People 8/8

VP, director of publishing for the Clarion group Mary Wilcox will leave the company on August 25, after over 20 years at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and then Harper Collins. President and publisher of Harper Children’s Suzanne Murphy writes: “Mary has been an inspiring leader and mentor to her team and has been a steady and tireless supporter of all the Clarion group’s authors and illustrators, as well as its prestigious backlist, through times of great change. I am particularly grateful for her leadership and support during the integration of HMH/Clarion into the division.”

The Clarion group, which comprises Clarion, Versify, and Allida imprints, will now report into vp, director of publishing Nancy Inteli, who will continue to oversee the Harper picture book and programs group as well.

President and publisher Brian Tart has formally announced “with complicated feelings mixed with sincere congratulations” the retirement of long-serving division veterans: Wendy Wolf, vice president & associate publisher; Paul Slovak, vice president & executive editor; Rick Kot, executive editor, and Ben Petrone, associate director, publicity. “Their legacy is profound and exemplary,” he writes, “and they will be remembered for extraordinary contributions to literature and publishing. They all started at Viking Penguin as colleagues first, but quickly became friends, mentors, and confidantes for so many of us.”

Slovak, who is in his fortieth year at Viking Penguin, departs September 1, as does Petrone. Kot will leave November 1, and Wolf is staying until December 15.

And in another formal retirement memo from the Knopf Doubleday Group, Pantheon publisher Lisa Lucas marks the departure of Shelley Wanger in December. Editorial director Denise Oswald says: “For over thirty years, Shelley Wanger has shepherded some of the great intellects of our time across the Pantheon and Knopf lists and she has done so with elegance, aplomb, and a deft guiding hand, all while bringing a particular acumen to everything she touched. She has been an invaluable colleague whose grace and wit are unlikely to be matched and we will miss her terribly.”

Also set to retire in December after three decades at Random House is Benjamin Dreyer, vp, executive managing editor and copy chief: “Throughout his tenure, Benjamin has maintained the rich literary standards of our storied house while also spearheading their evolution to meet the needs of the twenty-first century. With his vision and leadership, he has seamlessly blended tradition and innovation, ensuring that our house style remained timeless yet relevant. Under Benjamin’s guidance, we embraced new formats, technologies, and evolving writing styles while never compromising on the quality and respect for the written word that have been our hallmark.” He is also the author of Dreyer’s English: An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style.

Margaret “Maggie” Cannon has been promoted to publicist, James Patterson, and will direct all of Patterson’s publicity efforts.

Nicholas DiSabatino was promoted to manager of global publicity and head of author relations.

Julia Steffy has been promoted to assistant project editor.

Vicky Weber has been promoted to literary agent.