Publishing Director - Sci-fi & Fantasy, Transworld

Transworld are seeking to appoint a Publishing Director to lead our Sci-fi & Fantasy team and to continue to develop our strategy. This newly created position offers the chance to take ownership of the genre for the entire company and develop and grow a best-in-class list, with the support and muscle of the Transworld team behind you.  

About Transworld Science Fiction and Fantasy 

Transworld has been launching SF&F and other genre fiction since it began publishing over sixty years ago. Early successes were demonstrated by Isaac Asimov, Harry Harrison and David Eddings, but since then the list has grown to incorporate the entire oeuvres of giants of the genre including Terry Pratchett, Anne McCaffrey, David Gemmell and Steven Erikson. For many years we were responsible for publishing both the Star Wars and Star Trek fiction lists. We have many exciting new authors who are primed to establish themselves through subscription boxes and social media over the next two years. 

Key Responsibilities 

• Overall management and direction of Sci-fi & Fantasy for Transworld, in conjunction with the Managing Director 

• Lead the strategy and development of the Sci-fi and Fantasy list to meet growth and profitability targets 

• Oversee all acquisitions across Sci-fi and Fantasy, ensuring robust and inclusive decision-making around acquisition strategy 

• Maintain and develop strong relationships with authors and agents around both current publishing and future acquisitions 

• Partner closely with Sales, Marketing, Publicity and Design across the publishing process from pitch to publication 

• Ensure that day to day operations of the Sci-fi & Fantasy list are working effectively, including cost management and meeting editorial milestones on the publishing critical path 

• Stay informed of wider industry-trends and the consumer market for Sci-fi & Fantasy 

• Contribute to Transworld overall as a member of the divisional leadership team 

Candidate Profile 

• Significant proven commissioning experience in Sci-fi & Fantasy, with an excellent knowledge of the genre and a track record of successful publishing 

• Experience creating and managing strategy for a SFF list 

• Great leadership and influencing skills, able to effectively champion your ideas and bring others with you 

• Creative, curious and commercially-minded, eager to find and nurture talent and ideas 

• Clear and empathetic communicator, able to build strong relationships internally and externally 

• Excellent author care skills 

• Proven experience negotiating complex deals, including auctions 

• Ambitious and entrepreneurial, eager to contribute to the success of Sci-fi & Fantasy and Transworld overall 

Application Instructions 

Please apply with your CV and cover letter (addressed to Kim Young) outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by midnight on Sunday 15th September.  

What you can expect from us

Salary: competitive basic salary depending on how your skills and experience align to the role, plus bonus and benefits.   

Competitive benefits package:  

Our people are the heart of our business, and we work hard to support a culture of responsibility and recognition.  

Our benefits include: 

Financial – income protection, life assurance, childcare allowance 

Wellbeing - healthcare cash plan, critical illness cover, health checks 

Lifestyle – enhanced parental leave, tech scheme,  

For our full benefits list please visit: https://www.penguinrandomhousecareers.co.uk/what-we-offer/ 

Hybrid working: While our offices across the UK are places to connect, collaborate and celebrate with colleagues, we recognise that flexibility around where you work is just as important. There are regular meetings and activities that you will need to attend in person at our Embassy Gardens office. The exact balance of office working will depend on the nature of your role and team needs, and we are open to discussing this through the recruitment process. 

About Penguin: We’re the UK’s largest publisher; made up of some 2,000 people and publishing over 1,500 books each year. Our doors are open to all kinds of talent. In a constantly evolving industry, we work hard to stretch the definition of the word publisher. Here, you’ll work with a breadth of talent who all play their part to make each of our books a success. Together, we make books for everyone because a book can change anyone. 

The recruitment process: You can read about our recruitment process at https://www.penguinrandomhousecareers.co.uk/how-we-hire/ 

As a Disability Confident Committed organisation, we offer interviews to candidates with a disability who meet the essential criteria for the role, and opt-in on their application form. Essential criteria are listed in bold on the candidate profile section. There may be times when the volume of applications means we cannot take all eligible candidates to interview. 

We encourage you to tell us about any reasonable adjustments you may need by emailing PRHCareersUK@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable to for us to support your request. 

Please note, we are not able to accept agency CVs for this role. Any CVs sent speculatively will not be eligible for a fee.