We’re offering readers a behind the scenes glimpse into the bookmaking process—the people behind the books and the products we create! Through our “Behind the Book” blog series, discover who plays a role in creating a book, what daily life looks like at Norton, and what being part of an independent and employee-owned company means.  

Tacy Quinn is the director of product operations in the Digital Product group and leads teams that work on wwnorton.com and digital spaces where customers experience W. W. Norton content. She was promoted to this position after working in several areas at Norton over the past ten years, including roles as a college media editor, associate director of Digital Media, and director of Website and Operations.  

What is your current role, and what part do you play in the book-publishing process? 

I’m currently the director of product operations in our Digital Product group, where I work across teams throughout Norton to identify ways to organize, coordinate, and maintain the data and processes that allow us to deliver the simplest access to the best content in our digital spaces. This is increasingly important as we build new digital experiences for readers, educators, and students, where we need to meet the high standards we’ve set with our physical books. My team also works on wwnorton.com to ensure that customers can learn about and access Norton books and digital products. So much goes on behind the scenes to create a smooth website and ecommerce experience. Our website is not just a place to browse and buy books. It’s also where instructors access teaching resources and students access course materials.  

For your current role, what does an average day look like? 

My favorite part of my current role is that each day presents something different, and it always involves working with colleagues in other departments to coordinate efforts. I may be meeting with the College Department to plan the launch of a new book or digital product on wwnorton.com, or working with the Trade Department to create landing pages for a new book series, or meeting with our support teams to find ways to deliver even better customer experiences. I often work closely with our product managers to discuss priorities, questions, or challenges regarding development of new digital resources or enhancements.  

What skills do you need to succeed in your job? Did any previous work or life experience help you in your role? 

This role requires curiosity and patience. Things move quickly in the digital space. There is often ambiguity, which can feel overwhelming unless you look at it as an interesting problem to solve. I am constantly learning and asking questions in this role. My sales and editorial skills from my early publishing days continue to serve me well in the digital space because it’s still fundamentally about understanding needs and creating an experience with the content that helps people learn.  

How did you end up at Norton, or what enticed you to apply? 

Even though I started my publishing career with another company, it feels like it was meant to be that I ultimately made it to Norton. I was pursuing my master’s degree in English at Stanford University and deciding what to do next when one of my professors, Andrea Lunsford, said that her editor was coming to town and would be a great person to talk to about the world of higher-education publishing. Her editor was Marilyn Moller, who had just joined Norton from another company—and was planning a new project with Andrea, which would become the best-selling Everyone’s an Author. Marilyn and I had coffee, and while Norton didn’t have openings at the time, I decided this sounded like a wonderful career where I could stay immersed in academia and the content I loved, while learning more about the business of publishing. I started working as a publishing representative for another company and then moved into an acquisitions editor role. In that role, I embraced the potential of digital resources to support an instructor’s efforts and help students have the space to practice, get feedback, and learn the material. My work developing new online resources is ultimately what led me back to Norton when Norton reached out about an opportunity to develop the digital media to support their number-one college-history titles. I knew immediately upon interviewing that Norton was the special place Marilyn had told me about years ago. Its independence and employee-owned structure make it an incredible place to work. 

What have been some of your favorite projects? Are there any projects or initiatives you introduced to your department or Norton? 

Three projects stand out to me as favorites and show the range of projects and opportunities you can encounter in a career at Norton. The first was my work in launching InQuizitive—an online, adaptive learning tool—for our introductory history books. It was wonderful to work with talented instructors to develop meaningful online question types and content to then test with students and get constructive feedback so we could revise until it had the Norton stamp of quality. The second project that comes to mind is when I was serving as the biological anthropology media editor. We created a series of videos working with a documentary filmmaker where we interviewed instructors about why anthropology matters. It was so fascinating to hear their perspectives on the importance of their discipline, science in general, and what we need to understand to be better citizens of this world. The third project was the redesign of wwnorton.com. It meant so much to be trusted with this critical project to ensure that the unique story of Norton, independent and employee-owned, with its many valued audiences, was captured and consistently conveyed on our site and the experience visitors have with it. It’s been a joy to be able to work with colleagues across all departments to ensure the site represents their contributions.  

What advice would you give someone just starting out in publishing? 

I think it’s important to stay open and immerse yourself in each role you have. There is an endless amount to learn, and you’ll start to home in on what you enjoy most. I started my publishing career in 2003 with another company as a college sales representative. I had never considered a job in sales until I learned that it was an important way to understand what kind of books are needed, which ones are successful, and why. I never could have predicted the path my publishing career has taken, but by staying open to opportunities, I’ve been able to work with so many talented authors, instructors, students, and colleagues and create a career I’ve enjoyed.  

Lastly, what do you like to do outside of work? Any fun hobbies or recent reads you would recommend? 

All of my time spent in the digital space on my computer is balanced by intentional time in nature. During the pandemic my family embraced our Norwegian roots and the idea of “friluftsliv” to spend time outside and create moments of joy in some dark days. We started an Instagram account (@friluftslivingfamily), where we shared ideas for family adventures and challenged ourselves to get outside once a week, even during winter, for meaningful time together. I was able to share my hobby with Norton colleagues as part of a fun, internal, Quality of Life series the company launched, where Nortonians could host discussions on a range of topics. This led to some memorable in-person adventures with colleagues, including maple-tree tapping and stand-up paddle boarding on the Hudson River! I love getting inspiration for outdoor ideas from the many books we publish, including The Overstory by Richard Powers, Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey by Florence Williams, all the various travel and nature books from Countryman Press. 

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