• NYC Workshop Leaders
• Publishing House Editors
• Marketing/Publicity Pros

Ibrahim Ahmad is senior editor at Akashic Books, where he has worked in various capacities since 2000. He has acquired and edited dozens of titles for the completely independent Brooklyn-based company, which is dedicated to publishing urban literary fiction, crime fiction, and political nonfiction by authors who are either ignored by the mainstream, or who have no interest in working within the ever-consolidating ranks of the major corporate publishers. Akashic's enduring commitment to seek out and publish fresh voices is reflected by the diversity and eclecticism of the twenty-five or so books released annually by the company. In addition to its regular publishing program, Akashic hosts a number of other imprints including the Little House on the Bowery experimental fiction line, curated by cult novelist Dennis Cooper; Chris Abani's Black Goat poetry imprint, which seeks to provide a proportional representation of female, African, and other non-American poets; and the Akashic Noir Series, showcasing original short crime fiction from around the world.

Caitlin Alexander

Caitlin Alexander is a senior editor at the Random House Publishing Group, where she acquires and edits a variety of fiction and nonfiction. Her authors include New York Times bestsellers Michelle Richmond (THE YEAR OF FOG), David Gibbins (THE LOST TOMB), Andy McDermott (THE HUNT FOR ATLANTIS), and Gwen Cooper (HOMER'S ODYSSEY); Angela Davis-Gardner (PLUM WINE and the forthcoming BUTTERFLY'S CHILD), Sally Koslow (the forthcoming WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE), national bestseller Elizabeth Joy Arnold (PIECES OF MY SISTER'S LIFE), and International Thriller Writers Award winner Tom Piccirilli (SHADOW SEASON).

Ginjer Buchanan

Ginjer Buchanan is the Editor-in-Chief, Ace/Roc Books, Ace and Roc being the science fiction and fantasy imprints of Berkley and NAL. She also acquires mysteries, historical fiction, pop culture non-fiction, and an occasional paranormal romance.

Jackie Cantor

Jackie Cantor is an Executive Editor at The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin. Prior to joining Berkley in August 2005, she was a Vice President and Executive Editor at Bantam Dell, where her list included a wide variety of fiction and nonfiction titles in all formats. She is proud to have discovered the New York Times bestselling authors Diana Gabaldon and Eloisa James. Other major authors whose work she has acquired include John Grisham, John Lescroart, Hope Edelman (MOTHERLESS DAUGHTERS), and Boston Globe bestselling author Helen Fremont (AFTER LONG SILENCE). At Berkley, her list of authors includes national bestseller Kate Furnivall (THE RUSSIAN CONCUBINE and THE RED SCARF), Christine Blevins (MIDWIFE OF THE BLUE RIDGE and THE TORY WIDOW), Jennie Nash (THE LAST BEACH BUNGALOW and THE ONLY TRUE GENIUS IN THE FAMILY), Laura Brodie (THE WIDOW'S SEASON), and Patti Delois (BUFFLEHEAD SISTERS).

Tom Colgan

An Executive Editor at Penguin, Tom has worked in publishing for over twenty years in publishing. His specialties are general fiction, category fiction, mysteries, thrillers, and military fiction. Authors he has worked with include Tom Clancy, Ed McBain, Clive Cussler, W.E.B. Griffin, and Jack Higgins.

Emily Griffin

Emily Griffin is an associate editor with Grand Central Publishing (formerly Warner Books), where she began her publishing career in 2003. She edits a wide range of fiction and nonfiction; on the fiction side, her authors include Claire LaZebnik (KNITTING UNDER THE INFLUENCE, THE SMART ONE and THE PRETTY ONE), Zoey Dean (bestselling author of the A-LISTSERIES), and Sally Beauman (THE SISTERS MORTLAND). In terms of nonfiction, she has a special fondness for memoirs with distinctive voices, and will be publishing CORKED, author Kathryn Borel's account of a French wine trip with her father, and a memoir by Michelle Au, MD, about medical residency and motherhood. Emily graduated from Harvard College with a degree in history and literature.

