At Redwood Publishing Recruitment, we speak to publishing professionals every single day - and one of the most striking things we've noticed over the past five years is just how much the traditional career ladder has changed. The old model - graduate trainee, editorial assistant, editor, senior editor - is still very much alive, but it's no longer the only route to a fulfilling, high-impact career in publishing.
We're seeing something genuinely exciting: people arriving at publishing from wildly different places, bringing skills and perspectives that are transforming the industry from the inside out. The person who spent five years managing a flagship Waterstones branch is now running brand strategy for a major imprint. The ex-librarian is now a data insights manager at a digital-first publisher. The freelance copywriter is now a content director.
This piece is the first in our series on unconventional publishing career paths - and we want to start by asking the most fundamental question: what does a publishing career actually look like in 2026?
The Skills That Transfer (More Than You Think)
Booksellers are, in many ways, the ideal publishing professionals. They understand readers on a visceral level. They know what sells, what doesn't, and crucially, why. They can spot a trend six months before it hits the bestseller charts. They talk to hundreds of customers a week and develop an intuitive understanding of what audiences want.
When we present candidates with bookselling backgrounds to publishing clients, we always make this case clearly: this is someone who has been doing consumer insight work every single day, without a job title that reflects it. The industry is beginning to catch on.
Similarly, we've seen careers built on backgrounds in retail management, customer experience, and even hospitality. The skills that seem unrelated, such as team leadership, commercial awareness, stock management, customer-facing communication, are exactly what modern publishing businesses need as they navigate the shift towards direct-to-consumer models.
Why Publishers Are Opening the Door
The honest answer is: they have to. The talent pool for traditional publishing roles has always been relatively small. Publishers who've relied on a narrow pipeline of graduates from a handful of universities have found themselves with teams that look and think alike, which isn't great for a creative industry serving an increasingly diverse readership.
There's also a practical dimension. The skills that publishing now needs - digital marketing, UX, data analysis, audio production, community management - often don't exist in sufficient quantity within the traditional publishing talent pool. Bringing in people from adjacent industries isn't just progressive; it's necessary.
As recruiters, we've been actively encouraging our clients to look beyond the CV box-ticking exercise and instead ask: what does this person actually know how to do, and how does that serve our business?
What This Means If You're Considering a Move into Publishing
If you're working in retail, media, education, marketing, or the creative industries and you've been wondering whether publishing might be for you, our advice is: yes, and here's how to frame it.
Publishing employers respond well to candidates who can articulate their transferable skills in publishing-adjacent language. Don't say "I managed a shop floor." Say "I developed and implemented merchandising strategy for a range of over 3,000 titles, driving a 12% uplift in category sales." The substance is the same; the framing is everything.
We'd also encourage you to get as close to the industry as possible before making the leap. Follow publishers on social media. Read The Bookseller. Attend industry events; many are now hybrid or free to attend online. The more fluent you are in publishing's language and concerns, the more confidently you'll present yourself as someone who belongs there.