PEOPLE
At Simon & Schuster, Lauren Marino will join Simon Element as executive editor on September 9th. She was previously editorial director at Hachette Books.
Macmillan Publishers: Paul Sleven, SVP, general counsel will retire in January. He has worked for Macmillan since 1995. At Tor Publishing Group, Susan Barnes has joined as senior editor, acquiring commercial fiction. Haylie Spain joined as junior contracts associate. Fiona Sullivan has joined as contracts assistant. Nalie Borihane has joined as subsidiary rights assistant. Erin Powell has joined as field sales assistant.
At Penguin Random House, Alana Moshay has joined as marketing associate, brand marketing for Random House Children’s. She was most recently an account executive at Saatchi & Saatchi. Ariel Stevenson has joined as production associate. Nick Amphlett, formerly editor at William Morrow joins Dutton as senior editor.
Hachette Book Group announced that Colleen Kurzbach is joining the sales team as director of title management. She was previously senior director of title management at Penguin Random House, where she was responsible for the Knopf and Penguin Publishing Groups.
At HarperCollins, Ariel So has joined as senior marketing associate in sales operations. Previously, she was at Riverhead as a publishing associate. Jamil Zaidi has joined the field sales team as a sales representative for the PNBA and MPIBA regions, reporting to Kathy Faber. Giselle Durand has joined the field sales team as sales representative for MIBA and GLIBA regions, and also reporting to Faber. Starting September 3rd, Suzi Hough will join the field team as a sales representative for the CALIBA region. Kalani Kapahua has joined the inside sales team as representative for the SIBA region. He will report to Dawn Littman. He was previously manager and buyer at Third Place Books. Hannah Koerner, formerly subsidiary rights manager at Hachette Book Group, has joined HarperCollins as closed market international sales manager.
American University in Cairo Press has named Thomas Willshire executive director, effective September 1. He was previously at Cambridge University Press.
Sourcebooks sees Jolene Barto join as ebook marketing manager. Hartley Christensen has joined as marketing associate.
At Scholastic, Jael Fogle has joined as lead production editor.
Learner Publisher sees Brian Farrey-Latz join Zest Books as senior editor.
Minnesota Historical Society Press, Ann Regan, editor in chief will be retiring September 3rd after more than 45 years. She began as a researcher in 1978 and then worked her way up to editor in chief. Ryan Hemmer has joined as acquisitions editor. John Rahm has joined as director.
American University in Cairo Press, Thomas Willshire has been named executive director, effective September 1st. He was previously at Cambridge University Press.
American Booksellers Association, Children’s Book World manager Brein Lopez has joined the board to fill a vacancy.
Society of Children’s Book and Writers and Illustrators, have elected Laurent Linn, author and art director at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, as board president.
In Agency News…
Tobias Literary Agency has promoted Sarah N. Fisk to literary agent. At Mad Woman Literary Agency, Chelsea Hensley joined as an agent. At Looking Glass Literary & Media, Jas Perry has joined as an agent. She was formerly with KT Literary and takes her client list with her. At Arthouse Literary Agency, Hailey Stephens has joined as associate agent. At Sebes & Bisseling, Sam Birmingham and Elizabeth DeNoma have joined as agents.
PROMOTIONS
Penguin Random House, promoted Amanda D’Acierno to the newly created role of president, Penguin Random House Audio, global. She will also join the Penguin Random House Global Executive Committee. Michelle Delavega has been promoted to VP of credit and accounts receivable at Penguin Random House. Ruta Rimas is being promoted to senior executive editor and publishing director at Putnam for Young Readers.
Macmillan Publishers, Yassy Okamoto has been promoted to EVP, general counsel, effective January 1st, 2025.
HarperCollins promoted Carrie Thornton of Dey Street from VP to SVP. At Mariner, Peter Hubbard, publisher, has been promoted from VP to SVP.
Scholastic, promoted Caroline Noll to national account manager. Sydney Niegos is promoted to associate marketing manager.
Candlewick, Holiday House, and Peachtree, have promoted Dana Eger to marketing manager for school and library.
Sourcebooks has promoted Kate Roddy to editor. Jenna Jankowski has been promoted to senior editor. Letty Mundt has been promoted to associate publishing coordinator.
Cambridge University Press has promoted Todd Berman to SVP for U.S. and Canada, effective September 9th. He will continue his role as head of retail sales for the Americas, the U.K., and Europe.
ReaderLink has promoted Sean Sparkowski account executive.
Chronicle Books has promoted Hannah Delgado to specialty sales coordinator.
Melville House promoted Hanna Lafferty to director of sales. Pia Mulleady has been promoted to publicist. Michelle Capone has been promoted to associate editor.
At Hazelden Publishing, Kai Benson is being promoted to editor.
Hilsinger-Mendelson promoted Sam Mitchell to director of publicity.
DULY NOTED
Len Reggio, bookselling giant of Barnes & Noble, died on August 27th at 83 from complications of Alzheimers. Over the course of his 54 year tenure, he created one of the largest bookstore chains in the country.
NYU Advance Publishing Institute announced that registration is now open, and there is an early bird discount through October 13. (Group discounts are also available.) An information session will be offered September 18
API 2025 program topics include:
- Global Trends and Opportunities in Audio
- A Deep Dive into the Creator Universe
- Mobilizing Communities of Book Lovers
- AI: Tools and Applications You Need to Know
- Analytics in Action: Marketing Case Studies
- DEI 2.0: A Moral and a Business Imperative
- Publishing for the Future: What the Experts Say
For more information about the program, pricing, and to register, click here.”
Apple has announced the cut of approximately 100 jobs and reports from Bloomberg saying “the biggest impact on teams responsible for Apple Books app and Apple Bookstore.” The Apple News team will also be affected.
EVENTS
Aug 23- Sep 8
Crystal Palace Gardens, PT
Aug 31- Sept 1
London, UK
Sept 7-8
Chicago, IL
Sept 14-28
New York, NY
Sept 22-30
Brooklyn, NY