Michael Homler

Michael Homler is an Editor at St. Martin's Press. He acquires in a wide range of areas which include general and literary fiction, mystery/thrillers, graphic novels, narrative nonfiction and biography. He has worked on such books as the NBCC winning biography JAMES TIPTREE JR. by Julie Phillips, THE FAULT TREE by Louise Ure, Lee Child's anthology KILLER YEAR, the Edgar-nominated PYRES by Derek Nikitas, and Don Mattingly's HITTING IS SIMPLE by Don Mattingly and Jim Rosenthal.

Dana Isaacson

Dana Isaacson, Senior Editor at the Random House Publishing Group, has worked in the book publishing industry for nearly twenty years in various capacities: as abridger, literary agent, writer, online editor and acquisitions and content editor. Prior to Random House, he edited at Pocket Books, St. Martin's Press, and ReganBooks. At Random House, he has worked on a wide variety of titles -- from bestselling commercial fiction (Tess Gerritsen's THE MEPHISTO CLUB, Dianne Emley's THE FIRST CUT) to literary biographies (TOO BRIEF A TREAT: THE COLLECTED LETTERS OF TRUMAN CAPOTE, Jonathan Reynolds' WRESTLING WITH GRAVY) to historical narratives (Gerry Adams' A FARTHER SHORE, Michael Kauffman's AMERICAN BRUTUS).

Celia Johnson

Celia Johnson is an associate editor at Grand Central Publishing. She focuses on horror, suspense, mysteries, and commercial nonfiction. Her titles include legendary director George Romero's novels inspired by the zombie universe of his classic films Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead, another examination of the zombie world by a Harvard professor, M.C. Beaton's cozy mysteries, and an oral history of the Mickey Mouse Club, WHY? BECAUSE WE LIKE YOU! She's currently looking for suspense novels and mysteries that have the potential to crossover successfully into the general fiction marketplace. She's also on the lookout for quirky pop culture titles and narrative nonfiction with high commercial appeal.

Jennifer Josephy

Jennifer Josephy began her publishing career working for Bob Gottlieb at Knopf. Later, at Holt, she edited New York Times bestsellers, including FEAR OF FLYING by Erica Jong and OUTRAGEOUS ACTS AND EVERYDAY REBELLIONS by Gloria Steinem. At Dutton, she edited cookbooks by Beatrice Ojakangas, among others, which was followed by another more-than-decade-long stint at Little, Brown, where she edited two #1 New York Times bestsellers, Gloria Steinem’s REVOLUTION FROM WITHIN and Kevyn Aucoin’s MAKING FACES, among many other works in almost all areas of nonfiction. In 1999, she joined Broadway Books as an Executive Editor.

Kate Kennedy

Kate Kennedy is an Associate Editor for Harmony and Shaye Areheart Books. For the Shaye Areheart she acquires upscale/literary and mainstream women’s fiction, with a focus on coming-of-age stories and those that take place in exotic locales. For the Harmony list she acquires self-help, spirituality and inspiration, memoir – particularly food and travel memoir – and narrative nonfiction. Her recent books and upcoming acquisitions for Harmony include the New York Times bestselling EMOTIONAL FREEDOM by Dr. Judith Orloff, THE BOOK OF MURRAY by humorist David Bader, and a new project by bestselling author Wayne Muller. For SAB, her upcoming titles include THE ANARCHIST by John Smolens; LIME TREE CAN'T BEAR ORANGE, a love story set in Trinidad that was selected as a top ten best debut novel by Booklist; The Night Counter, a best of summer reading pick by the Chicago Tribune and the Boston Phoenix; and THE TIME IT SNOWED IN PUERTO RICO, a coming-of-age debut from novelist Sarah McCoy.

