Assistant editor

Closing date for applications: 6th August 2025

Salary: £29,000 dependent on experience and location (+bonus +benefits)

Location: The role will be based at our London or Sheffield office, with a blend of in-office (3 days) and homeworking (2 days) per week.

Are you looking for the next step in your editorial career? Orion Literary is looking for an enthusiastic and meticulous assistant editor to support its award-winning publishing at Weidenfeld & Nicolson and White Rabbit.

Weidenfeld & Nicolson has been publishing since 1949 and is home to a wide range of literary fiction and non-fiction, modern classics, prizewinning debuts and worldwide bestsellers. Our authors include Antony Beevor, Clare Chambers, Helen Garner, Elinor Cleghorn, Richard Coles, Naoise Dolan, Lucy Rose, Claire Lombardo, Nussaibah Younis, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Adam Rutherford, Philippe Sands, Malala Yousafzai and Raymond Antrobus.

White Rabbit was set up in 2019 as an imprint dedicated to pop culture writing, specialising in non-fiction, history, memoir, illustrated and high-end limited editions relating to popular music across the spectrum. Our authors include Bobby Gillespie, Adelle Stripe, Lias Saoudi, Carl Cox, David Keenan, Jude Rogers, Mark Lanegan, Vashti Bunyan, Kim Gordon, Sinead Gleeson, Stuart Braithwaite, Chris Frantz, Lenny Kaye, Robin Turner and Vivien Goldman.

Reporting to the publishing director, you will be responsible for providing editorial and administrative support to the publisher of White Rabbit and W&N publishing director, working on an exciting range of literary fiction and non-fiction (specifically memoir, biography, social and cultural history, and occasional illustrated titles).


What you'll be doing

From the moment of acquisition right through to publication, you will be closely involved in all aspects of the publishing process – from reading submissions for acquisition, overseeing publishing timelines, drafting copy and cover briefs, updating Biblio, organising proof mailouts, liaising with colleagues across the business as well as a thrilling range of authors – including novelists, non-fiction writers, musicians and high-profile cultural figures – and ensuring the smooth day-to-day running of all aspects of the White Rabbit imprint.

This is a highly varied, creative and exciting role for someone with a genuine passion for literary fiction, non-fiction and pop culture, and a rare opportunity for someone looking to take the next step in their editorial career.


Who we are looking for

You will have proven experience in an editorial role, possessing the following editorial skills:

• An intimate understanding of the path of a book from acquisition to publication
• Reading, reporting and making editorial suggestions on proposals and manuscripts
• Putting manuscripts and offsets into production
• Proof reading and copyediting
• Using publishing systems such as Bookscan and Biblio
• Drafting effective publishing materials: AIs, cover briefs, acquisition forms, cover copy, keywords
• Assessing permissions
• Corresponding with authors and agents

The ideal candidate will be:

• Highly organised with a meticulous eye for detail
• An excellent communicator
• A competent administrator, proficient with Outlook, Biblio, Excel, Microsoft Word and PowerPoint
• Able to multitask, prioritise effectively and handle a highly varied workload
• Passionate about literary fiction and non-fiction, and music and culture in general
• Fluent in a language other than English (not essential)

What we offer

Our staff are our greatest asset, and our benefits reflect this:

• 28 annual leave days per year, increases to 29 days after 2 years' service and goes up to 30 days after 5 years' (+ bank holidays)
• Private medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Generous pension schemes
• Rent deposit loans
• 2 community days per year
• Summer hours (finishing at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months)
• Retail discounts through Hachette rewards
• Cycle to Work scheme
• Eye care vouchers
• Wide-ranging training library
• Development programmes (including mentoring)
• Up to 70% off book purchases
• A charity bookshelf
• 12 Staff-led employee networks that are voluntary, including Gender Balance, Thrive, Pride, All Together, Wellbeing and religious networks
• Season ticket loans
• And much more!

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

Please state in your application that you found this role through Creative Access.