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The Mary Sue

The Mary Sue Wants You: To Be Our Next Editor

by Susana Polo | 3:08 pm, July 10th, 2012


As you may have heard, our beloved Jamie Frevele has left us, and while that’s sad for us, it might mean something exciting for you. The Mary Sue is seeking a brand new kick-ass employee to help keep the site running! This is not like our usual intern postings: it’s for a permanent position.

“Hold on,” you say, darting your eyes about confusedly. “What’s ‘The Mary Sue?’” UPDATE: We have currently closed submissions after receiving a staggering amount of applications! We’re currently trying to give them all a pass before we move on to the interview stage, so please bear with us.

First of all… really?

Second of all, The Mary Sue is the geeky woman arm (I dunno, maybe it’s got a Deathly Hallows tattoo?) of the Abrams Media collective. We’re eight sites (see the very top or bottom of our page) reaching over 13 million readers a month. We’re less than four years old. We’ve got big things ahead of us.

Moving on!

“But what will I do as an editor?” you ask, wringing your hands in anticipation, or possibly consternation.

You’ll join us in our offices (yeah, a loft in SoHo, exposed brick, no big thing), write, get red eyes looking at Google Reader, write, write some more, tweet, Tumbl, Facebook, organize contests, and generally keep your finger on the pulse of geek pop culture, gender in pop culture, and a bit of science.

“How can I get this wondrous gig?” you ululate, collapsing to the floor in paroxysms of excitement, perhaps foaming at the mouth a bit for effect.

It’s pretty simple.

What we’re looking for

The ideal candidate is a college graduate with internet writing experience looking for a job at a news startup. The ideal candidate can also demonstrate throughout the evaluation process that they are capable of writing quickly, clearly, and cohesively about numerous major aspects of both geek culture and gender in culture. Start date for the job has not yet been determined specifically, but will be in early September. Yes, you must be available to work in our office in NYC.

Here are the two biggest things we’re looking for in applicants:

  • The primary qualification for this job is an encyclopedic knowledge of, and obsessive enthusiasm for, multiple aspects of geek culture. If you are knowledgeable about weird, obscure anime or manga, thrive on television and movie casting news, or have incorporated the names of pages on TVTropes.org into your conversational vocabulary, then this is the job for you.
  • The secondary, but just as important, qualification is being able to write quickly and clearly (on topics from your geek specialties to gender issues), without weird grammatical or spelling issues, on topics that you yourself think up/discover on the interwebs.

Here are some other very important qualifications:

  • Previous experience in pop culture blogging or otherwise writing for the internet in a professional capacity.
  • Knowledge of blogging software.
  • Knowledge of the major personalities and figures in both the real and fictional sides of geekdom.
  • Basic experience with photo-editing software.
  • An ability to listen, take direction, and follow through with assigned tasks.

And here’s some way less important criteria that, if they apply to you, we totally want to know about:

  • Knowledge of anime and manga fandoms.
  • Experience in science writing.
  • An interest in writing and storytelling tropes.

How to apply

Please attach THREE (3) documents to your application email. Applications not containing all of these documents will NOT be considered:

  • A resume/CV, including references (please include any weird skills you might have, like the ability to read Legolas by Laura out loud without laughing, or knitting Jayne hats with your toes).
  • 3-4 samples of your academic or journalistic writing, preferably in more than one style (long-form vs. short-form, magazine vs. blog, basic post about news vs. longer thinkpiece, etc.) (Although we are a blog! So keep that in mind when deciding what to submit.) If possible, please include at least one nerdy submission and one gender-related submission (or something that’s both!). That’s a lot of possibly conflicting requirements, but for an editorial position we really want a good picture of your writing!
  • A brief (1-page) cover letter explaining why your experience, knowledge, and personality make you the ideal junior editor for a girl geek culture blog. Please also list in your cover letter your earliest experience with truly bad fanfiction; if you don’t, we’ll know you didn’t read the entire posting!

Address applications to jobs@themarysue.com. The process is rolling, so apply ASAP!

UPDATE: We have currently closed submissions after receiving a staggering amount of applications. We’re currently trying to give them all a pass before we move on to the interview stage, so please bear with us.

(top pic via Kate Beaton’s Hark, A Vagrant!)

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  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_H2JE2VYGVUGMWGAAWTUUETXPUQ Anonymous

    If I could move to SoHo, I would apply for this in a heart beat… Darn being a mommy thing.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=205000266 Anna Hight

    So, um, any chance of finding out what the compensation package would be? Because that’s a big factor in applying for a job in New York. :s

  • Anonymous

    Of all the times I don’t live in NYC. *sigh* 

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Nika-Kalantar/100001282923942 Nika Kalantar

    Not yet being a university graduate, cannot apply. Sincerely hope though that the new editor will have a wider  range of interests, am so angry that the site has never mentioned several things (like the highly successful shift in the new incarnation of the iconic Lupin the Third series, which this year had been directed by a lady for the first time ever as well).
    *Am a grumpy old man.*

  • Anonymous

    Selfish comment: I hope this position remains free until I’m able to move to NYC in late Jan-early Feb and apply for it.

  • http://www.facebook.com/alanam13 Alana Mancuso

    So, is there someone specific who will be reading these applications? I would like to be polite and address my cover letter directly to them.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=503440599 Jocelyn Tolbert Rhoten

    Seconded!