Sally Kim

Sally Kim is a senior editor at Shaye Areheart Books, the literary fiction imprint at The Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., where her authors include Lisa Unger (BEAUTIFUL LIES, New York Times bestseller), Lee Martin (THE BRIGHT FOREVER, 2006 Pulitzer Prize finalist), Gillian Flynn (SHARP OBJECTS, 2007 Edgar nominee), and Leah Stewart (THE MYTH OF YOU AND ME). Forthcoming titles include Justin Evans's A GOOD AND HAPPY CHILD, Will Lavender's OBEDIENCE, and novels by Jill Smolinski, Camille DeAngelis, Brian Leung, and Patricia Gaffney. Previously an editor at St. Martin's Press and HarperCollins, she has worked in book publishing for 12 years and was a 2006 Frankfurt Fellow.

Tim O'Connell

Tim O'Connell is an associate editor at Vintage and Anchor Books, where he edits and acquires literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, and genre-skewing sci-fi and crime fiction for the Vintage, Anchor, Knopf, Pantheon lists. His paperback roaster includes such authors as Don Winslow, Michael Robotham, and John Burnside. He is currently editing books by D.C. Pierson, Arthur Goldwag, Jake Adelstein, and Lee Sandlin. He has an MFA from Texas State University.

Leis Pederson

Leis Pederson is currently an assistant editor at the Berkley Publishing Group. She acquires commercial fiction, including romance and women's fiction, mysteries, thrillers, and general fiction. Forthcoming titles include THE SHADOW WALKER by Michael Walters, LA VIDA VAMPIRE by Nancy Haddock, and THE DANGEROUS DUKE by Christine Wells.

Laura Perciasepe

Laura Perciasepe is an assistant editor at Riverhead Books, an imprint of Penguin Group. She edits and acquires narrative nonfiction, general and upscale/literary fiction; forthcoming titles include GROUNDED by Seth Stevenson. She is also the paperback coordinator for the Riverhead Trade line, and is interested especially in acquiring titles as paperback originals. Previously, she worked at Simon & Schuster.

Christine Pride

Christine Pride is an Editor at Broadway Books, where she publishes a range of fiction, memoir and narrative non-fiction including the New York Times bestseller, TELL ME WHERE IT HURTSs by Nick Trout, the SF Chronicle bestseller THE CRYING TREE by Naseem Rakha, Commonwealth Prize winner, THE END OF THE ALPHABET by SC Richardson and the critically acclaimed MR. SEBASTIAN AND THE NEGRO MAGICIAN, by Daniel Wallace. She loves powerful storytelling and discovering and nurturing exciting new voices.

Rakesh Satyal

Rakesh Satyal is an editor at HarperCollins, where he works with such authors as Paulo Coelho, Clive Barker, Armistead Maupin, and Paul Rudnick. A member of the planning committee for the annual PEN World Voices Festival, he also sings a popular cabaret show in the city. He is the author of the novel BLUE BOY, a gender-bending comedy about a young Indian American boy's fascination with the Hindu god Krishna.

Hilary Rubin Teeman

Hilary is an associate editor at St. Martin's Press. She acquires commercial and literary fiction, historical fiction, thrillers, mainstream romantic suspense, and chick-lit as well as social and cultural histories, narrative non-fiction, popular sociology, playful self-help, and memoir. Recently published and forthcoming titles include: Lenore Hart's BECKY, a novel of the "true life" of Becky Thatcher; Tamar Yellin’s THE GENIZAH AT THE HOUSE OF SHEPHER, an award-winning novel of four generations of a Jerusalem family; Lea Jacobson's BAR FLOWER, a gripping memoir of the decadent, destructive life of a Tokyo nightclub hostess; and Lori Uscher-Pines’s BUYING THE COW IN THE AGE OF FREE MILK: HOW TO GET YOUR MAN TO PROPOSE; and star of VH1’s The Pickup Artist, Mystery’s THE MYSTERY METHOD: HOW TO GET BEAUTIFUL WOMEN INTO BED.

