Ian Smith has unexpectedly left his post as ceo of Reed Elsevier after just eight months on the job, leaving “by mutual agreement” according to a company statement. Chairman Anthony Habgood says “Ian has had the difficult task of leading Reed Elsevier during unprecedentedly turbulent economic times.” Elsevier’s top executive for the past five years Erik Engstrom, 46, takes over immediately as ceo. In a separate release, the company moved up its six-month trading update to today: “The major professional markets, accounting for the majority of Reed Elsevier’s business, are proving more resilient than most but not immune from late […]
Personnel
People and Authors
Stephenie Meyer will make a rare promotional appearance on the Oprah Winfrey Show this Friday. She blogs on why she is “making an exception” from “doing the hermit thing”: “I am so pleased and amazed and thrilled with what Chris Weitz has done with New Moon that I want to talk about it, and to show my support for him.”Meyer blog Gwendolyn Heasley will join Artisans and Artisans as an agent, focusing on young adult. Her own debut YA novel, Confessions of a Teenage Recessionista, was sold to Harper Collins in a two-book deal in July. Vook has hired Peggy […]
People
Thomas P. Burke has joined Scholastic as svp, e-commerce, responsible for the operation’s strategic direction and growth, reporting to evp and president of Scholastic Book Clubs and E-Commerce Judy Newman. Burke has been at BN.com for the past five years, overseeing merchandising, online marketing, customer experience, design and editorial content. Philip Gourevitch is leaving the Paris Review–where he has been editor for the past five years–in April, to focus full-time on writing. He says “It has been a great honor — and great fun — to have relaunched this wonderful magazine.” The Sydney Morning Herald has a long profile on […]
Dan Weiss Joins SMP As Publisher at Large
Former SparkNotes publisher and packager Dan Weiss is the latest seasoned executive to join Macmillan, taking the new position of publisher-at-large for St. Martin’s, reporting to paperback publisher Matthew Shear. Weiss will develop and acquire both fiction and nonfiction properties targeted at the audience of “twentysomethings, Gen Yers, and older young adult readers–those emerging adults who are navigating career, love and family in a 24/7 connected world.” Those books will be published through St. Martin’s as well as other Macmillan imprints as appropriate. Shear says “his projects will appeal to a generation that loves the mix of low and high […]
People: Former Morrow Publisher Gallagher Joins Sanford Greenburger
Former publisher of William Morrow Lisa Gallagher is joining Sanford Greenburger Associates as an agent. She notes, “I want to apply my extensive marketing experience to help bring writers and their work to the widest possible audience across various media and formats.” Heide Lange at SJGA adds, “Lisa is that rare publishing professional whose talents include strong editorial insight, marketing expertise, and keen business sense. In other agency news, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management is opening a second office in Los Angeles in December, to be run by agency vp Michael Bourret, who has been at DGLM for 10 years. […]
McIntosh Returns to Random House to Run Sales and More
After a brief excursion to Amazon’s European office (where she has been director of Kindle content acquisition for Europe), Madeline McIntosh is returning to Random House Inc. to take the new position of president, sales, operations and digital, reporting to ceo Markus Dohle. He writes: “Unifying our physical and digital sales efforts for our adult, children’s, and international titles, distribution, publishing operations, IT, and our corporate digital-publishing capabilities in an interconnected team under a single leader is a key step in building our future success.” Starting December 1, McIntosh’s reports will include svp Operations & Technology Andrew Weber; svp, director […]