Head of Fiction Rights

Location: Vauxhall, London (Hybrid Post Probation) Closing Date: 12th April 2026

About Walker Books

Walker Books UK is part of the vibrant international group that includes Candlewick Press, Holiday House and Peachtree in the USA and Walker Books Australia. Renowned for its truly original publishing and outstanding quality, the Walker Books Group is home to a wide range of children's and young adult books. Award-winning authors and illustrators for the group include Cassandra Clare, Angie Thomas, Ross Montgomery, Louie Stowell, Patrick Ness, Neal Schusterman and Jon Klassen. We are also enormously proud to publish beloved family brands including Lucy Cousin’s Maisy, Michael Rosen’s We're Going on a Bear Hunt, Sam McBratney and Anita Jeram’s Guess How Much I Love You and Martin Handford’s Where’s Wally?

About the Role

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced Head of Fiction Rights or Senior Fiction Rights Manager with leadership experience to further progress their career in children’s publishing. As the head of our Fiction Rights sales team, you’ll present débuts, award-winning and bestselling children’s fiction titles to international customers, across a wide range of age categories, from young illustrated and middle-grade fiction to graphic novels and YA. This role will be responsible for driving the strategy and growth for our Fiction Rights in conjunction with the Publishing Director and Publisher. The Head of Fiction Rights will directly secure translation rights sales for The Walker Books Group fiction list, and will also have line management responsibility for the Senior Fiction Rights Manager. You will have the opportunity to work closely with our Co-edition team and other departments across all parts of the global Walker Books Group, in a fast-paced and ambitious area of our business.

Key responsibilities

• Lead the Fiction Rights sales team, setting objectives, priorities and ways of working to deliver targets and professional development.
• Allocate territories/accounts effectively across the team to ensure coverage, continuity and growth.
• Line manage the Senior Fiction Rights Manager (and any additional team members as applicable), including regular 1:1s, development, performance management and annual performance reviews.
• Set and drive the Fiction Rights sales strategy in conjunction with the Publishing Director and Fiction Publisher/s, translating publishing priorities into territory plans and sales activity.
• Forecast annual budgets by territory and reforecast throughout the year, ensuring clear pacing, pipeline visibility, and corrective action where required.
• Develop practical, cohesive territory and list strategies to achieve and grow annual rights sales budgets, maximising turnover and profitability and ensuring focus on the highest-value opportunities.
• Personally pitch, negotiate and secure translation rights sales in assigned territories, also supporting on high-value and complex negotiations across the Fiction Rights team.
• Identify and develop new rights customers and strategic partnerships by maintaining a detailed understanding of local market needs, feeding insights into strategy and acquisition discussions.
• Contribute to the publishing process by pro-actively advising on international sales potential, territory trends, and positioning for frontlist and backlist.
• Drive best practice in rights processes; ensure effective post-sale management so publishing partners receive timely and accurate information, liaising with internal stakeholders (Business Affairs, Production, Marketing, etc.) as needed.
• Work with the Foreign Rights & Fiction Fulfilment Assistant on file fulfilment for assigned territories from sale through to delivery.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date records of interest, offers, deal status and outcomes; produce clear post-trip and post-fair reporting and share actionable insights with the wider business.
• Attend international book fairs and self-directed territory-specific sales trips, representing the fiction list and maintaining/building senior relationships with customers, agents, scouts and industry stakeholders.
• Oversee Fiction Rights book fair preparation, leading regular meetings and acting as the main point of contact for internal stakeholders.
• Work closely with the Co-edition team where relevant to align on shared creators and opportunities.
• Undertake additional tasks as required to support Fiction Rights performance and cross-group strategic projects and initiatives.

Please note the above is not an exhaustive list and does not necessarily include all the duties the job holder may have to perform. This job description may be amended to meet changing needs of the business.

Skills and Experience

To be successful in this role, you will be able to demonstrate evidence of the following skills and/or experience:

• You will have a proactive, goal-oriented approach, with a high-level understanding of the rights process and extensive experience in fiction rights sales.
• A proven track record of building markets, exceeding revenue targets, and managing high-value partnerships across diverse regions.
• Experience in the development and delivery of a forward-thinking sales strategy.
• Excellent presentation and negotiation skills.
• Strong proven experience of the rights business in children’s book publishing and extensive international publisher relationships.
• Proven people management experience, with strong interpersonal and empathy skills, applied when liaising with direct reports, other departments and international publishers.
• Clear and effective communication skills.
• Organisational and time-management strengths, working to tight deadlines, whilst maintaining meticulous attention to detail.
• Calm, solutions-focused approach, using initiative and sound judgment under pressure.
• Highly self-motivated, enjoys leading and working as part of a team, and also able to work independently.
• Excellent working knowledge of Microsoft Office applications.
• Strong mathematical and analytical skills, as well as a high standard of written English.
• Significant experience with financial planning, forecasting, and data-driven decision-making.
• Proactive commercial acumen and results-oriented approach.
• International travel is essential and foreign language skills will be advantageous.
• Proven depth of understanding of the global publishing landscape.
• Knowledge and enthusiasm for children’s book publishing.

We offer:

• Hybrid work (at least two days in the office per week) once you have successfully passed probation.
• 22 days annual leave per year plus bank holidays and Christmas closure (with annual leave increasing with length of service up to 27 days).
• Enhanced Pension Scheme.
• Health Insurance and Health Cash Plan.
• Life Assurance.
• Summer hours.
• Remote working for up to two weeks per year.
• Enhanced Maternity and Paternity Pay.
• Access to an Employee Assistance Programme.
• Cycle to Work Scheme.
• Plus, other great benefits!

All children deserve to see themselves, their families, and their communities represented in the books they read. As children’s book publishers, it is our goal to ensure that the books and content we publish authentically and joyfully reflect the world around us. As an employer, we are committed to creating and maintaining a supportive working environment where everyone is included, valued, and empowered to do their best and most creative work. As an equal opportunities employer, we welcome candidates from all backgrounds without regard to race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, sex, or any other characteristic protected by law and those not yet protected by law. If you have any queries about this role or require any reasonable adjustments for your application or throughout the recruitment process, please let our team know by contacting us at recruitment@walker.co.uk. Please note we reserve the right to close vacancies before the closing date where we have received sufficient applications. We recommend submitting your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.