Zachary Wagman

Zachary Wagman is an associate editor at Vintage Books, where he edits and acquires crime fiction, thrillers, general and popular fiction, and pop culture non-fiction. He has worked on the paperback reprints of books by Scott Smith, David Peace, Michael Harvey, Lisa Unger, David Thomson, and Oliver Sacks. Hardcover titles he has edited include SOON I WILL BE INVINCIBLE by Austin Grossman, SEND by David Shipley and Will Schwalbe, and YOUR INNER FISH by Neil Shubin.

Alexis Washam

Alexis Washam acquires and edits literary fiction, upmarket commercial fiction, and literary mysteries and literary suspense novels in addition to some non-fiction. Her interests include memoir, pop culture (especially music and film) and philosophy. She has worked with J.M. Coetzee, William Trevor, Julia Alvarez, and Chris Abani. Recent and upcoming projects include the PW bestseller THE LITTLE BOOK OF ATHEIST SPIRITUALITY by André Comte-Sponville, a philosophical investigation of atheism, and the possibility of living a spiritual existence without belief in God; LITTLE FACE by international bestselling author Sophie Hannah, a psychological suspense novel that marks the start of a series; THE KISS MURDER by Mehmet Murat Somer, the first book in a series set in Istanbul featuring a transvestite nightclub owner who is also an amateur sleuth; and CITY OF STRANGERS by Ian MacKenzie, a remarkable literary debut novel about two brothers struggling to come to terms with their father’s impending death.

Melissa Broder

Melissa Broder is a Senior Publicist at Penguin Group (USA) in the Berkley/ NAL/ Riverhead/ Perigee division. Most recently, she has worked with such bestselling authors as: Harumi Kurihara (HARUMI'S JAPANESE COOKING), Kate Jacobs (THE FRIDAY NIGHT KNITTING CLUB) and Sloane Crosley (I WAS TOLD THERE'D BE CAKE). Melissa began her journey in literary publicity at Tor/Forge, an imprint of what was then Holtzbrinck publishers (now Macmillan). Melissa holds a BA in English from Tufts University and is currently getting her MFA in Poetry at The City College of New York, where she is the recipient of The 2008 Stark Poetry Prize in Honor of Raymond Patterson and The 2008 Jerome Lowell Dejur Award in Creative Writing.

Susan Schwartzman

Susan Schwartzman has been in the publishing field for more than 20 years. She began her career in book publicity in 1992 as a freelance in-house book publicist, working for major publishers, including Workman Publishing, William Morrow, Penguin-Putnam, Harcourt Brace, Villard, Wiley, Avon Books, Simon & Schuster, Warner Books, Red Dress Ink, New American Library, and Downtown Press. As an independent book publicist, Susan has promoted a wide variety of literary and commercial fiction and nonfiction titles. Her business, Susan Schwartzman Public Relations, has provided major media placements for her clients in major media throughout the country.

Supurna Banerjee

Supurna Banerjee is a former Associate Editor at Henry Holt and Company in New York. A committed foodie and amateur cultural anthropologist (read: people watcher), she lives in Brooklyn, the perfect location for both pursuits. Born in Calcutta, Supurna grew up in the picturesque riverside town of Washington, MO, just outside of St. Louis. She graduated magna cum laude from Amherst College in 2002 with a BA in English.

Susan Breen

Susan Breen is the author of the novel THE FICTION CLASS, recently published in 2008 by Plume, an imprint of Penguin Group. Her novel was also published by Headline Review (in the UK), Wheeler Publishing (large print) and is a selection of Reading Group Choices 2009. Susan has been a finalist for the Peter Taylor Prize for the Novel and the James Jones First Novel Fellowship Competition. Her stories have been published by a number of literary magazines, among them North Dakota Quarterly, The Chattahoochee Review and American Literary Review. Susan teaches beginning and advanced fiction classes at Gotham Writers' Workshop; she is also a contributor to The Writer and Writer's Digest. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Susan is a graduate of the Spring 2006 NYC Pitch and Shop workshops.

