PEOPLE
Two editors whose last names are singular enough to identify them immediately, made major moves this month. Moments after leaving Random House, where he was Editor in Chief of Little Random, Jon Karp has gone to Warner to start his own imprint, Warner Twelve. And Peter Osnos announced that he will step aside as Publisher of Public Affairs to become Editor-at-Large and to focus on other projects.
Getty Publications Publisher Christopher Hudson is moving to MoMA to become its Publisher, beginning in September. Hudson has been at the Getty since 1986.
After a long search, the new CEO of Dorling Kindersley has been found in DK’s back yard: Gary June, the new CEO, is currently Chief Sales and Marketing Office at Pearson, DK’s parent company. Meanwhile ex-DKer Chuck Lang has been named VP, New Product Development at the Langenscheidt Publishing Group. He may be reached at their new offices in Long Island City, 718 784 0555 x 201.
Ronni Stolzenburg has been named Associate Marketing Director at St. Martin’s. She was most recently at Sterling. And BJ Berti, resigned as executive editor at Creative Publishing International (CPI) only weeks after starting, to accept a position at St. Martin’s as Senior Editor. She had previously been at Crafter’s Choice Book Club.
Longtime Bantam Dell Group Executive Editor Jackie Cantor who had left Random earlier this spring, joins Berkley Books as Executive Editor. . . . Kelliher Samets Volk, a New England ad agency, has bought Platinum Design and has named Jackie Merri Meyer to run and market the company. She was most recently a consultant and previously at Warner Books …
In anticipation of the retirement of current CEO, John Lively, later this year, Taunton Press has announced that Sue Roman will become President and Editor-in-Chief; Jon Miller, Magazine Group Publisher, will become EVP, as will CFO Tim Rahr. Taunton publishes six magazines, as well as 55 books a year.
Willa Perlman is leaving executive recruiter The Cheyenne Group, to become a consultant. Perlman, who covered publishing, had previously worked at Golden Books.
Claiborne Hancock, who had been Senior Managing Editor for Carroll & Graf Publishers/Avalon, has left to launch his own independent publishing company (see below).
Allison Heiny is leaving Barbara Tolley & Associates to be the Foreign Rights Manager / Managing Editor for Alloy, Inc. . . . Susan Enochs, recently appointed Marketing Director at Abrams has left the company. A search for a new director is underway. . . . Amanda Fenandez has gone to Overlook in an editorial capacity.
Random has hired Oxford‘s Tim Bartlett as Senior Editor and Kate Hamill (who worked with him previously), as Assistant Editor.
At Miramax Books, recently arrived president Rob Weisbach has hired Judy Hottensen as VP and Publisher. Hottensen was Director of Marketing and Publicity at Grove/Atlantic. She “will work closely with [Weisbach] as we acquire and publish new titles for the book division of Bob and Harvey Weinstein’s new company.” . . . Claire McKinney will join Holt as Director of Publicity in early September, reporting directly to publisher John Sterling. McKinney has been Director of Publicity at Miramax Books since last year, and succeeds Elizabeth Shreve.
Gina Maolucci VP Marketing has resigned from Penguin Children’s Books, effective August 12. She may be reached at ginamaolucci@yahoo.com, 201-795-9846.
Houghton Mifflin has named Alan Smagler as Publisher of the children’s book group, he headed his own consulting business, and previously held various positions at Simon & Schuster Children’s, most recently as Associate Publisher.
PROMOTIONS
At PW Charlotte Abbott was named Senior Editor, along with Steve Zeitchik and Calvin Reid. Jim Milliot was promoted from Senior Editor to Business and News Director. And Michael Scharf and Marcela Valdes were promoted in the Review Department, from part time to full time review editors.
At S&S Karen Wojtyla has been promoted to Executive Editor, Margaret K. McElderry Books. She was formerly Senior Editor. And also at S&S Children’s, Tracy van Straaten has been promoted to VP, Executive Director of Publicity.
DULY NOTED
PW is launching PW Book Life, a consumer magazine, at the end of September. Sara Nelson tells PT that it will come out 6 time a year, though only one issue is being worked on right now. Asked about the thinking behind this new launch, Nelson said: “This will not be about the craft of writing. We believe there is a group of interested civilians, passionate readers who care about books and want to know more about the business, how the process works. They want to go behind the scenes of the book culture, but may not want to pay the price of a PW subscription.” A full half of magazine will be reviews that have appeared earlier in the trade version, and the inaugeral issue will have reviews of books published from September through mid-November. There will be 2-300 reviews, taken from PW but “packaged differently.” Robert Rorke, who did freelance work for PW and who was editor of the NY Post’s television section, has been hired as the Editor. Freelancers will write the stories and there will be annotated bestseller lists, similar to PW’s, with a total of 80 pages of editorial. The price will be “competitive” with other consumer magazines.
Pegasus Books, a new independent publishing house based in lower Manhattan, will launch its first list of titles during the Spring 2006 season. Backed by Wachovia Securities, Pegasus will publish approximately a dozen titles during its first year. The list will be comprised of “quality nonfiction” – biography, history, and philosophy–as well as literary and commercial fiction, with an emphasis on crime novels and mysteries. The size of the list will, according to publisher Claiborne Hancock, “let us devote a great deal of energy and attention to each title and author, especially concerning our publicity
efforts.” The address is: 45 Wall Street, Suite 1021 New York, NY 10005
The Small Press Center announces the following Fall events: On Wednesday, November 30, 2005 Small Press Center’s 20th Anniversary Celebration & Benefit at The General Society Library. The 18th Annual Independent and Small Press Book Fair will be on December 3 and 4, 2005. The Fair is held at the Small Press Center at 20 West 44 Street. Registration will open to SPC members and 2004 exhibitors in August.. For information on registration, please contact info@ smallpress.org.
The Tenth Annual Books for a Better Life awards will be presented by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society at an awards ceremony in the Hudson Theatre at the Millennium Broadway Hotel, New York City, on Monday, February 27, 2006.
Steve Leveen of Levenger (“Tools for Serious Readers”) and author of The Little Guide To Your Well-Read Life joining the National Book Foundation Board of Directors
MAZEL TOV
Clare Ellen Duggan was born at 1:34 pm on July 8 to publishing duo Tim Duggan and Libby Maguire.
IN MEMORIAM
Publisher, packager, author and innovator Byron Preiss died on July 9, in a car crash in East Hampton. He was remembered at a funeral on July 12 in New York.
Coincidentally, literary agent Al Lowman also died on July 9, in Los Angeles. He had been ill for some time.
