Ballantine Bantam Dell publisher Libby McGuire has been promoted from svp to evp. She will continue to oversee the hardcover and mass market publishing programs for the division, reporting to RHPG president Gina Centrello. “With a sales and marketing background, Libby’s marketplace sensibility and decisive leadership is complemented by a wonderful eye for both fiction and nonfiction, for the publishing to support it, and by strong relationship with her colleagues, our authors, and the agent community,” Centrello said in the announcement.
Amanda Cook will join Crown as vp, executive editor on February 6, responsible for developing the imprint’s non-fiction list. Previously she was executive editor at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, specializing in science, history, and current affairs, as well as psychology, politics, and other social sciences. Cook, who will report to Molly Stern, will be based in Boston but commute frequently to New York.
Joy Peskin has been named vp, editorial director of Farrar, Straus and Giroux Children’s, reporting to Simon Boughton. Previously she was associate publisher at Viking Children’s.
Lindsay Guzzardo recently joined Amazon Publishing’s romance imprint, Montlake, as an associate acquisitions editor. Previously she worked at Guideposts Books and NAL.
At Scribner, Whitney Frick has been promoted to editor.
At Dutton, Liza Cassity has been promoted to publicist.
In the UK, Richard Haines has joined Penguin Children’s in the newly created position of acquisitions manager for its media and entertainment division. Previously he worked at HarperCollins in a variety of marketing, brand management and licensing acquisitions roles.
At Random House Children’s UK, Jessica Clarke has been promoted to editor, Kirsten Armstrong joins as assistant editor, moving from David Fickling, and Natalie Doherty joins in a temporary editorial position. In addition, Ruth Knowles, currently an editor at RHCB, will join Andersen Press for one year as acting editorial director for fiction, replacing Charlie Sheppard, who is on maternity leave.
Finally, Skyhorse put out a press release offering to buy backlist titles for cash from “struggling small publishers,” promising to pay “based on the average net sales for such titles for the current year and the prior three years.” We’re guessing there are other publishers who might make a similar deal, and small publishers in trouble might turn to their distributors for help as well. Skyhorse had acquired the assets of both Arcade and Sports Publishing when they were bankrupt.