Inside Publishing: A Conversation with Havilah Sciabbarrasi: Random House Books for Young Readers and Rodale Kids

Abstract

A graduate of the Columbia Publishing Course, Havilah Sciabbarrasi is currently working at Random House Books for Young Readers and Rodale Kids as an editorial assistant for two editors. While we spoke over Zoom, Havilah and I reminisced on our time working together at our undergraduate institution’s literary magazine. During our conversation, Havilah spoke about the importance of intentional inclusion in editorial work, navigating bans on books for younger readers, and upholding authenticity across publishing mediums for various audiences. This connects the importance of inclusion and editorial responsibility in publishing, topics that resonate with the GW Journal of Ethics in Publishing (GWJEP) and the wider GW publishing community.

What follows is an edited excerpt from our conversation, condensed for clarity and length.

Havilah started by reflecting on the unique challenges she faced as an undergraduate student managing peers at a student-run magazine as it struggled to reach its audience.