The Taddle Creek Protege Internmentship

In 2009, in the face of world economic ruin, Taddle Creek became perhaps the only magazine to launch an internship program. The magazine’s generosity continues in 2011 as Taddle Creek searches for a special someone to fill its protégé position once again.

The Taddle Creek Protégé Internmentship offers a well-rounded education in every area of the magazine industry—from writing, editing, and fact-checking, to design, circulation, and publishing, and more. The successful protégé applicant will be given the opportunity to speak to approximately two dozen industry professionals, representing more than twenty magazines (large, medium, and small), publishing houses, educational institutions, and other organizations. There will be talk of literature, but Taddle Creek stresses: this is not a literary magazine internship. (It is also a more instructional learning experience than a hands-on one, though the magazine will do its best to offer whatever trench experience it can.) And just to prove that any magazine can afford to pay an intern something, there will be a small (i.e., token) honorarium and some lovely gifts.

The Taddle Creek Protégé Internmentship is not full time. It will work around the schedules of both protégé and mentors, so it is ideal for those either in school or working another job. A minimum six-month commitment is required to meet with all mentors at a leisurely pace, though the protégé would be welcome to hang around for up to a year and see two issues of the magazine through.

Once again: this is meant to be a learning experience, so a love of magazines and a genuine desire to understand how they work will be weighed higher than previous experience when selecting the successful applicant. If you are dabbling in journalism or the magazine world and trying to figure out if it’s the life for you, do not apply. Taddle Creek is only able to take on one protégé at a time, so the spot will go to someone planning a future in the industry. By all means send a résumé, clippings, and anything else you so desire, but Taddle Creek is more interested in clever cover letters, original reasons for wanting the position, future hopes and dreams, literary and musical tastes, restraint to not cry under pressure, and ability to drink and bowl (if you can do both at the same time, even better). Again, an unwavering love of magazines is a must.

The magazine will begin taking applications for the Taddle Creek Protégé Internmentship immediately, with a cut-off deadline of Friday, May 6, 2011, at which time it will pick a protégé to begin before June 1st. Please do not wait until the deadline to apply. Send your application, in whatever form it takes, to Taddle Creek, P.O. Box 611, Stn. P, Toronto, Ontario M5S 2Y4, or by E-mail, to editor[at]taddlecreekmag[dot]com.

THE FACULTY
Mentors are subject to change (some may be added, some may be subtracted), but Taddle Creek’s protégé likely will obtain knowledge from the following:

Gavin Babstock (warehouse manager, Magazines Canada), Doug Bennet (publisher, Masthead), Jared Bland (managing editor, the Walrus), Joyce Byrne (associate publisher, Alberta Venture), Sattie Cheddie (director of printing services, Rogers Publishing), Stacey May Fowles (director of circulation and marketing, the Walrus; author), David Hayes (freelance writer; instructor, Ryeron University), Lisa Whittington-Hill (publisher, This Magazine), John Montgomery (associate art director, Toronto Life), Hal Niedzviecki (publisher, Broken Pencil; author), Kim Pittaway (freelance writer and editor), Graham F. Scott (editor, This Magazine), Kat Tancock (senior Web editor, Reader's Digest; instructor, Ryerson University), Conan Tobias (editor-in-chief/publisher, Taddle Creek; managing editor, Canadian Business), Patricia Treble (reporter-researcher, Maclean’s), Alana Wilcox (editor-in-chief, Coach House Books).

Special thanks to the sponsors Steam Whistle Brewing, Magazines Canada, and Tad Gepechio, literary man about town.