Editorial Director, HQ Digital (Maternity Cover)

Specialising in commercial fiction and innovative digital publishing, the HQ imprint publishes a wide range of fiction titles including crime, thriller, contemporary fiction, saga, historical and book club, alongside our curated boutique non-fiction list, and thriving digital-first imprint.     Combining rapid growth with commercial success, HQ has a stellar record in launching fiction debuts such as Georgina Moore’s The Garnett Girls, BA Paris’s Behind Closed Doors  and Christina Dalcher’s Vox, along with an array of outstanding brand Sunday Times bestsellers such as Adele Parks, Erica James, Linwood Barclay and Sarah Morgan.

HQ Digital is the Digital First imprint of HQ, and one of the foremost digital publishers in the market, publishing an array of bestselling e-book fiction via all major digital platforms worldwide, including Katie Brent’s How to Kill Men and Get Away with It and Neil Lancaster.

This fixed term role requires a clear understanding of the digital fiction market, the ability to spot trends and publishing opportunities for the list, and the chance to work with a growing, ambitious collaborative team.

You’ll be able to respond flexibly and swiftly to changes in the market, optimise your titles with comprehensive metadata, and maintain regular contact with your authors and agents.    You’ll be a keen reader with experience of commissioning fiction and working on a busy fiction list.

While providing maternity to cover for our Editorial Director, you’ll help maintain HQ Digital’s publishing schedule and create publishing and promotional strategies for your titles, ensuring titles keep to critical path, and are optimised for success, with comprehensive metadata.  

Responsibilities:

• Assuming responsibility for the Editorial Director’s list of authors, maintaining communication with authors and developing publishing strategies.

• Commissioning new titles for the HQ Digital list.  

• Reading and reporting on submissions.

• Project managing titles from acquisition through to publication.

• Editing titles, collating author queries and proof-reads, and checking e-pub files.

• Working closely with the production team and pub ops team to progress titles through to publication.  

• Briefing covers and liaising with designers, overseeing covers through development, writing copy.

• Copywriting and checking sales/marketing material. 

• Proofreading copy and checking covers.

• Working with the Head of Digital to maintain the monthly publishing programme, spotting opportunities and responding to changes in the market. 

• Liaising with in-house digital sales teams to secure promotions. 

• Presenting titles at key meetings in-house.

• Maintaining metadata on titles. 

• Ensuring your colleagues in sales, audio and rights have all the material they need.

• Working with the Digital Marketing Manager to creative innovative digital campaigns for your titles.

• Line management of the HQD Editor.

Experience:

• Previous fiction commissioning experience

• Knowledge of the commercial fiction market

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Takes initiative, excellent problem-solving skills

• Quick-thinking, creative and flexible 

• Well organised

• Good attention to detail

• Confident using Word, Excel, PowerPoint

Benefits:

Hybrid working model (2+ days in the office) 

28 days holiday plus bank holidays (option to buy and sell holiday days) 

Relocation rent loan

2 volunteering days

Enhanced pay for maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave 

Private healthcare cover and life assurance 

Free access to HeadSpace, employee assistance programme (24 hour helpline), mental health first aiders, and a wellbeing portal 

Employee networks: HC All In (open forum), Elevate (for ethnic minority colleagues), HarperParents, Menopause at Work and Pride at HC 

Unlimited training on our Learning and Development portal, management courses (up to MA level) and mentoring programmes 

Virtual GP and eyecare vouchers 

Charitable donation matching and volunteering day 

We're a certified Carbon Neutral company 

If you wish to discuss anything regarding this position and/or your application to this role, please reach out directly to our Talent Acquisition Manager at [email removed - click apply for more details] with subject heading ‘Vacancy Query’ plus the job title and we will aim to get back to you within 5 working days.