Penguin Imprint
Monique Sterling, Senior Designer
Monique Sterling, senior designer at Philomel Books, joined the team in 2019. She holds a BFA in graphic design from the Fashion Institute of Technology with a minor in communication design. Before making the pivot to children’s publishing, she worked as a freelancer and full-time designer in several industries, including print, online education, advertising, marketing/promo,…
Read MoreRachael Kelly, Editor
Rachael Kelly is an Editor at Dutton acquiring commercial and upmarket/book club fiction across genres—stories that combine rapid pacing, nuanced character development, complex themes, and compelling hooks. She is building a list that prioritizes both voice and plot, and gravitates toward fiction that is romantic, escapist, suspenseful, mysterious, or psychological in nature, especially from authors…
Read MoreJoanna Ng, Editor
Joanna Ng joined TarcherPerigee in 2012, where she acquires and edits books in the areas of personal growth/self-help, popular psychology, creativity, and memoir. She enjoys working with a diverse range of authors who have compelling stories to tell and powerful insights to share—she is always learning something new from them.
Read MoreGnesis Villar, Editorial Assistant
Editorial Assistant Gnesis Villar joined Kokila in June 2021. Previously, she wrote reviews for the children’s department at Publisher’s Weekly, in addition to interning at Macmillan, Laura Dail Literary Agency, and Dial Books for Young Readers. She is a native New Yorker raised on cartoons, unlimited Internet access, and R-rated horror movies. She graduated from…
Read MoreGrace Layer, Associate Editor
Grace Layer joined Dutton in January 2021 and acquires both fiction and nonfiction. She’s looking for smart narrative nonfiction, including investigative journalism, popular science, travel/food narratives, and character-driven stories that bring an unknown piece of history to light or dive into a propulsive mystery. On the fiction side, she’s interested in upmarket, voice-driven novels with…
Read MoreLauren Appleton, Executive Editor
Lauren Appleton has been at Tarcher since 2012, where she acquires a wide range of self-improvement titles, mainly for Millennials and Gen-Z. She is particularly interested in the areas of inspiration/motivation, pop-psychology, creativity, social justice, female empowerment, and anything that will improve your life or simply make you smile. A large portion of her list…
Read MoreGretchen Durning, Editor
Gretchen Durning is an editor at G. P. Putnam’s Sons, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers. While at Penguin, she’s worked on titles such as the instant New York Times bestsellers Hotel Magnifique and The Otherwhere Post by Emily J. Taylor, the internationally bestselling Threads That Bind duology by Kika Hatzopoulou, and the critically acclaimed novel The Curse of Eelgrass Bog by Mary…
Read MoreJoJo Lee, Editorial Assistant
JoJo Lee (she/her) received her B.A. in English and Philosophy from Tufts University, where her long-held fascination with gender dynamics, women writers, and children’s literature culminated in her senior thesis “Reading Little Women and Anne of Green Gables Queerly.” Prior to joining Dial in 2024, she interned at Astra Books for Young Readers, W. W.…
Read MoreEllen Cormier, Senior Editor
Ellen Cormier (she/her) is an editor at Dial Books for Young Readers, acquiring picture books, novels, and graphic novels with a particular focus on LGBTQ+ stories and creators. She is always on the lookout for voicey, character-driven books, especially ones that explore universal themes through the lens of hyper-specific experiences. She has a soft spot…
Read MoreKate Harrison, Editorial Director of Picture Books and Graphic Novels
Kate Harrison (she/her) spent much of her childhood in a tiny town in Southern Missouri that is best known for its “Throwed Rolls” restaurant, where you actually have to catch your bread in order to eat it. It inspired a strong work ethic, a true love of carbohydrates, and maybe a weird sense of humor.…
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