What do you love about working at Mare Nostrum Group Ltd?
No two days are the same in my job. Looking after the STM clients can mean I’m working on books about differential equations one day, fractography the next day, and infectious diseases the day after that. The eclectic range of subjects mean there’s always something new to learn which keeps me on my toes.
I also need to mention the people – everyone working at MNG is always happy to lend a hand or give advice when needed and the same can be said for my contacts at the client-publishers.
What is your favourite book? Why?
The book that I’ve read the most times is Dracula and as I own more than one edition of it, I guess that would make it my favourite. My oldest copy has a RRP of £2.50 which gives you a small clue as to just how old it is. It was the first “literary classic” I read of my own free will before studying literature at A-Level and University and having seen countless vampire films before reading it, it was eye-opening to experience one of the original inspirations for many of them. Obligatory mention to Le Fanu’s Carmilla and Polidori’s Vampyre, obviously.
It was the first time I’d experienced an epistolary narrative style and it had me absolutely gripped from the get-go. I can’t blame Dracula for my love of horror fiction, Stephen King got to me years before Bram Stoker did, but I can credit it with making me realise that classic literature doesn’t have to be Shakespeare or women in bonnets.
What are you currently reading?
I currently have 3 books on the go – Badasstronauts by Grady Hendrix (frivolous escapism), The Book of Renfield: A Gospel of Dracula by Tim Lucas (a little more attention required for this one) and The Butcher’s Daughter: The Hitherto Untold Tale of Mrs Lovett, by Corinne Leigh Clark & Davud Demchuk (a must-read for fans of Sweeney Todd, so long as you aren’t particularly squeamish).
What did you want to be when you grew up?
My first thought was to be a vet but I soon realised I couldn’t handle all the misery that must be involved in looking after sick, mistreated, and dying animals so I pivoted to lawyer because apparently, I’ve always enjoyed a good argument. However, once I realised there was very much more to it than that, I thought again.
What would you like to own that you don’t currently possess?
Central heating. I’m a girl of simple wants.
To put this into context a little, our house was built before such a thing was possible. We’ve lived in the house for a while now and had planned to have a heat pump installed at this point but life got in the way somewhat. We’ll get there!
Ambition or talent: which matters more?
I think both are important. Talent without ambition is unlikely to get anyone anywhere but ambition without an iota of talent would surely become soul destroying. If I had to choose, I would say ambition – I think a little talent and a lot of ambition is preferable to a lot of talent and only a little ambition (if we’re not throwing luck into the mix too).
Learn more about about the STM clients Pip manages here.