Julie Doughty

Julie is a freelance editor with twelve years of experience as a staff editor at Dutton and Vintage Books. She has edited seven New York Times bestselling novels by Eric Jerome Dickey, two highly acclaimed memoirs (INSIDE, INSIDE by James Lipton and THE COMMITMENT by Dan Savage); and a National Jewish Book Award-winning humor anthology (THE MODERN JEWISH GIRL'S GUIDE TO GUILT by Ruth Andrew Ellenson and contributors). She is also the editor of two mysteries by Edgar Award-nominated writer Barbara Parker, and several well-reviewed thrillers, including SEASON OF THE WITCH by Natasha Mostert, CONTACT ZERO by David Wollstencroft, and IN THE COURTS OF THE SUN by Brian D'Amato. She is currently taking on new clients and can be reached at Julie.e.doughty@gmail.com .

Richard Goodman

Richard Goodman's new book, A NEW YORK MEMOIR, will be published in the fall of 2010. He is author of FRENCH DIRT: THE STORY OF A GARDEN IN THE SOUTH OF FRANCE, and THE SOUL OF CREATIVE WRITING. He has written on a variety of subjects for many national publications, including the New York Times, Creative Nonfiction, Harvard Review, Commonweal, Vanity Fair, AWP Writer's Chronicle, Saveur, Louisville Review, Ascent, French Review and Michigan Quarterly Review. He is a founding member of the New York Writers Workshop. His essay, "In Search of the Exact Word," appears in the Oxford American Writer's Thesaurus. He teaches at Spalding University’s Brief Residency MFA in Writing Program in Louisville, Kentucky and at Pace University in New York City. His website is at www.richardgoodman.org

Michael Neff - Director

Michael Neff is a fiction editor, writer, teacher, and publisher. He is the creator and director of WebdelSol.Com, a literary and cinema arts community, and one of the largest publishers of periodical contemporary lit on the WWW He edits the Del Sol Press and publishes several highly acclaimed national literary magazines including 5_Trope, In Posse Review, La Petite Zine, Perihelion, and The Potomac. He also edits the "Paris Review of the Internet," Del Sol Review. His own work has appeared in such classic literary publications as The Literary Review, North American Review, Mudlark, Quarterly West, Pittsburgh Quarterly, Conjunctions, and American Way Magazine. His novel, YEAR OF THE RHINOCEROS, is out from Red Hen Press.

Charles Salzberg

A typical day for Charles involves reading, editing, and evaluating novel manuscripts of all genres for students and a wide variety of clients. He has also published books with or edited for the likes of Viking/Penguin, Dell, Simon and Schuster, Henry Holt, St. Martin's, M. Evans, and Hyperion, as well as agencies like Trident Media Group, Peter Rubie Agency, Graybill & English, and the Spieler Agency, among others. Charles has ghostwritten several books, fiction and nonfiction, and his own detective novel is awaiting publication. currently, he teaches at Sarah Lawrence, The New York Writers Workshop, and the Writer's Voice. He is a founding member of the New York Writers Workshop. An interview with him can be found here His novel, SWAN'S LAST SONG, was rexently published.

Tina Wexler

Tina Dubois Wexler is in International Creative Management's literary department. She represents authors in the adult and children's marketplace and is specifically looking for upmarket woman's fiction, narrative nonfiction (including memoir), cookbooks, and YA fiction. Her authors include Helen Brenna, Donna Gephart, Sanjay Patel, Ani Phyo, Susan Runholt, Laurel Snyder, Erin Torneo, and Anne Ursu (children's market only). Before joining ICM, she was with the Karpfinger Agency and the Ellen Levine Literary Agency. She has an MFA in poetry and is originally from Southern Maine.

NOTE: NYC Pitch and Shop faculty are subject to change as circumstances dictate, however, new editors and/or workshop leaders will be substituted who are just as qualified and diverse in taste.

Click here for more details about the conference.

If you need to contact us click here.

ADDITIONAL OFFERINGS Traditional Novel, Fiction, and Non-Fiction Workshops Algonkian Writer Conferences