Are you driven by an insatiable curiosity about the world – from history and politics to science and culture – constantly seeking out the latest ideas, debates and innovations? Are you fascinated to know more about the latest in non-fiction publishing? Are you fastidiously organised, a great team-player and meticulously attentive to detail?

The role

Penguin General/Viking is looking for an Editorial Assistant to work on our non-fiction publishing, for 12 months. The successful candidate will report to Viking Non-Fiction’s Editorial Director and provide support to this editor and two others.

Penguin General is one of the eight publishing divisions that make up Penguin Random House UK. There are six imprints at Penguin General, of which Viking is the largest.

Penguin General is made up of extremely talented colleagues, who set a high bar in terms of quality of output, and who take pride in their work and strive for both individual and collective success. We advocate a ‘learning mindset’ by which we mean being curious and humble. We strive to create a working culture that is progressive, energizing and fun, where colleagues are treated with respect, stretched to learn and grow, and can turn up to work as their authentic professional selves. Our authors include Dolly Alderton, John le Carre, Natasha Lunn, Ben Macintyre, Robert Macfarlane, Hisham Matar, Ellie Middleton, Cal Newport, James Nestor, Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Richard Osman, Sathnam Sanghera, Elif Shafak, Simon Sinek, Zadie Smith, Art Spiegelman, Haemin Sunim, Claire Tomalin, Stanley Tucci and Alice Winn, and our catalogue includes books by Anne Frank, Mahatma Gandhi, David Niven and Malcolm X.

At Viking we love publishing books that combine brilliant writing with popular appeal, that hit the bestseller lists, win prizes and shed light on the world around us. In non-fiction, our authors range from world leaders to sporting legends, from cutting-edge scientists to prize-winning historians, and from distinguished journalists to eminent philosophers. Authors you’ll be working with closely include Diane Abbott, Will Buxton, Charlotte Fox Weber, Adam Higginbotham, Simon Jenkins, Erling Kagge, Jonathan Liew, Sinclair McKay, Mark Miodownik, John Preston, Vaclav Smil, Paris Spies-Gans, Devi Sridhar and Leor Zmigrod.

The role will involve a wide array of editorial and administrative tasks, including:

• Providing general office administration e.g. booking meeting rooms, arranging couriers, minuting meetings, processing expenses, processing invoices, sending out proof mailings, arranging for author advanced copies

• Managing book and prize submissions

• Maintaining internal systems

• Proofreading book covers

• Preparing editorial material for the sales, communications and rights teams

• Researching book ideas

• Offering feedback on book proposals and manuscripts

What you’ll bring

The role will be particularly suitable to someone who:

• Has an insatiable curiosity for new ideas, wherever they come from, and ideally is a voracious non-fiction reader.

• Is a team-player, with excellent verbal and written communication skills, and a knack for working closely with a diverse team (whether colleagues, authors or freelancers).

• Is highly efficient, organised and proactive, with the ability to prioritise a demanding workload.

• Has a meticulous eye for detail and for spotting (and solving) problems before they arise.

You don’t need previous publishing experience. You do need an interest in books, a willingness and ability to learn, and passion for our mission – to make books for everyone, because a book can change anyone.

Application Instructions

If this sounds like you, please apply with a CV and cover letter (800 words at most) by 11:59pm on Tuesday 23rd April. As part of your cover letter, tell us about:

1. Why you think you would be a superb Editorial Assistant at Viking Non-Fiction, focusing on how you have displayed the above attributes (no more than 500 words).

2. A recently published non-fiction book you would recommend and why (no more than 300 words).

About Penguin:

We’re the UK’s largest publisher; made up of some 2,000 people and publishing over 1,500 books each year. Our doors are open to all kinds of talent. In a constantly evolving industry, we work hard to stretch the definition of the word publisher. Here, you’ll work with a breadth of talent who all play their part to make each of our books a success. Together, we make books for everyone because a book can change anyone.

Salary: You'll start on £27,500 plus bonus and benefits. 

Competitive benefits package: Our people are the heart of our business, and we work hard to support a culture of responsibility and recognition.

Our benefits include:

• Financial – discounted shopping, season ticket loan, rental deposit loan

• Wellbeing - healthcare cash plan, employee assistance, gym loan

• Lifestyle – taste card, tech scheme, free and discounted books

For our full benefits list please visit: https://www.penguinrandomhousecareers.co.uk/what-we-offer/

Hybrid working: We’re experimenting with a hybrid way of working that suits the needs of each team. While our offices across the UK are places to connect, collaborate and celebrate with colleagues, we recognise that flexibility around where you work is just as important. For this role we expect that you'll be at our offices in Pimlico around twice a week. Please note that over the course of 2024 all of our London-based teams will permanently relocate to our Embassy Gardens office in Nine Elms. We’ll be happy to answer any questions on this as part of the interview process.

The recruitment process: You can read about our recruitment process at https://www.penguinrandomhousecareers.co.uk/how-we-hire/

As a Disability Confident Committed organisation, we're part of the offer an interview scheme. This is where disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role can opt in to get to the next recruitment stage. There may be some situations where volume of applicants means we can't take all eligible candidates to interview. We encourage you to tell us about any reasonable adjustments you may need by emailing PRHCareersUK@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk. Remember, you only need to share what you are comfortable to for us to support your request.

Please note, we are not able to accept agency CVs for this role. Any CVs sent speculatively will not be eligible for a fee.

Company: The Random House Group Limited 

Country: United Kingdom 

State/Region: London 

City: london 

Postal Code: SW1V 2SA 

Job ID: 269330