At the core of the publishing business is the job of choosing what to publish and it is a complex process. If you're an editor in the early stages of your career, with responsibility for acquisitions and list-building in trade publishing, this unique programme will give you the best possible foundation. 

How to Publish Bestsellers (Trade Commissioning and List Management) November 14 – 17

This intensive four-day residential event looks to combine the creative with the entrepreneurial, and balance intuition with methodology. It will be hugely rewarding for those who take part in terms of the knowledge and skills gained, and the networking and relationship-building opportunities.

The programme covers all the essential skill areas that a successful list-builder needs to acquire. It also explores the critical relationships with internal and external partners with whom effective working relationships are essential.

Who should attend?

Acquisition editors, commissioning editors, development editors or anyone about to step up to their first commissioning job in trade fiction, non-fiction or children's publishing.

Follow the link above to find out more about the course. Listen to Rebecca Smart of Ebury talk about why you should attend. And read on to hear how recent delegates gained in skills, understanding and confidence from attending the course.

Recent CLM delegate feedback

“It was a wonderful experience, and great to meet other editors in a similar position to me in terms of career progression.”

“I feel that the course has really opened up my eyes to what is available in the 'outside' world... In general, I feel a lot more confident about commissioning and list management as all of the main areas of the job have been covered in a lot of detail.”

“Yes, it was great. Getting together with so many other commissioning editors from such wide-ranging backgrounds was a real eye-opener and highly beneficial in its own right.”

“I have already started using things I learnt in this course in my day to day work (e.g. better understanding of finance) and I am starting to plan a strategic review of my list as a direct result of what I learnt on the course.”

“A thorough appreciation of my role as commissioning editor, and how I fit into the plans of a business. The importance of communication and organisation. A daily reminder to think about the bigger picture creatively, rather than get bogged down in the minutiae of every day drudgery.”

“There was a lot of helpful advice about author management and marketing ideas which I have already implemented with my EA. The case study was hugely useful - although we commission books here, we rarely commission large-scale projects like those we worked on in the case study, so it was great to have a go at working on a big print/digital product of this type.”

“I did enjoy the course. It was great to meet people from other areas of the industry and learn a lot that can be applied day to day. I would definitely recommend this course to anyone.”

TCLM feedback from November 2015

“…I am exhausted today but it was worth it – I've learnt a lot, and feel like I've had the opportunity to learn from some really impressive, influential and exciting people in the business. I'm going back to work feeling really excited about my – and the organisation's – future.”

“A comprehensive yet digestible insight into the whole range of tasks that comprise the commissioning editor role, and a wealth of documentation to further consolidate this information, as well as outstanding advice from some of the top individuals in their field, and the opportunity to network with them.”

“Really interesting. Coming from a small publisher, we aren't really involved in auctions so it was really interesting to hear more about them, to learn about the speed at which deals are made and the effort that is put into them. And also to know to go with your gut ultimately over how much you are really willing to pay for a book. The handout material was really useful as well.”

“Directly after the course ended on Thursday, I went to my company's birthday where lots of authors, publishers and agents were present. I immediately felt a sense of confidence at networking and at discussing the author's books with them – especially the authors we have recently signed. I think this confidence was a direct result of all of the training sessions across the four days. Although my company rarely has acquisition meetings, the checklist that we were taught to think about prior to an acquisition has immediately helped me have more of a clear focus on what is needed for each of our titles.”

“About the case study: A really useful exercise that helped reinforce everything we learnt in each training session. I really enjoyed the group work and feel our team worked well together. The case study made me think about the list as a whole and its impact upon the entire publishing house.”