Associate Editor

Macmillan•New York, NY

1d•$60,000 - $65,000•Remote

About The Position

Tor Publishing Group is seeking an associate editor to join the Bramble team. Working closely with a Senior Editor, this role will acquire or co-acquire and edit primarily romance titles for the Bramble list. Key responsibilities include acquisitions, editorial development of manuscripts, maintaining strong relationships with authors and agents, and working with production, design, marketing, publicity, and other departments to shepherd titles to publication.

Requirements

Strong communication skills and ability to handle external-facing professional relationships with tact and diplomacy
Ability to work with other publishing departments—including sales, marketing, publicity, rights teams, finance, production, and art—and an understanding of what they need to do their jobs effectively
Strong writing skills for internal- and external-facing materials and copy to help position and convey the selling points of a given book
Effective presentation skills for both smaller team meetings and large seasonal meetings
Independent time management and organizational acumen
Ability to scout and evaluate competitive books in the marketplace, market awareness within romance genre spaces, and strategic sensibility for making acquisitions and positioning decisions to help each book reach its sales potential
3+ years of experience in editorial, including some acquisition experience
Experience with line and developmental editing, project managing frontlist fiction, and working closely with authors/agents with an eye to author care
Background knowledge of the publishing industry, including an understanding of the timelines and deliverables needed to publish books successfully
Bachelor’s degree in any area OR equivalent work experience in a relevant field

Responsibilities

Build and maintain relationships with literary agents to solicit submissions, read and evaluate manuscripts, and meet with prospective authors to discuss editorial and strategic vision
Present books for potential acquisition to editorial directors and acquisition board, along with analysis of competitive or comparable titles, projected sales figures, and profit and loss statements
Negotiate major terms for potential acquisitions with agents and rights contacts, including advance, delivery dates, payout schedule, territories, subsidiary rights, and option language
Develop a successful and profitable list of titles, with primary responsibility for about 5-8 titles per year
Assist Senior Editor with select acquired or co-acquired titles, taking responsibility for editorial feedback and coordinating transmittal and production process; oversee certain backlist titles, reissues, and reprints
Write copy for tip and launch sheets, catalog, online retail feeds, and book jackets/covers that effectively positions each title for internal sales, marketing, and publicity teams as well as consumers
Present titles at internal meetings such as launch three times a year
Prepare cover memos and discuss cover strategy with art department and editorial leadership; communicate jacket directions to author and agent and negotiate feedback between author/agent and art/publisher teams
Solicit advance quotes from other authors, booksellers, and tastemakers to help position books and enhance sales potential
Respond in timely fashion to author and agent queries and help facilitate communication and collaboration between author and internal teams