Friends Journal is seeking a Book Review Editor. This is an unpaid volunteer position, with an expectation of 15-18 hours/month. The candidate will work remotely, and the start date is flexible, ideally sometime in fall 2024. There is no deadline to apply; we will be accepting applications until the position is filled.

Qualifications include: someone who loves reading and books, particularly ones of interest to Friends; enjoys working closely with others (FJ’s volunteer reviewers); is familiar with Friends Journal and its audience; has proven editing, writing, and research skills, in addition to project management and organization skills; is interested in following publishing industry news.

Duties of the Book Review Editor:
 

• Works with Friends Journal editorial staff to request, log, and ultimately select books for review, including consideration of unsolicited titles.
• Responsible for appropriately matching each selected title with one of Friends Journal’s available reviewers who have a range of knowledge and expertise.
• Using email and/or phone, corresponds with each reviewer in a timely manner to coordinate mailing physical copies of books (mailed from the FJ office), setting attainable review deadlines to meet column requirements, and tracking reviews to completion. (See book review guidelines for reviewers here.)
• Serves as the first-round copyeditor for each book review, being mindful of content, tone, and length (about 400 to 800 words), prior to passing along to the staff editor, who will complete another round of fact-checking and editing before publication. See published book reviews here.
• Adheres to an almost monthly deadline (skip three months) to send a set of completed book reviews (one column generally features about 5 to 8 titles) to editorial staff. One issue per year (usually November) features an expanded Books column with twice the amount of material.
• Optional: Occasionally writes full and “In Brief” reviews (once or twice a year) for the column.

To apply: fill out the following form on Submittable, which includes submitting a cover letter and resume (or a detailed list of relevant experience) and providing two references.