areas that I think we’re all quite eager to learn about and develop our collective knowledge base.
We’re having a lot of ongoing discussions internally at Pantera about ways that we can minimise the emotional burden of memoir on editors and publicists, as well as our duty of care towards authors who relive traumatic experiences in the editing and promotion of their books.
What are some of the opportunities or challenges you would like to see the publishing industry tackle in the future?
I think this might be a common response, but sustainable career pathways (including, but not limited, to the dreaded pay chat) and a greater commitment to diversity and retaining staff from different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. It’s important that the industry does this in a way that isn’t tokenistic and recognises the real value that different perspectives provide.
Hear more from those shortlisted for the Rising Star award at BookUp on 16 August, with the winner announced at the post-conference networking drinks that evening in Melbourne. You can learn more about the BookUp program and discover the full Rising Star shortlist here.
The Rising Star award is proudly supported by Media Super, the super fund dedicated to those who publish, inform, entertain, create and inspire.