New children's publisher Post Wave UK, led by Emma Hopkin, appoints creative team

Post Wave UK, a new subsidiary of Chinese publishing house Post Wave Publishing China, led by m.d. Emma Hopkin, has appointed a creative team and is to launch its books list in August.

Emma Blackburn will join from Hachette as publisher in April, while Joanna McInerney from Big Picture Press is to be editorial director and Avni Patel of Thames & Hudson will be design director. Bounce Sales & Marketing will be Post Wave UK’s first sales and distribution partner.

Hopkin, who had a former role as m.d. of consumer publishing at Bloomsbury, said of the new appointments at Post Wave UK: “The profile of our acquiring and design team really signals our intent to be an exceptional illustrated children’s publishing house, backed by our colleagues from Post Wave China. We plan to grow quickly and cleverly, and I couldn’t hope for a better team to steer our list strategy and our agent, author and illustrator relationships.”

Post Wave Publishing China, founded in 2006, is a general publishing company with headquarters in Beijing, covering humanities and social sciences, art and literature, lifestyles, business and economics, and children’s books, which publishes 600 titles a year. 

Blackburn was group publisher for Preschool and Picture Books at Hachette, publishing creators including Lauren Child and Jim Field. She said: “To build a new children’s list with Post Wave UK is such an exciting opportunity. As a globally focused team, we are looking forward to publishing creatively, innovatively and nimbly. Our list will reflect the very best in illustrated publishing, offering authors and illustrators the freedom to explore new ideas and break new ground, as we connect creatives with their global readership. I can’t wait to get started with Emma and the Post Wave teams in the UK and China.”

McInerney was head of publishing at Big Picture Press, with illustrators including Katie Scott and Emma Carlisle, and non-fiction authors including James Aldred, De Nichols and Sir Alistair Spalding. She commented: “I’m delighted to be a part of this exciting new venture, and am very much looking forward to working alongside experienced, like-minded colleagues in the UK and China to create captivating, illustrated non-fiction children’s books.”

Patel was art director of the children’s list at Thames & Hudson, working with Quentin Blake, Serge Bloch and Marion Bataille. She said: “Contributing to a brand new list with a focus on innovative book-making and visual storytelling is a rare and unique opportunity, enabling Post Wave UK to connect with creative minds globally.”

Of the Bounce partnership, Hopkin said: “It’s great to be working with Robert Snuggs and his team to ensure our books find their way into the hands of retailers and wholesalers. They are ideally placed to support our growth plans and, as children’s books experts, are the ideal partner for us. We will be announcing US and Australian distribution shortly.”