First Day on the Job

When I first started to work for Harper & Row after grad school I was ushered around the floor of our college division by Phil Leininger, the dean of all publishing English editors at the time. The building at 10 East 53^rd Street had 38 floors, and our floor was humming with people at work. People looked serious and busy. I was a little awestruck, though ready to fit in. Phil showed me the power corner offices (one was his, mine was next to it) and introduced me to the office managers, the marketing folks, and the project editors. As we walked down the hallway, he was saying, “You have to be on your toes all the time here. Be aware and don’t miss a thing.” As he said that he pushed open the door to the ladies’ bathroom and walked right in. I waited in the hallway. He came quickly back out. “Another thing,” he said. “Don’t do that.”