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You are here: Home > Listings > Jobs & Opportunities > Children’s Book Editor
Children’s Book Editor
Deadline: Fri 23 Jun 2017
This is not the usual publishing job. Apply if you have a love for children’s literature, experience in editing children’s stories, a keen interest in technology, and the wish to make a difference

About us

At onebillion our goal is for children to turn the world upside down, but first they need the fundamentals of an education. The children we work for may have received no prior education at all, or only a poor one. They may be anywhere from rural villages to refugee camps, in the world’s poorer countries.

We are a non-profit based in London. We build literacy and numeracy software, and work with partners to implement and scale learning initiatives. Children work in their local language, at their own pace. In Malawi, the Unlocking Talent initiative implemented by VSO reaches over 19,000 children every week. 

About the project
 
As part of our literacy app, we’re building an extensive library of stories in English. Some are specially commissioned. Others are taken from Creative Commons platforms, such as African Storybook, StoryWeaver, and Book Dash, and edited by external freelancers. Text and illustrations are both worked on, to ensure they live up to our quality standards. 

The stories are for children who are learning to read English, including with English as a first language. They are also localised into other languages by our local experts. 

About the role
 
Your responsibility will be to expand our library of stories. This will involve developing relationships with authors and external editors, commissioning and selecting stories, project managing their creation or adaptation, and ensuring that they meet our standards in every way.

We want each story to be an engaging read for our young audience. Each story must be accessible to children around the world.
We want to work with the very best talent who understands our values, and knows the importance of accessible and magical story-telling. 

This means...
 
You will have excellent judgment about what makes a good children’s story, experience in editing children’s stories at different reading levels, and an understanding of what it takes for a child to learn to read.
You will absorb our philosophy and approach to learning, and develop an understanding of the needs of our audience.
You will be highly effective at managing relationships and dealing with creative risk.
You will take ownership of the whole story creation/editing process, from initial brief to sign-off.

Day-to-day tasks will include:
 
- Liaising with our in-house author and designer, as well as external authors, freelance editors and designers working remotely.
- Reviewing the stories that our authors, freelance editors and designers deliver, and providing constructive feedback.
- Ensuring that both text and images match our layout requirements, and are error-free.
- Liaising with our in-house localisation manager and developers to ensure they have everything they need, when they need it.
- Keeping an eye on the workload and budget for all freelancers.

Skills, abilities, and aptitudes
 
- strong editorial judgment 
- excellent project management skills
- ability to work creatively and effectively with different freelancers (remotely, via email and Skype)
- sensitivity for and understanding of cultural differences
- keen eye for detail, in both text and illustrations
- strong text-editing skills (MS Word)
- good understanding of graphic design and illustrations 
- quick learner when it comes to IT tools
- basic understanding of software development, especially apps

Practical info
 
- part-time or full-time
- office-based (New Kings Road, London SW6, nearest tube Parson’s Green)
- salary negotiable, based on experience

Application
 
- CV, 2 pages max
- Instead of a cover letter, please answer the following questions, in 150 words max per question.

NOTE: we will not consider any candidate who has not answered these questions.

1a What’s your favourite children’s book, and why?
1b Do you think your favourite book would be engaging for children in a rural East African village? Explain.
2 What’s your view on girl characters in children’s literature?
3 What do you think are the challenges of localising a story into other languages?
4 What are the most important things to you as a project manager?
5 Why are you interested in this particular position?
 
Please email your application to jobs@onebillion.org


 

Additional Information:
Location:
London
Region(s):
London

Contact Information:
Organisation:
onebillion
Contact Name:
Judith Hermetter
Contact Email:
jobs@onebillion.org
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