Commissioning editor, Penguin General (18-month FTC)

Closing date: 8th January 2025

Salary: Circa £38,000 dependent on how your skills and experience align to the role, plus bonus and benefits.

Contract: 18-month fixed term role

We are looking for a dynamic Commissioning Editor on an 18-month fixed-term contract.

Penguin General is one of the publishing divisions that make up Penguin Random House UK. There are six imprints at Penguin General: Fig Tree, Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Business, Penguin Life, Viking and Sandycove. The latter is based in Dublin.

At Viking, we publish a select range of bestselling, prize-winning novelists to reach the broadest possible audience. We pride ourselves on our ability to launch brilliant new careers and take established authors to new heights, combining critical success with commercial ambition. Some of our bestselling authors from 2024 include Leigh Bardugo, William Boyd, Nick Harkaway, Emily Henry, Gabriel García Márquez, Richard Osman, Elif Shafak and Elizabeth Strout.

This role will partially cover a period of parental leave with responsibility for a small number of existing authors, as well as providing the opportunity to acquire and publish onto the Viking fiction list. Reporting to the Publishing Director, you will work within a self-motivated editorial team, liaising with authors, agents and other internal and external stakeholders accordingly.

This role is a chance to publish fiction across a varied and vibrant list, acquiring commercial genre and general fiction within a collaborative and supportive team. You will have a passion for championing new voices, the hunger to seek out new publishing opportunities over following trends, and knowledge about what certain audiences want to read and how to reach them. You will be able to generate buzz, both internally and externally, for your books and your list. At Penguin General, we strive for working life to be progressive, energising, motivating and rewarding for all our colleagues at every level.

What you’ll bring

• Able to confidently articulate your taste and passion and combine it with strategic, analytical thinking in relation to the Viking list and the wider market.
• Effective communicator, able to make convincing verbal pitches, write persuasive cover copy, brief covers with clarity, and fulfil a publishing vision for all aspects of a book’s package.
• Great relationship-builder, able to work effectively across departments including Sales, Rights, Marketing and Publicity to coordinate successful publications.
• Excellent organisation, time management and attention to detail, and an ability to work effectively under pressure.

How to apply

Please apply with your CV and cover letter outlining why you are the right candidate for the role by 11:59pm on Wednesday 8th January 2025. As part of your cover letter, we’d like you to include a note on:

• The 5 works of commercial fiction (not published by Viking) you wish you’d published that exemplify your taste and market knowledge, with a brief commentary about your selection (max 500 words).

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 no more than one or two pages in length.

We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are under-represented in the creative industries. 

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