Lektor/Editor m/w/d

EDITOR (UK/Germany based)

• £30,000-£40,000 dependent on experience and location (+bonus benefits)
• Bristol, Edinburgh, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield
• Permanent
• 24 March 2024

Who we are and what we do Bookouture is the UK’s fastest growing digital publisher of commercial fiction, and part of Hachette UK. We are only eleven years old, but we have grown rapidly every year and have now sold over 72 million books to readers worldwide. To support this incredible rate of growth, in 2021 we established a fledgling German arm of our business – Bookouture Deutschland – translating and publishing of some of our bestselling fiction direct to readers in the German market. Two-and-a-half years later we have published more than 140 titles and our German publishing is one of the fastest-growing and most successful areas of the business.

We are now looking for the most exciting talent to join our existing team of three and help scale up and maintain the business. In the role of Editor you will be working with the team to identify the highest potential titles in the future schedule, and manage the editorial process from translation to publication. You will have a commercial and analytical overview of the Bookouture Deutschland list and the vision to develop this and use sales data to identify areas for future improvement.

What you'll be doing

SCHEDULING

Using your knowledge of the Germany publishing market to identify opportunities for successful future publishing from our large existing pool of titles.

Work with the team to schedule these titles and clear any rights with the author and/or agent, as well as confirm any necessary contractual addenda.

TRANSLATION/EDITORIAL

Work directly with translators, copyeditors and proof-readers. Work with the team to expand our database of translators and copyeditors.

Oversee the publishing schedule as a managing editor to ensure the highest editorial standards and that the project is working within budget.

PUBLISHING

Create workflows for every title to map the process from inclusion in the schedule to publication.

Check for quality and errors at each point of the editorial process.

From existing English language, translate titles and retailer descriptions into the most effective

German equivalents, using language and copywritng skills and understanding of the German market.

Work with the designer to finalise covers using the titles you have decided will work best.

Optimise and check the key words, choice of categories and sub-categories and any other metadata for every title.

Work with the publicity and marketing teams to create the most effective social media and advertising graphics.

READER/REVIEWER OUTREACH

Work with the Editorial and Social Media Assistant to optimise publicity and engagement with blogging communities with clear ideas on how best to continue expanding our reader reach in Germany.

Maintain an overview of NetGalley reviews.

TITLE PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

Review Amazon rankings and sales and make changes to metadata and descriptions to optimise if needed.Monitor the success of books and use data to lead conversations on this at our weekly commercial review meeting.

AUTHOR COMMUNICATION

Ensure we maintain our usual excellent level of ‘customer service’ to our authors whilst also making the best commercial decisions for our books – including regular and timely communication.

Who we are looking for

You will be an expert publishing all-rounder, commercially driven and data competent, with some key skills:

• A native German speaker and fluent in the English language
• Commercial fiction publishing experience, with some knowledge of the digital landscape preferred
• At ease with handling and analysing data and its use to inform publishing decisions
• Confident in market knowledge to pick future titles from existing content pool and working with the team to plan the ongoing publishing schedule
• An excellent copywriter, able to transcreate (i.e. not simply and literally translate) titles, retailer descriptions and marketing material to optimise their appeal to German readers
• Able to work closely with designers on covers
• Experienced in your understanding of metadata, keywords and sub-categories that will optimise visibility in the German market
• Someone with contacts and vision in the publicity and blogging communities in Germany will be a bonus
• Able to juggle multiple tasks, prioritise and handle a large workload with ease, and manage a growing publishing schedule
• Excellent at author communication
• Someone who embraces growth mindset and owner mentality
• You may be a resident of Germany or the UK

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)
• 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 office, or at any of our new regional offices in Sheffield, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Manchester or Bristol, with a blend of in-office (3 days) and homeworking (2 days) per week.

The role may also be based in Germany in which case it will be home-based.

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.

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

http://www.booktradeentrysupport.org/