  • http://www.facebook.com/mark.matson6 Mark Matson

    Knowledge of blogging software.

    I must say, this is a really silly qualification.  Anyone smart enough for the job can learn blogging software in an hour.  Unless you are expecting your writers to code new functionality, blogging software is trivial.

  • http://twitter.com/slyborg Rachael

    I’d LOVE to apply for this, but I don’t think there is any way financially for me to move to NY. :(…….. Tears.

  • http://twitter.com/ProfHooch ProfCatfaceMeowmers

    First off: props for the Hark! A Vagrant strip. Second: *I* have a DH tattoo on my arm (FATE) Three: My writing skills are only amenable to long history articles (So I win, right?)

  • Alaina Granter

    Applying for this as I type. I don’t have the previous internet-professional-writing experience, but I have just about everything else.

  • Adam R. Charpentier

    Honestly, how would readers feel with a male reviewer? I would very much like to apply.

  • http://twitter.com/BambiBlue Bambi Blue

    Thirdededed.

  • http://twitter.com/BambiBlue Bambi Blue

    Dearest The Mary Sue, you and I – we are soul mates. Alas, distance will keep us apart… this time. :(

  • Anonymous

     Some serious lovers of anime and True Blood would be greatly appreciated!

  • http://www.facebook.com/eric.lindberg3 Eric Lindberg

    I am so qualified for this except for the “living in New York” thing. Damn it! If you need any assistant editors or proofreaders who can work remotely, let me know.

  • http://asterozoa.tumblr.com/ Kat

    Alas, I live in a different country. :(

  • Jenny Hanniver

    Hey, thanks for telling them what they need to be looking for in a job applicant, bro!

  • Anonymous

     http://lnk.co/I0RQG

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1334370644 Maddi Chapin

    Same.  Crossing my fingers– break a leg!

  • http://www.facebook.com/mark.matson6 Mark Matson

    Those kinds of requirements are always a pet peeve of mine.  If it takes less than a day to learn something for a job that should last for years, it isn’t worth bringing up.

  • http://cosplaylibrarian.blogspot.in/ Katy

    Being immediately familiar with something and not needing training in it, even if the training is only an hour, is a fine qualification in my eyes.

  • Andy Sirkin

    ikuj

  • Anonymous

    I think we can all agree that these are the sorts of questions that get answered in interviews, not in blog comment sections.

  • Alaina Granter

     You too!

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Nika-Kalantar/100001282923942 Nika Kalantar

     It is, because while Castle of Caligostro is a nice film it has little to do with the actual Lupin and only went to soften the franchise so that it would be more marketable.
     The ending polarized the viewers though, I rejoiced while some people said they felt cheated.

  • Anonymous

    Who’s the artist for the comic strip with Lois and Superman? It’s hilarious.

  • Anonymous

    It’s from the hilarious webcomic “Hark! A Vagrant!”

  • Anonymous

    Sadly not a graduate yet, otherwise I’m almost completely qualified (minus writing professionally, though I’ve been writing blogs/vlogs on fandom stuff for years, and living in New York). Then again, I bet a lot of the MS’s readers are pretty qualified for this, since we all love fandom and geek culture so much. Hope you guys find the best fit for the job!

  • Jennifer Coleman

    I’d be down with a male reviewer. I’m personally about qualifications, not just gender. Especially since gender is a social construct and entirely mutable. 

  • http://twitter.com/Mia_says_what Mia R.

    Maaaan, if I was only born four/five years earlier… D: 

  • http://servedcold.livejournal.com/ Sheila

     ’Gender is a social construct’.

    Someone better tell that to the animals, then! Please do not tell me that my gender has been made up by other people. Speak for yourself only.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=22104229 Dayna Brownfield

    I was so excited when I saw this post, that I applied within 4 hrs of seeing it!

  • http://www.facebook.com/rachelkolbgodfrey Rachel Godfrey

    Between The Mary Sue hiring and the announcement of a “Phineas and Ferb”/”Avengers” cross-over TV special, this is the best week ever.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Allison-Wilhelm/1242090557 Allison Wilhelm

    I FLIPPED OUT when I saw this posting, because this job is perfect for me! Definitely something I’d be willing to relocate for. Sent in my application about a week and a half ago. fingers crossed for an interview.

  • http://twitter.com/BambiBlue Bambi Blue

    I definitely get what you’re saying, but why waste their time in an interview or even in submitting an application if that’s not a possibility?

  • Tanya F.

    Most places don’t lay out compensation information ahead of time because it can hinder the hiring process. There’s often room for flexibility with the right candidate. By setting out a figure (even a ballpark), someone might feel discouraged from applying – someone who might have ended up being such an ideal candidate that the hiring managers might have actually happily negotiated with them. On the other hand, not listing a salary weeds out candidates who might only be looking for the next better paying gig, rather than sincerely dying for an opportunity to work with the company.

  • http://twitter.com/hawkingbyrd Jo

    Any new updates on the position?

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=22104229 Dayna Brownfield

    Any word on when/how people are being notified?

  • Adam R. Charpentier

    I realize this is a bit old but I just read it and…yeah, I’d have to agree with you. I’m proud to say that I don’t fit into any particular stereotype…but I don’t at all consider myself to be the product of my society, my nurturing, and so on…at a certain age, you make of yourself what you will.

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