The MA Publishing at UCLan and its affiliate industry partner, UCLan Publishing, are award-winning and widely recognised in industry as innovators. Since 2018, UCLan Publishing has produced 73 books, had 27 award nominations, signed 57 authors and 47 illustrators.
As innovators in industry, we embed exciting live briefs from UCLan Publishing into the curriculum. We aim to optimise your experience. We create books that challenge readers to look outside of their own personal experiences. Books that give a true representation of the modern world. In 2023, The British Book Awards (run by The Bookseller) shortlisted UCLan Publishing for Small Press of the Year, Regional Finalist.
Taught by experienced lecturers and industry professionals. You’ll have the opportunity to learn about industry. You'll apply your learning to UCLan Publishing and build a portfolio of work. You can gain access to UCLan Publishing’s in-house resources from profit-and-loss sheets, marketing materials, cover designs and authors!
The curriculum is filled with opportunities. For example:
- Helping to manage the campus bookshop
- Trips to bookfairs
- Presenting to industry professionals
- Meeting industry guest speakers
- Accessing industry mentoring
- Networking with alumni now working in Publishing
Why study with us
- We have an extensive network in industry – working across different genres and publishing houses – who visit regularly to support student learning.
- This is a highly vocational MA programme designed to support CV building. It's ideal for those needing more work experience or for career changers.
- We are the founders of the Northern Young Adult Literary Festival. An Arts Council funded festival designed to make Children’s and Young Adult books more accessible to an audience in the North. The festival has had prestigious authors attend. From Juno Dawson, Holly Bourne, Melinda Salisbury, Matt Killeen, Patrice Lawrence to Yaba Badoe.
What you'll do
- We provide opportunities for students to immerse themselves in the world of Publishing. You can opt to take part in our mentoring initiative. Gain alumni and/or industry mentoring to build a network for your professional development. We have also taken students on trips to London Book Fair and Bologna Book Fair.
- Students will work on a live project for their MA qualification. This means working with an author to produce a book to professional standards. Where possible, we also work interdisciplinary and this has included working with Illustration, Creative Writing, Photography, Film and TV, Animation and Acting.
- The curriculum has been designed so every component is incredibly practical. This is to help you develop a wide range of soft and hard skills sought after in industry.
Module overview
Compulsory modules
- JN4401: Digital Publishing
- JN4412: Communications: Working in Marketing, Publicity and Sales
- JN4413: The Editorial Department
- JN4414: The Major Project: The Live Brief
- JN4523: UCLan Publishing: Work Skills and Entrepreneurship
- JN4524: The Rights Department
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Course delivery
This course is taught face-to-face at one of our UK campuses.
Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of our published course information. However, our programmes are subject to ongoing review and development. Changing circumstances may cause alteration to, or the cancellation of, courses. Changes may be necessary to comply with the requirements of accrediting bodies or revisions to subject benchmarks statements. As well as to keep courses updated and contemporary, or as a result of student feedback. We reserve the right to make variations if we consider such action to be necessary or in the best interests of students.
Future careers
Working in publishing is exciting! Seeing books that you have had an opportunity to be a part of stocked at major (and independent!) retailers. Seeing readers enjoying the work and your author’s success is immensely rewarding. An industry that is both highly creative and self-conscious.
Publishers strive to publish books that are inclusive and diverse in their representation. Publishers are offering more hybrid and remote roles. Recently, there has been a real drive for more publishers to open offices in the North; expanding the Northern publishing scene.
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