Stephanie Smirnov has joined Scholastic as evp, head of global corporate communications, reporting jointly to chairman, president, and ceo Richard Robinson and chief strategy officer Iole Lucchese. Smirnov was previously managing director, brand practice at Edelman New York and ceo for the US region of DeVries Global.
The Authors Guild elected Monique Truong, author of The Book of Salt and Bitter in the Mouth, as vice president. D.T. Max, author of Every Love Story Is a Ghost Story, has joined the governing council as a member.
Chelsea Handler and Daniel Novack have each been named senior counsel for Penguin Random House.
Publisher and editorial director at Parallax Press Rachel Neumann is leaving that position. She will join Shambhala Publications as associate publisher on April 23. Based in Berkeley, she will focus on acquisitions and the publishing programs of the Shambhala, Roost Books, and upcoming Bala Kids imprints.
Former vp and general manager of Disney Publishing Worldwide Jonathan Symington has launched The Lantic Group based in Los Angeles, a consultancy focusing on “building brands through product launches, licensing strategies, and international expansion.” Clients include Deer Little Forest, an arts & lifestyle brand created by Jo Rose.
Bookselling
With Amazon‘s planned 10,000-square-foot bookstore opening today in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC, the news is that the company has leased a space in the new Palisades Village mall in Pacific Palisades, CA, set to open September 22. The neighborhood was formerly home to Village Books, and Amazon Books vp tells the LAT the new location is “in an area that we know is full of readers.” It will be Amazon’s second store in the Los Angeles area.