Ben Platt will join Basic Books as editor. Previously he was an associate editor at Penguin Press. Chad Bunning has been named retail and operations manager for the Rizzoli Bookstore in New York, which is set to reopen at its new location at 1133 Broadway later this summer. Previously he was general manager at BookCourt. In addition, Chris Pangborn joins the bookstore as head buyer, moving over from Shakespeare & Company, where he was backlist buyer and head merchandiser for more than two decades. In the UK, Cecilia Campbell-Westlind joins Eccles Fisher Associates on May 26th. She previously worked at Daniela Schlingmann […]
Agency News
People
At Ten Speed Press, Erin Welke has been promoted to associate publicity & marketing manager while Daniel Wikey moves up to associate marketing manager. At St. Martin’s, John Nicholas has been promoted to associate marketing manager. Kait Heacock has joined The Feminist Press as publicist. She was previously publicist at The Overlook Press. At the Erin Murphy Literary Agency, Tricia Lawrence has been promoted to agent. The ABA membership officially ratified the board nominations made in February. The transition will take place at BEA (when the ABA holds its annual meeting), with Betsy Burton from The King’s English Bookshop beginning her two-year term […]
People, Etc.
After under 3 years in the post, Follett ceo Mary Lee Schneider is departing, to be replaced by Ray Griffith. He spent 20 years at Ace Hardware, where he was president and ceo until April 2013. The company said, “The son of a public school teacher and grade school principal who began his career managing a local retail store, Ray has the right experience and strategic vision to drive Follett to continued success.” In the announcement, Schneider comments: “I have been proud to be a part of the Follett story for the past 14 years, first as a member of the board […]
People: Ruth Rendell Dies, and More
Ruth Rendell, 85, author of more than 60 novels under her own name as well as Barbara Vine, died May 2 from complications of a stroke suffered in January. Rendell wrote 24 Inspector Wexford novels starting with From Doon with Death (1964) as well as many standalone suspense novels, including 14 under the Barbara Vine name. Rendell’s final novel, Dark Corners, will be published by Cornerstone and Scribner in October. Michael McKenzie will join Algonquin as executive director of publicity on May 26, working out of the company’s New York offices and overseeing both adult and young readers lists. Previously […]
People, Awards, Etc.
Acting publisher at Running Press Allison Devlin will move to Time Inc. Books on May 4 as associate publisher, Publishing Trends reports. Susan Weinberg will fill in as acting publisher at Running Press when Devlin leaves, until a permanent publisher is named. At HarperAudio, Sean McManus has been promoted to associate publisher. Marjacq Scripts in London has hired two new associate agents, Catherine Pellegrino and Georgie Bouz. Children’s book specialist Pellegrino had founded her own agency in 2011; Bouz was previously an editor at Penguin Random House UK and specializes in women’s commercial fiction, commercial literary fiction and commercial non-fiction. Foreign rights agent Sandra Sawicka will work as a primary agent as well. […]
People, Etc.
At Hannigan Salky Getzler Agency, Tanusri Prasanna has joined as an associate, specializing in children’s books. She will work with Carrie Hannigan on children’s and YA projects and with Josh Getzler on special projects and contracts. (With a PhD in jurisprudence from Oxford, she has worked in the office of the general counsel, and interned at Foundry Literary + Media and Knopf Children’s.) Danielle Burby has been promoted to junior agent and foreign rights manager. She represents YA, women-driven crime fiction, and women’s fiction. At Clarkson Potter, Amanda Englander was promoted to editor. Caroline Osborn has joined Little, Brown Children’s […]