PEOPLE
The latest changes under PW’s new management include the departures of Jeff Zaleski, John Mutter, and two other staffers. This follows the arrival of Karen Holt as Deputy Editor mid-month.
Ivan Held has been named President of Putnam. Held, who was most recently VP Associate Publisher of Warner Books, will begin his new position on April 4. According to Susan Petersen Kennedy, he will “work very closely with the newly established Executive Board of G. P. Putnam’s Sons,” including Neil Nyren, Dan Harvey, Marilyn Ducksworth, and Catharine Lynch. “They will help guide the future publishing strategy of the imprint and contribute new acquisitions to the imprint.”
Robin Corey has left S&S Children’s. Jen Bergstrom will temporarily assume some of her Simon Spotlight responsibilities. Earlier in the month it was announced that Anne Schwartz, who left S&S for Random House in February, has been joined by Lee Wade, also from S&S, and has launched a new imprint, Schwartz & Wade Books.
Peter J. Dougherty , Group Publisher for social sciences at Princeton University Press, has been named Director of the Princeton University Press, effective July 1. He succeeds Walter Lippincott, who plans to retire after almost twenty years at the press.
Jackie Cantor , VP and Executive Editor at Bantam Dell, is leaving the company. . . . Anne Kostick has left STC, where she had been a Senior Editor. . . . Knopf Sales and Marketing Director, Amanda Kauff has resigned to follow her husband, who is being relocated to London. . . . Cheryl Pientka is leaving Barbara Tolley to be Subrights Manager and an agent at the Joy Harris Agency.
Jonathan Burnham has left Miramax to become Publisher of HarperCollins, and followed by Kathy Schneider as Assoc iate Publisher. Meanwhile Rob Weisbach has gone to Weinstein/Miramax as Editor. Weisbach has been relatively quiet since he signed on as an S&S editor-at-large almost three years ago.
Meg Kearney , Associate Director of the National Book Foundation has left the organization, and there are no immediate plans to replace her. Executive Director Harold Augenbraum tells PT that publishers guidelines for the National Book Awards will be going out mid-April.
Tom Grady , long time Editorial Director at Harper San Francisco and subsequently a literary agent, has been named Publisher of Ave Maria Press at Notre Dame.
Ann Binkley has been named Executive Director The Quills Literacy Foundation. She was formerly Executive Director of New York is Book Country.
Andrea Pinkney will step down as publisher of the Houghton Mifflin children’s book group April 8. Pinkney chose to leave following a decision by management to relocate the publisher’s office from New York, where she was based, to Boston.
Sarah Burnes from Burnes & Clegg has gone to David Gernert and may be reached at: (212)838-7777 or by email at: sburnes@thegernertco.com
Rodale news: Stephanie Tade has gone back to being a literary agent. Randy Charles who left Rodale late last year has been named EVP/Chief Marketing Officer of the Health Sciences Division of Elsevier.
Seth Radwell , who oversaw the day-to-day operations of Bookspan‘s marketing and editorial group, has left to run e-Scholastic, the publisher’s online information and e-commerce division. Carole Baron, who left Dutton earlier in March, has gone to Bookspan in a part time position, working three days a week. Bookspan recently moved down to 15 East 26th Street. The new phone number is 212-651-7400.
Vista ‘s longtime senior executive John Wicker has left the company. Former CEO Brian Gibson, who had stepped down to serve as consultant to the company in November, will become CEO for North America.
Kim Hadney has joined ReganBooks as Marketing Director. Hadney most recently held the title of Director of Advertising and Promotion for Dutton and Gotham Books. Lynn Grady, whose place she takes, has left Regan to become Associate Publisher at WilliamMorrow, HarperEntertainment and Eos imprints. Speaking of leaving Dutton, Senior Editor Jerry Brozek has left NAL.
Liz Kessler has joined Spark Educational Publishing as Managing Editor. She comes from Scholastic where she was also Managing Editor working on corporate and government sponsored education programs for teachers. The incumbent ME, Vince Janoski has been named Business Manager for the Spark Group which now includes the Barnes & Noble Classics.
Laura Nolan is leaving Barnes & Noble Publishing where she was an editor. She can be reached at: (212) 633-3268.
Promotions
Libby Jordan has moved over to Collins as SVP, Associate Publisher where she will be responsible for overseeing the division’s marketing and direct-to-consumer initiatives.
Jordan was SVP, Associate Publisher of Morrow/Avon as well as Associate Publisher for Morrow Cookbooks. Matthew Benjamin has been promoted to Senior Editor, Collins. In this role, he will be acquiring original manuscripts in reference, as well as helping develop the Smithsonian co-branded book program. Benjamin has been with HarperCollins for 6 years.
April Events
• The Open eBook Forum presents “eBooks in Education Conference” on April 14 at the McGraw-Hill Auditorium, 1221 Avenue of the Americas. The keynote address will be presented by Craig D. Swenson, the Provost and Senior VP for Academic Affairs at the University of Phoenix. Dr. Swenson will present “How Professionals Learn Today-Intentional Learning and the Irrelevance of Textbooks”. The conference runs from 8 am to 5 pm. The price for the day, which includes breakfast and lunch, is $99, or $49 for Open eBook Forum members. Conference information is available at www.openebook.org/education
• Small Press Center Presents the 1st Annual NYC Round Table Writers Conference on April 29 – 30, at its 20 West 44th Street location. Pitched as an opportunity to “Meet the Movers & Shakers,” the list of panelists includes Mary Higgins Clark, Patrick McGrath, Michael Connelly, Meg Wolitzer and a raft of publishers and agents. Price: 2-days: $295, one-day: $195. Go to www.smallpress.org for details.
• The Humber School of Creative and Performing Arts hosts a conference in Toronto on April 14 and 15 entitled “The New Face of Publishing.” Guests include Michael Cader of Publishers Marketplace; Mike Shatzkin of the Idea Logical Company, Kevin Smokler, author of the forthcoming Bookmark Now (Basic Books); and Michael Smolens, Founder of On Demand Books LLC. Cynthia Good, who had been President of Penguin Canada and is now Director of Humber’s Creative Publishing program will be co-hosting.
• NYU’S Third Management Forum for Independent Publishers will be held on April 15-16. Among the speakers in this useful, nuts and bolts program are Nielsen BookScan‘s Jim King, Bookspan‘s Larry Shapiro, Perseus‘s David Steinberger, and Ingram‘s Phil Ollila. The price is $950 or $855 before March 18. Call 212 992 3236 or www.scps.nyu.edu/indy
Duly Noted
As of September 8, 2005 National Geographic will be distributed by Random House, until then we’re still with Simon and Schuster. They made us an offer we just couldn’t refuse.
Julie Merberg announces the launch of Downtown Bookworks Inc. (285 West Broadway, suite 600 New York, NY 10013). Merberg, who comes from Roundtable Press, is joined by Patty Brown, who had been with John Boswell and, most recently, at Roundtable; and Sara Newberry, who came to publishing via culinary school.
One time publisher of Kodansha and longtime Women’s Media Group member Gillian Jolis passed away on March 25, after several months of illness. A memorial service took place on March 29. Contributions in her memory may be made to The Group for the South Fork, P. O. Box 569, Bridgehampton, NY 11932-0569.
Congrats to Liate Stehlik, Assoc Pub Pocket Books. Liate had a baby boy, John Gallagher, 8 lbs. 2 oz. born on February, 23rd. Everyone is healthy and fine.
