Polo Orozco, Editor

Polo Orozco is an Editor at G. P. Putnam’s Sons, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group. He acquires YA, middle grade, and graphic novels, and he’s drawn to stories that are highly entertaining, remarkably imaginative, and wholly human. At Putnam, Polo works with authors including Aislinn Brophy, Kyla Zhao, and #1 New York Times…

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Meriam Metoui, Assistant Editor

Meriam Metoui is an Assistant Editor who joined Viking Children’s Books in 2019 after several years in School & Library marketing (PYR) and adult editorial (Hachette). After graduating from the University of Michigan, she moved to New York and received a master’s degree in English literature from Hunter College. She considers herself a serial hobbyist…

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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,…

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Gnesis 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…

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Talia Benamy, Editor

Talia Benamy, editor at Philomel Books, joined Penguin Random House as an editorial assistant in 2013. She graduated with a BA in English from Cornell University. Talia is the editor of Cramm This Book: So You Know WTF Is Going On in the World Today by Olivia Seltzer, My Love for You Is Always by…

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Jill Santopolo, Vice President & Publisher

Jill Santopolo is the vice president and publisher of Philomel. After seven years at HarperCollins, she joined Penguin Random House in 2009 and became associate publisher in 2018. She holds a BA in English literature from Columbia University and an MFA in writing for children from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Jill is best…

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Claire Tattersfield, Assistant Editor

Claire Tattersfield is an assistant editor at Viking Children’s Books and Flamingo Books. She began her career at Penguin Young Readers in 2019 after graduating from the University of Vermont with a degree in political science and global studies and a minor in Spanish. She supports Flamingo and Viking with picture books and a dash…

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Aneeka Kalia, Associate Editor

Aneeka Kalia is an Associate Editor at Viking Children’s Books, where she primarily focuses on picture books and graphic novels for all ages. Aneeka also acquires middle grade and YA fiction, as well as select narrative nonfiction. Aneeka has worked with creators like Nidhi Chanani, Anoosha Syed, and Bianca Xunise. She looks for contemporary/realistic, humorous,…

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Gretchen Durning, Associate Editor

Gretchen Durning joined the Razorbill team in 2018, and she edits primarily young adult and middle grade fiction. She’s worked on titles such as Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor, The Depths by Nicole Lesperance, and Threads That Bind by Kika Hatzopoulou. She has also assisted on a number of other projects, including A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir and The…

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Michelle Lee, Associate Editor

Michelle Lee (she/her) received her M.F.A. in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the New School before joining Dial in 2019 and is a junior mentor with the Representation Matters Mentorship Program. She acquires picture books, novels, and graphic novels, and is looking for stories that present the world through a clever lens, have…

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