Editor, Puffin (Penguin Random House Children's)

Are you passionate about children’s publishing? Are you currently in editorial and keen to work with some of the biggest brands and most exciting new creators in the market? The Puffin Picture Books team have an exciting opportunity for someone to join the team as an Editor on a permanent basis.

About the team

We publish some of the biggest names in picture books from iconic classic brands such as The World of Peter Rabbit, Spot and The Very Hungry Caterpillar and bestselling heritage creators including Allan Ahlberg, Anthony Browne and Shirley Hughes, to major new talent including Tom Fletcher, Nadia Shireen, Rashmi Sirdeshpande, Nathan Bryon, and Dapo Adeola. We are passionate about bringing stories to life that change and shape lives.

The role

As an Editor at Puffin, you’ll work with a broad range of classic brands and heritage authors, as well as contemporary classics of the future. This is a great opportunity to join a large, creative, commercial team and there will be collaborative support to develop your editorial skills on the job. For the right candidate, there may be the opportunity eventually to commission, working alongside and being supported by the editorial team.

Key responsibilities:

• Collaboratively working on the in-house process for specific books, including scheduling, running costings, compiling metadata, jacket and cover copy.
• Working closely with authors, estates and brand owners on existing projects at different stages of publication.
• Editing manuscripts for a select number of titles.
• Liaising with in-house teams, authors and agents.
• Presenting titles at internal meetings.
• Contributing to the publishing vision by inputting ideas for your books, including format, binding, design, price, and promotional campaigns.

What you’ll bring

We’re looking for someone with demonstrable editorial experience and solid market knowledge in preschool publishing. You might currently be an Assistant Editor looking for your next challenge, or an Editor wanting hands-on experience on a different type of list and exposure to household brands and names.

Essential criteria:

• Proven skills in editing and working with authors and agents.
• Solid market knowledge and demonstrable interest in pre-school publishing.
• Excellent demonstrable communication skills and understanding of managing multiple stakeholders at varying seniorities.
• Initiative, creative motivation, and a proactive nature.
• Strong attention to detail.
• To be able to prioritise, multitask and work under pressure.

Preferred criteria:

• To be engaged with popular culture, be well-informed of current trends, and have design awareness.
• To be a team player with interpersonal sensitivity.

Application instructions

Please apply with your CV and cover letter outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by 11:59pm on Sunday 5th January 2025. As part of your cover letter, we’d like you to respond to the following question (no more than 200 words):

• We’re looking for someone with a passion for classic children’s publishing brands. Please share with us a preschool publishing brand which really stands out to you in today’s market. What makes it so successful?

Please ensure you include a cover letter, as it is a crucial part of our assessment process. The cover letter offers an opportunity to show how your experience and interests align with the role requirements. Typically, we expect the cover letter to be between 1-2 pages.

Please note we are looking for someone to join the team as soon as possible, but we are also happy to accommodate a reasonable notice period for the right candidate.

Salary

Circa £33,000 dependent on how your skills and experience align to the role, plus bonus and benefits.

What you can expect from us

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

Our benefits include:

• Financial – discounted shopping, season ticket loan, rental deposit loan
• Wellbeing – healthcare cash plan, employee assistance, gym loan
• Lifestyle – taste card, tech scheme, free and discounted books

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. For this role we expect that you will work from the office 3 days a week, and we are happy to discuss 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. 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.

Company: Penguin Books Limited 

Country: United Kingdom 

State/Region: London 

City: London 

Postal Code: SW11 7BW 

Job ID: 275788