Project editor vacancy

Joffe Books is a leading independent publisher, specializing in crime fiction, with a wide-ranging international audience. We are currently looking for an experienced and creative Project Editor to join our team on an initially six-month contract. This is a fantastic opportunity for a highly organised, quick-thinking, creative editor, who is looking for a bit more autonomy in their role and wants to make a real contribution.

Key duties:

  • Project-managing the publication of an acquired backlist, keeping to tight deadlines and budgets

  • Handling manuscripts, including scanned manuscripts, from formatting to preparing for publication

  • Writing punchy copy for book covers and for marketing use

  • Working closely with the marketing team to brief campaigns across social media platforms

  • Communicating effectively with editorial and design freelancers, including commissioning covers

  • Forging strong relationships with authors and providing author care

  • Liaising with digitisers and other external suppliers

  • Maintaining commercial awareness and an understanding of SEO and metadata

Experience/skills required:

  • Previous project editing or editing experience (ideally, but not necessarily, in book publishing)

  • A comprehensive understanding of formatting and editing in Word (using wildcards, macros, etc.)

  • Meticulous copy-editing, proofreading and research skills

  • Copywriting/creating blurbs and being able to sum up a novel in a single sentence

  • Excellent attention to detail with very strong communication and organisational skills

  • Proactive thinking and resourcefulness, coupled with the ability to work independently

  • The ability to work closely with the rest of the team

Desired experience/skills:

  • A keen interest in crime/genre fiction 

  • An interest in learning about other areas of the business

  • A working knowledge of InDesign and PhotoShop

  • Working in digital publishing platforms

  • An interest in keeping up-to-date with the book industry

This full-time position would typically be based at the Joffe Books office in Shoreditch, London; however, due to COVID-19 restrictions, we are all working from home. If this sounds exciting, we would love to hear from you! Email a 100-word blurb about you and a CV to work@joffebooks.com, stating the job reference in the subject line ‘JB PROJECT EDITOR’ by Wednesday 31 August 2020.

Contact:    Emma Grundy Haigh