Jon began in independent publishing and later moved to Manchester University Press, before joining HarperNorth, a new imprint of HarperCollins in Manchester, in 2020.
He specialises in serious and narrative non-fiction, and independently-minded books with a good dose of regional interest. His list spans memoir, politics and current affairs, history, sport, nature writing, smart-thinking, true crime, pop science and music, and he published HarperNorth’s first book in November 2020: Melissa Reddy’s Believe Us: How Jürgen Klopp Transformed Liverpool into Title Winners.
He has previously worked with Orwell Prize shortlisted authors Gaiutra Bahadur (Coolie Woman) and Alpa Shah (Nightmarch). Recent acquisitions have included a survival memoir from a North Korean woman now living in the UK, publishing in Spring 2022, and Labour MP Lisa Nandy, whose father is Indian, for a book on British politics and the levelling-up agenda. He’s a passionate advocate for diversifying non-fiction publishing.
HarperNorth have open submissions, and Jon is available for all of the following: one-off consultation, submission assessment or mentorship. You can find him on Twitter at @jcdep