Staff profile

Cat Mitchell


Senior Lecturer in Publishing

Cat Mitchell at our One Friar Gate Square site.

Subject

English; Creative Writing and Publishing

College

College of Arts, Humanities and Education

Department

Humanities

Campus

Kedleston Road, Derby Campus

Email

C.Mitchell2@derby.ac.uk

About

I am a Senior Lecturer in Publishing, and teach on the Publishing MA course and the Creative Writing and Publishing BA course. In 2021 I won Lecturer of the Year for Arts, Humanities and Education in the Union Awards. 

Teaching responsibilities

I lead and teach on modules about publishing law, marketing and sales, multi-platform writing and publishing, and skills for contemporary publishing. 

Research interests

My research focus is on disability in publishing. In 2021 I published the Access Denied report, which gathered the experiences of 200 disabled job seekers and employees in the UK publishing industry and gave suggestions for improvements. I used this research as a consultant for the Inklusion guide, which aims to make literary events accessible for disabled people, which launched in August 2022.

I also research marketing and publicity in publishing, with a focus on how bestsellers are made. I have a particular interest in crisis management, and social media marketing, including the rise and impact of TikTok. 

Membership of professional bodies

I'm an active member of the APE (Association for Publishing Educators) and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Qualifications

Experience in industry

I have five years of experience in the publishing industry, including four years working in various marketing and publicity roles at Penguin Random House UK in London. I have also worked as an intern at a literary agency, an events coordinator at a book festival, and a freelance book publicist.

I was a judge for The British Book Awards in 2022 and 2023, and sit on the executive board for The Barbellion Prize, which is a book prize dedicated to the furtherance of ill and disabled voices in writing. I have also written for the publishing industry's trade magazine The Bookseller, and regularly speak at industry events, including at the London Book Fair and FutureBook conference, and with the Society of Young Publishers.

In the media

Recent publications