Books are my business: Poolbeg Press publisher Paula Campbell

Irish Examiner

10-05-2025

Paula Campbell is publisher at Poolbeg Press, one of Ireland's leading book publishers. The company, founded in 1976, is based in Baldoyle, Co Dublin.
How did you get into publishing?
When I did my leaving cert, I had no idea what I wanted to do.
That summer, my brother was working in the local bookshop, which was Books Unlimited in Donaghmede Shopping Centre.
They were stuck for staff and he rang me to come down. I was working in the schoolbooks section and I would look across at the wall of fiction books, thinking that behind every cover was a story. I loved the idea of that.
I did English in UCD, but not because I wanted to get into publishing, I was already in the door of bookselling and the English was just complementing that.
During college I worked in the bookshop and when I graduated, I became the manager. I did that for a few years and then I moved into Hughes and Hughes in Stephen's Green.
I have the best memories of my time there. We had so many celebrities in for events, from David Attenborough to Lauren Bacall.
I moved into the wholesaling side of the business, doing the buying and the marketing attached to that.
Then I moved to Poolbeg in a sales and marketing role. We were also agents for some of the big English publishers, so I learned a lot.
Then, Philip McDermott, the founder of Poolbeg retired and told me I was going to be publisher. I have been doing this job for about 25 years now.
What does your role involve?
We are a small company so I am the first port of call for manuscripts.
I read the first three chapters, and if I like what I see, I ask the author for the full manuscript.
I read that and I will send it on to the editor to look at and we decide whether to publish it.
I oversee the editing schedules, I work with the designer on the cover, and I do the sell-in to the key accounts.
I mind the book as it goes through the system.
I have been through every aspect of the business, from the literal bookselling to wholesaling to publishing.
I know the booksellers, how they buy, and what you need to do to push a book out there.
What do you like most about what you do?
If I love a story, I'm driven to get it out there. I'm always determined, with every book, to tell people 'this is a great story, you will love this'.
I also like working with authors when they are starting out and seeing their confidence grow.
I enjoy the interaction with people, every day you are talking to someone different.
What do you like least?
It is relentless, you can never stop and say 'OK, we've done everything for that book' because you keep thinking you could do more. You are also fighting all the time for space.
I understand booksellers are under pressure and they will always try to do their best for Poolbeg.
The smaller companies are trying to compete against the bigger ones, but we are Irish, working with Irish authors, and we try to get that message out there.
Three desert island books
The first one would be Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.
It is a timeless and unforgettable book, every time you read it, you come away with something else to think about.
The second is The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, about the building of a cathedral in 12th century England and I have a proof copy signed by the author.
It is an amazing book — the characters, the setting, the history, architecture, the romance, it has everything.
The third one would be The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende. I couldn't put it down, you could read it five times and you would discover something new.
It is such a colourful and passionate book, it really is magic.
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