Commissioning Editor

Pan Macmillan Ltd.; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading publishing company in Greater London is seeking a Commissioning Editor for a 12-month fixed-term role. The ideal candidate will have a deep love for romance publishing, experience in acquiring titles, and a keen understanding of market trends. Responsibilities include scouting new titles, managing the editorial process, and building relationships with various stakeholders. This role offers a competitive salary starting from £39,000 and a collaborative working environment.

Benefits

28 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays

Generous pension scheme

Discounted private medical insurance

Group income protection scheme

Flexible working hours

75% off all company books

Cycle to work scheme

Daily free breakfast

Qualifications

• Experience in the publishing industry with knowledge of the romance market.
• Experience in acquiring and publishing commercial fiction.
• Excellent knowledge of the editorial process, with skills in structural and line edits.

Responsibilities

• Scout, acquire and edit commercially successful romance titles.
• Monitor market data and trends to inform acquisitions.
• Nurture relationships with authors, agents, and colleagues.
• Manage all titles from acquisition through to publication.

Skills

Market insight

Acquisition expertise

Editorial proficiency

Integrity

Diligence

Community

Adaptability

Curiosity

Job description

Job Title: Commissioning Editor

Department: Pan Fiction

Contract: 12-Month Fixed-Term Contract

We are looking for a commercially minded, proactive and entrepreneurial commissioning editor to join the Pan Fiction team on a fixed-term 12 month contract. Do you have a deep love for, and experience in publishing romance, or books in a closely-related genre? If so, we would love to hear from you!

Your team

Pan Fiction is home to the biggest and best commercial brands, including Peter James, Ann Cleeves, David Baldacci, Stuart MacBride, Kristin Hannah, Danielle Steel and Lucinda Riley. We publish critically acclaimed and award-winning commercial fiction from Elle McNicoll, Araminta Hall, Ellery Lloyd, Alexandra Potter, Rosie Walsh, B.K. Borison, Simone Soltani and Lucy Jane Wood, as well as exciting debuts including Autumn Woods, Anna Brook-Mitchell, Jo Murray and Steph McGovern. We relentlessly drive creativity and innovation whilst supporting each other to deliver the very best work for our authors and to define the future of commercial fiction.

Your role

As a Commissioning Editor, your primary responsibilities will revolve around strategically acquiring and launching new titles for Pan Fiction’s romance list, and championing a list of existing authors and books through to publication. You will work collaboratively with authors, agents and internal teams to ensure each book reaches its full commercial potential and resonates with our readers.

Your key responsibilities

• Scout, acquire and edit commercially successful romance titles for the Pan Fiction list, working proactively with authors and agents.
• Actively monitor and interpret market data and reader trends (including social media platforms) to inform acquisitions and develop creative publishing ideas, including IP projects.
• Build and nurture relationships with authors, agents and in-house colleagues.
• Read and report on submissions.
• Draft, negotiate and finalize contracts for new acquisitions.
• Manage all of your titles from acquisition through to publication and beyond, including structural and line editing, pitching and presenting, writing TI sheets, briefing covers, drafting copy, database management, sales and insight reporting and other associated publishing tasks.
• Work closely with the design, production, sales, rights and communications teams to effectively publish, launch and promote titles.

Essential experience, abilities and knowledge you’ll need to succeed

• Market insight: Experience of working in the publishing industry and an in-depth knowledge of the romance market, displaying clear commercial instinct and an understanding of what sells. Awareness of and a passion for the self‑publishing landscape would be desirable.
• Acquisition expertise: Experience of acquiring and publishing commercial fiction, ideally in romance or a closely related genre.
• Editorial proficiency: An excellent knowledge of the editorial process from start to finish, and the skills to complete structural and line edits to a high standard, as well as experience of contributing to edits for US‑originated books.
• Integrity: The ability to negotiate financially viable and favourable contracts with external parties while building and maintaining long‑lasting, trusting relationships.
• Diligence: Excellent administration skills with the ability to organise, prioritise and manage workflow to deadlines.
• Community: A collaborative approach and the ability to work effectively with authors, agents and in‑house teams.
• Adaptability: The ability to effectively prioritise and shift focus in response to business needs, while maintaining thorough attention to detail.
• Curiosity: Demonstrated interest in exploring and leveraging new technologies (e.g., AI) to streamline processes for greater operational efficiency.

What you’ll get in return

In return we can offer you a range of great projects, a supportive and collaborative working environment as well as a competitive salary and benefits package.

Salary starting from: £39,000

Closing date: 21 December 2025

Some of the benefits we offer

• 28 days’ annual leave increasing with years of service + bank holidays
• Generous pension scheme
• Discounted private medical insurance
• Group income protection scheme
• Enhanced family pay and leave
• Flexible working hours and summer hours (early finish on a Friday during summer months)
• 2 Volunteer Days per year
• 75% off all Pan Macmillan books and regular staff book sales (highly reduced rates)
• Season ticket loan/advance
• Cycle to work scheme
• Discounts on shopping and gym memberships; Christmas club savings
• Daily free breakfast and monthly company lunch

This is a 12-month fixed term role, and will be based in our offices in Farringdon, London, with some flexibility to work from home each week.

All applicants must be able to demonstrate the right to live and work in the UK in order to be considered for this role.

At Pan Macmillan, we are highly committed to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) at every level of our organisation. We welcome applications from all individuals, including any age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio‑economic background, religion and/or belief. Our efforts to promote DEI are ongoing, and we continually strive to learn and improve our policies and practices. You can read our full Diversity & Inclusion Pledge here: https://panmacmillan.com/about/diversity-and-inclusion

We want to ensure that all candidates are supported throughout the recruitment process, if you have any reasonable adjustments or accessibility requirements please contact Kayelle Danyluk (Head of Talent Acquisition) at [e-mail]

Please note that all personal information which we process in connection with your application will be treated in accordance with our Recruitment Privacy Notice available here: https://panmacmillan.com/recruitment-privacy-notice. Please read our Recruitment Privacy Notice before submitting your application.