Work It: Penguin Random House is Hiring an Editorial Assistant

DNAMAG; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Vision coverage

Health Care/Dependent Care FSA

Health Savings Account

Pre-Tax and Roth 401(k)

Disability Insurance

Life/AD&D Insurance

Student Loan Repayment Program

Educational Assistance

Generous PTO

Job summary

Penguin Random House in New York City is seeking an Editorial Assistant for the NYC hybrid role. You will support a two-editor team and work on a diverse list spanning literary fiction, translated literature, and genre titles.

The position emphasizes administrative duties, reading submissions, drafting reader reports, and coordinating production tasks. Strong reading habits, meticulous attention to detail, and the ability to juggle multiple projects are essential.

Qualifications

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent attention to detail and organizational ability.
• Ability to multitask and manage multiple assignments in a deadline-driven environment.
• Ability to work independently and in a team.
• Familiarity with social media and publishing workflows.
• Reading knowledge of a foreign language is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Provide administrative support to Editors (Executive Editor and Senior Editor).
• Read and evaluate submissions, write reader reports, research titles, draft rejection letters.
• Prepare manuscripts for production, manage deadlines, routes and tracks P&Ls and contracts.
• Coordinate mailings, expense reports, and meeting scheduling.
• Research category trends and communicate with authors, agents, and internal teams.
• Assist in writing and editing internal materials and publicity content.
• Participate in weekly editorial meetings.

Skills

Written communication

Verbal communication

Attention to detail

Organization

Multitasking

Team collaboration

Initiative

Problem-solving

Social media familiarity

MS Word

MS Excel

Tools

Microsoft Word

Excel

Job description

Penguin Random House is Hiring an Editorial Asst (NYC/hybrid)

The Penguin Random House national headquarters is located in New York City. This is a hybrid position, requiring approximately 2 days per week at our 1745 Broadway location.

Applications for this role will be accepted through July 27 or until the role is filled. We encourage you to apply early, as we review applications on a rolling basis.

Penguin Random House has an exciting job opening for an Editorial Assistant for the following imprints: Viking, Penguin Books, Penguin Life, and Penguin Classics. The Assistant will provide administrative and editorial support to an Executive Editor and a Senior Editor, and will work on a bestselling, prize-winning array of literary fiction, translated literature, upmarket to commercial genre fiction (science fiction, fantasy, horror, and romance), narrative nonfiction, wellness/inspiration, and literary classics. We are looking for a detail-oriented self-starter who reads voraciously across a diverse and eclectic range of categories and has a strong knowledge of the literary canon, a particular enthusiasm for genre fiction, and a keen interest in writing from around the world.

The editorial assistant will work closely with two hiring editors responsible for acquiring and publishing such titles as The Perfect Nanny by Leila Slimani, Diary of a Void by Emi Yagi, Ikigai by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles, The Art of Simple Living by Shunmyo Masuno, Forest Bathing by Qing Li, Die for Me by Shirlene Obuobi, A Resistance of Witches by Morgan Ryan, Tillinghast by Clare Cavenagh, The End of Romance by Lily Meyer, The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan, Femme Feral by Sam Beckbessinger, For the Bride by Becca Grischow, and new editions of classics by such authors as Virginia Woolf, William Faulkner, Saul Bellow, June Jordan, Machado de Assis, Pedro Lemebel, Mikhail Bulgakov, George S. Schuyler, Younghill Kang, Wu Cheng’en, Osamu Dazai, and Angela Carter.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Excellent attention to detail, organization, and follow-up skills

Ability to multitask and manage multiple assignments in a deadline-driven environment

Ability to work independently as well as within a team

Ability to take initiative and problem-solve creatively

Ability to manage multiple short- and long-term projects simultaneously

Familiarity with social media

Proficiency with Microsoft Word and Excel

Reading knowledge of a foreign language a plus

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Providing administrative support to an Executive Editor and a Senior Editor
• Reading and evaluating submissions, writing reader reports, researching comparative titles, drafting rejection letters, managing blurb/endorsement campaigns, preparing manuscripts for production, anticipating project deadlines, routing and tracking P&Ls and contracts, preparing and fulfilling mailings, submitting check requests, processing expense reports, and scheduling meetings
• Researching category-specific trends, including deep dives into consumer-driven outlets
• Communicating with authors, agents, and a variety of internal departments, including Marketing, Publicity, Sales, Production, Contracts, Permissions, Subsidiary Rights, and Art
• Writing and editing internal sales materials, online copy, cover copy, publicity releases, and reading group guides
• Participating in weekly editorial meetings

BENEFITS

• Vision
• Health Care/Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account
• Health Savings Account
• Pre-Tax and Roth 401(k)
• Short and Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Life/AD&D Insurance
• Student Loan Repayment Program
• Educational Assistance
• generous paid time off.