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Our careers

Our business needs to be powered by talent from a wealth of different backgrounds for our broad range of roles. Discover the next chapter of your career in our current vacancies.

Job description

Salary:

£31,000+ dependent on experience and location (+bonus +benefits)

Location:

Sheffield, London

Contract Type:

Fixed-term

Closing Date:

30 October 2026

Logo to appear on advert:

Orion

Hachette

Editor (12 month FTC)

Who we are and what we do

Weidenfeld & Nicolson is one of the most prestigious and long-standing imprints in the history of British publishing. Our books are agenda-setting, award-winning, best-selling and genre-defining. Since its inception in 1949, W&N has been widely recognised for its commitment to and track record of excellence in fiction and non-fiction publishing. In recent years, the imprint’s illustrious history has been reanimated by a new commissioning team, who have delivered multiple unmissable publications, and become known for their agility, ambition and dynamism.

Authors we have published include Antony Beevor, Sybille Bedford, Isaiah Berlin, Sarah Brooks, Oliver Bullough, Ed Caesar, Clare Chambers, Elinor Cleghorn, Richard Coles, Naoise Dolan, Ian Dunt, Gillian Flynn, Antonia Fraser, Helen Garner, Georgi Gospodinov, Madeleine Gray, John Higgs, Andrew Holgate, Bettany Hughes, Greg Jenner, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Vladimir Nabokov, Hettie O’Brien, Téa Obreht, Michael Palin, Adam Rutherford, Philippe Sands, Bernhard Schlink, Quentin Tarantino, Petroc Trelawny, Alice Walker and Malala Yousafzai.

What you'll be doing

As a 77-year-old imprint, the backlist at W&N is our most treasured possession and home to some of the most important authors of the last century, including Sybille Bedford, Isiah Berlin, J. G. Farrell, Gillian Flynn, Antonia Fraser, Adrian Goldsworthy, Adam Grant, Patricia Highsmith, John Irving, Henry Marsh, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Vladimir Nabokov, Bernhard Schlink, Philippe Sands, Vikram Seth, Ntozake Shange, Alice Walker, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, and many more.

We are now looking for a creative, organised and proactive backlist publisher to take ownership of the backlist publishing programme across Orion’s three literary imprints, with a primary focus on W&N.

You will head up our exciting reissues programme, leading the publishing of each title, communicating with key stakeholders including estates, authors and agents, working with the Orion team to make these publications as visible and profitable as possible and creatively identifying new opportunities for rediscoveries on the extensive W&N backlist.

You will also assist with the W&N Essentials and White Rabbit Deep Cuts programme.

This role will be a 12-month fixed term contract.

Your responsibilities will include:

Managing text schedules
Briefing covers
Writing cover copy
Managing metadata
Offsetting existing text files
Pitching ideas to our company reissues meeting
Communicating with agents, authors and literary estates
Handling contractual discussions
Managing licence renewals
Running costings to assess each project’s profitability
Championing our backlist publishing both internally and externally
Owning the digital promotion strategy across our backlist titles
Collaborating with our Sales and Rights departments to identify new reissue opportunities
Handling reversion requests
Commissioning introductions for reissues.

Who we are looking for

This role is ideal for an early-career editor seeking to expand their publishing experience at a prestigious literary imprint.

Experience/Knowledge

Prior experience in an editorial role, to at least Assistant Editor level

Confident understanding of publishing schedules and responsibilities
Demonstrable interest in literary publishing across fiction and non-fiction
Strong market awareness and ability to identify trends
Experience in classics/heritage publishing would be advantageous but not required
Biblio experience preferred but not required
Ability to write engaging and commercial copy
Ability to understand contracts and licences and work with agents
Able to brief market-appropriate covers

Personal Attributes/Skills

Confident and thoughtful communicator
Highly organised and systems-oriented
Creative and innovative
Enthusiastic, proactive, problem-solving attitude
Ability to work independently and efficiently

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
An active range of staff-led employee networks that are voluntary, including AgeWise, Gender Balance, Thrive, Pride, All Together, Wellbeing, Women in Tech and religious networks
Season ticket loans
And much more!

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.

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.

We want everyone to have the opportunity to perform at their best during our recruitment process. If you need any adjustments, you can let us know at the ‘Reasonable Adjustments’ section of your application. We’ll make sure you’re supported throughout the process.

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 https://btbs.org/grants

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Location

LondonSheffield

Carmelite House, 50 Victoria Embankment, London, United Kingdom, EC4Y 0DZ

HUK Sheffield, Wards Exchange, 197 Ecclesall Road, Sheffield , Sheffield, United Kingdom, S11 8HW

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Meet our recruiter

Wing Ho

[email protected]

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Benefits

28 days + holiday

Rent deposit loans

Dental Insurance

Private medical insurance

Pension plan &

life assurance

Summer hours

2 community days

Cycle to work scheme

Retailers discounts

Development programmes