Illustrated project editor (12 month FTC)

Closing date for applications: 5 October 2025

Salary: £33,500 - £36,500 dependent on experience and location (+bonus +benefits)

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

Help bring bold ideas to life and make your mark in illustrated publishing, managing beautiful books from concept to completion.

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 dynamic and friendly books team produces a wide range of illustrated titles on art, design, nature and lifestyle. We are passionate about the creative arts and love illustration, photography and design.


What you'll be doing

This is a chance to join the team making some of the most beautifully packaged, creative and innovative illustrated books on the market. You will be managing book projects from initial concept stage to finished product, bringing passion and attention to detail to each title and ensuring that they are delivered on time and on budget. You’ll need to work independently to project manage around 12 titles per year. This role will involve managing freelance picture researchers, copy-editors and proofreaders; making corrections in InDesign; checking proofs and plotters; managing budgets; working with authors to ensure a consistent vision between concept and finished book; reviewing manuscripts; working with in-house graphic designers and other stakeholders; preparing illustration briefs; checking artworks; organising and attending photo shoots; championing your books with internal and external stakeholders. You will also be required to update internal systems and create sales materials, writing copy and creating metadata where necessary. It is a flexible role with a strong project management focus, as well as wide scope for creativity in shaping books through their development.


Who we are looking for

As a leading creative arts and lifestyle publisher, we are looking for someone with a strong visual sensibility, lots of creativity and solid experience of illustrated publishing to project manage a varied publishing programme. Key attributes:

• Meticulous copy-editing and proofreading skills
• Proven editorial experience in illustrated publishing
• Excellent organizational and project management abilities
• Experience of working in Adobe InDesign
• Strong communicator
• Highly visual and passionate about illustrated publishing

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)
• 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

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

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.

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