Commissioning Editor, Non-book
What you’ll be doing
Do you love finding surprising ways to engage your audience? Do you think the best way to learn something is through having fun? Do you like jigsaw puzzles, board games and illustration? This is an exciting opportunity to join a small team developing new products, continuing successful series and growing Laurence King Publishing’s gift list.
- You will be commissioning c.15 non-book titles per year, seeing each project through from initial concept stage to finished product. You will bring passion and attention to detail to each title, ensuring that they are delivered on time and on budget. This is a creative role with wide scope for shaping products through their development, along with a strong project management focus. It will involve:
- Assessing, commissioning and profitably publishing a broad mix of non-book titles.
- Developing and maintaining strong market awareness to identify publishing opportunities.
- Negotiating contracts and maintaining clear communication with authors, illustrators and agents.
- Project managing and championing the publication of your titles. This will include editing text, preparing illustration briefs, feeding back on illustrations and product designs, writing effective box copy and title information sheets, briefing designers, overseeing editorial schedules and managing freelancers through to final files.
- Working with colleagues in marketing, sales and rights to support campaigns for your titles.
Who we are looking for
We are looking for a creative and flexible editor with a background in either illustrated publishing, licensing, or gifts, games and product development to commission and manage a packed and varied publishing programme.
Key attributes:
- Passionate about gifts and games
- Sound commercial awareness and ability to identify market trends and publishing opportunities
- Creative, with a proven record of successful idea generation
- Keen eye for design and illustration
- Excellent organisational and project management skills
What we offer
Our staff are our greatest asset and our benefits reflect this. In addition to 25 days annual leave days per year + bank holidays, we have an extensive list of benefits that include: a wide-ranging training library, development programmes including mentoring, Cycle to Work vouchers, Private Medical Insurance, eye care vouchers, up to 70% off book purchases, a charity book shelf, 2 community days per year, many employee networks to join, summer hours (finishing at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months!), season ticket loans, rent deposit loans, generous pension schemes and much more!
This role can be based at our London office, or at any of our new regional offices in Edinburgh, Newcastle, or Sheffield, with a blend of in-office (3 days) and homeworking (2 days) per week.
Who we are and what we do
Laurence King is one of the world’s leading publishers of books, gifts and games on the creative arts and popular culture. We work with some of the world’s best illustrators, designers, artists and photographers to create beautifully produced products that are acclaimed for their inventiveness, beautiful design and authoritative texts. Our gift department produces a wide range of non-book products, from jigsaw puzzles and playing cards to reference card decks, memory games and board games.
Our Commitment
Hachette employs people on the basis of their abilities. We aim to attract and develop talent from a base as broad as the world of readers we want to reach, with a wide and representative range of age, faith, disability, race, gender, sexuality and socio-economic, regional and cultural backgrounds.
If you are shortlisted and need us to make any adjustments to help you attend for interview, please let us know.
The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews and undertaking junior roles. For more information visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org