Kent Watson is stepping down from his role as executive director of PubWest on June 12 after 12 years in the position. The board has begun the search for an interim executive director. Imprints China’s Thinkingdom Media Group has formed Astra Publishing House, a publishing group that will combine their Boyd Mills & Kane and mineditionUS (in which Boyd Mills recently made “a substantial investment”) with a new adult imprint, Astra House. Distributed by Penguin Random House, Astra House will publish 20 to 25 titles a year — about half of those books works in translation — across literary fiction, poetry, […]
Personnel
People, Etc.
Longtime literary agent Frances Goldin, 95, died in her home in New York on May 16, after years of declining health. She founded the Frances Goldin Literary Agency in 1977 to champion left-wing authors, and her roster included Dorothy Allison, Barbara Kingsolver, Martin Duberman, Adrienne Rich, Mumia Abu Jamal, Mike Wallace, Frances Fox Piven, Susan Brownmiller, Martin Espada, Juan Gonzalez, and many others. A memorial will be held when gathering becomes possible again, with details to be announced. Pam Gruber has joined Irene Goodman Literary Agency as a literary agent, representing adult, young adult, and middle grade fiction, graphic novels, […]
People, Etc.
At Macmillan, Jackie Waggner has been promoted to director, national specialty retail; Joseph O’Leary to senior manager, sales operations; Anthony Jimenez to senior sales analyst; Leigh George to senior ebook account manager, US and international sales; Gretchen Fredericksen to assistant manager, publisher liaison; and Kathleen McCutcheon to sales coordinator for the adult merch team. Events The American Booksellers Association‘s town hall session and annual meeting — usually held in conjunction with Book Expo — will convene online on Thursday, June 11, starting at 2:00 PM. Sales News NPD Bookscan reported print sales for the week ending May 9, showing a strong […]
People, Etc.
At Macmillan Children’s, Morgan Kane has been promoted to assistant director, publicity; Justin Krasner to senior editor of Odd Dot; Rachel Murray to associate editor at Holt Children’s; and Jessica Chung to junior designer. Daniel Ehrenhaft is leaving Soho Teen to devote more time to the nonprofit WAAC and to explore new opportunities in service of young adult literature. Alexa Wejko has been promoted to editor at Soho Teen, in addition to her role as publicist. Bill Shannon, 57, longtime director of contracts at the Knopf Doubleday Group, died on May 9, from complications of kidney cancer. He joined Knopf in 2000. […]
Remembering Carolyn Reidy
Following Simon & Schuster’s official announcement of Carolyn Reidy’s passing, ViacomCBS ceo Bob Bakish — to whom Reidy reported — said in a note, “Carolyn was a passionate and beloved leader, who helped make Simon & Schuster what it is today: one of the most successful and respected consumer publishing houses in the business. Over the course of almost 30 years at the company – and 12 as CEO – Carolyn nurtured relationships with important and popular writers, oversaw the publishing of numerous culture-shaping bestsellers and broadened Simon & Schuster’s audience by pushing into new formats and international markets. And, […]
Simon & Schuster CEO Carolyn Reidy Dies of A Heart Attack
Carolyn Reidy, ceo of Simon & Schuster since 2008, died Tuesday morning after suffering a heart attack. She turned 71 earlier this month. The news was announced by S&S evp, operations and cfo Dennis Eulau. He writes: “Carolyn was both an exemplary leader and a supremely talented and visionary publishing executive…. As a publisher and a leader, Carolyn pushed us to stretch to do just that little bit more; to do our best and then some for our authors, in whose service she came to work each day with an unbridled and infectious enthusiasm and great humor. Her fierce intelligence […]