Senior Commissioning Editor / Editorial Director

Laurence King, part of the Orion Publishing Group, 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 authors, illustrators, designers, artists and photographers to create beautifully produced titles that are acclaimed for their inventiveness, beautiful design and authoritative texts. We are the publishers of international bestsellers Read This If You Want to Take Great Photographs, Secret Garden and The Short Story of Art and the home of iconic photographers and artists including Joel Meyerowitz, Steve McCurry and Marina Abramović.

At Orion, we believe every story matters. Open, agile, passionate and innovative, our mission is to bring the best publishing to the greatest variety of people. Ambitious to continually raise the bar, we believe good stories can come from anywhere and so encourage and value contributions from everybody here.

Orion is a division of Hachette, one of the largest publishing groups in the UK, with 12 publishing divisions and over 60 imprints. Everyone here is proud to be in the business of opening doors and minds.

Are you a trendspotter with a passion for illustrated publishing? We're looking for an experienced commissioner to join our small creative team to shape the future of our market-leading design-led publishing. From colouring and activity books to nature, wellness, lifestyle, practical art, fashion, and more, the Laurence King books list continually surprises the market with new trends and unexpected twists on perennially popular subjects. You will commission between 12 and 15 titles per year, seeing each project through from initial concept stage to finished product, providing strategic direction for the list and contributing to the commercial and creative success of the imprint.

You will bring a discernible passion and in-depth knowledge of lifestyle publishing and the design world to the role, as well as a creative eye, keen commercial instinct, collaborative working style and attention to detail. This is a creative position with a strong project management focus. It will involve:

• Assessing, commissioning and profitably publishing a broad mix of internationally focused, predominantly illustrated titles across the subjects of lifestyle, design, nature, wellness and practical art
• Bringing high-profile talent, up-and-coming new voices and innovative ideas to the list
• Developing and maintaining strong market awareness in home and international territories to identify publishing opportunities
• Working with the deputy publisher to plan and deliver a targeted strategy for the growth of the front and backlist
• Negotiating contracts and maintaining clear communication with authors, artists and agents
• Project managing select titles. This will include structural editing, preparing illustration and design briefs, organising shoots, writing effective cover copy and title information sheets, overseeing editorial schedules and managing freelancers through to final files ensuring titles are delivered on time and on budget
• Collaborating effectively with colleagues in marketing, sales and rights to support the campaigns and lead the publishing of your titles
• Delivering first-class author care

We are looking for a tastemaker, a creative and entrepreneurial editor with a background in illustrated publishing, with proven commissioning experience.

Key attributes:

• Passionate and knowledgeable about illustrated publishing
• Sound commercial awareness and an ability to identify market trends and publishing opportunities
• Creative and commercial instincts with excellent commissioning taste
• Keen eye for design, illustration and photography
• Excellent organisational and project management skills
• Collaborative with strong communication skills

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
• 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!

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

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