Author Archives: blackagentsandeditors1

Lizz Burrell – Editorial Assistant at HarperFiction

Lizz Burrell is an Editorial Assistant at HarperFiction, working in their Crime and Thriller team. She has an MA in Publishing from UCL and loves reading genre fiction, in particular crime, romance and fantasy. She’s excited to be starting her career in editorial and is passionate about championing the work of underrepresented authors in theContinue reading “Lizz Burrell – Editorial Assistant at HarperFiction”

Kemi Ogunsanwo – Literary Agent at The Good Literary Agency

Having acquired a BA in English Literature at UEA I began my publishing career with a number of internships at publishers including Bloomsbury, Simon & Schuster and Penguin Books while studying for an MA in Publishing at UCL. I then made the transition into Marketing & audience insight, gaining invaluable experience at organisations such asContinue reading “Kemi Ogunsanwo – Literary Agent at The Good Literary Agency”

Kadija Sesay – Publications Manager at Inscribe

Kadija Sesay FRSA, Hon. FRSL,  established SAKS Media in the 90s to publish anthologies by Black British writers and SABLE LitMag. She is currently the Publications Manager for Inscribe, a Black British writer development programme for Peepal Tree Press for whom she has commissioned poetry and fiction anthologies with editors Nii Parkes, Jacob Ross and Kwame Dawes.Continue reading “Kadija Sesay – Publications Manager at Inscribe”

Nazima Abdillahi – Fiction Editor at Hachette Children’s Group

Nazima is currently part of the wonderful editorial team at Hachette Children’s and works on fiction – from adventurous middle-grade to breathtaking YA. She previously worked on children’s non-fiction and licensing at Scholastic, where she began her publishing career.  She is eager to amplify underrepresented voices and build a list that is an honest reflection ofContinue reading “Nazima Abdillahi – Fiction Editor at Hachette Children’s Group”

Andrea Henry – Editorial Director at Transworld

Andrea Henry is an editorial director at Transworld, Penguin Random House, working with authors including Jenni Murray and Viv Groskop. She has been an acquiring editor at Headline, has held editorial positions at HarperCollins and Orion, and started as an editorial assistant at Random House. For five years she was the books editor at theContinue reading “Andrea Henry – Editorial Director at Transworld”

Krystle Appiah – Editor at Macmillan Children’s Books

Krystle Appiah is a children’s books editor, working on fiction, non-fiction and poetry for readers aged 6+. She began her career at Walker Books, first as an intern and later as a permanent member of the team. She now works at MCB, Pan Macmillan. Outside of her role, Krystle is a writer and part ofContinue reading “Krystle Appiah – Editor at Macmillan Children’s Books”

Carla Hutchinson – Editor at Hot Key Books & Piccadilly Press

Carla is an assistant editor at Hot Key Books and Piccadilly Press, the children’s fiction imprints at Bonnier Books, and works with authors including Elizabeth Acevedo, Patrice Caldwell and Jordan Ifueko. She began her career at Hachette Children’s Group, via Creative Access, working as an editorial assistant intern. She has started to acquire her ownContinue reading “Carla Hutchinson – Editor at Hot Key Books & Piccadilly Press”

Jasmine Richards – Editorial Director at Storymix

I’ve worked in children’s editorial for 15 years at Puffin, Working Partners and OUP. Last year I founded Storymix – which is a book incubator (also known as a packager). I work with up and coming writers or illustrators of colour. Together we create great book propositions that I edit and sell to publishers. CoreContinue reading “Jasmine Richards – Editorial Director at Storymix”

Joelle Owusu – Commissioning Editor at Coronet

I’m Joelle, a Commissioning Editor for Coronet (Hodder & Stoughton), mainly publishing nonfiction, with a focus on popular science, memoir, lifestyle and pop culture.After completing a BSc in Petroleum Geology, I left to pursue my dream career in Publishing. My career started as an Editorial/Publicity Intern and then a Commissioning Editor at Unbound. There, IContinue reading “Joelle Owusu – Commissioning Editor at Coronet”

Ruby Fatimilehin – Editorial Assistant at Hamish Hamilton, PRH

Ruby Fatimilehin is the Editorial Assistant at Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Random House UK. In 2021, Ruby completed the Penguin Random House UK Summer Internship in the Puffin Picture Books Editorial team. She then worked as a temporary Editorial Assistant at Vintage Classics and Catalogue and then as General Editorial Assistant at Vintage before securing herContinue reading “Ruby Fatimilehin – Editorial Assistant at Hamish Hamilton, PRH”

Annie Gnoan – Editorial Assistant at Puffin, PRH

Annie joined Puffin Picture Books at Penguin Random House as an editorial assistant in 2020. As the main point of contact for the wider editorial team, she is extremely fortunate to assist and engage with the entire breadth of the list. From helping out on the immersive world of Beatrix Potter and Peter Rabbit toContinue reading “Annie Gnoan – Editorial Assistant at Puffin, PRH”

Feyi Oyesanya – Editorial Assistant at Headline

I have been an editorial assistant at Headline Non-fiction, since February 2021. I support the Publishing Director and two commissioning editors on a range of editorial tasks. I would like to commission celebrity memoirs, books within the pop culture space and joyful stories from under-represented voices. I have a BA in Architecture, at the UniversityContinue reading “Feyi Oyesanya – Editorial Assistant at Headline”

India Chambers – Assistant Editor at Puffin, PRH

After receiving an MA in Black British Writing and working as a bookseller at Round Table Books, India Chambers began her publishing career as an Assistant Editor at Penguin Random House, Puffin. India is particularly interested in harnessing and amplifying voices that have historically been excluded.

Rhoda Ola-Said – Editorial Assistant at SAGE Publishing

Rhoda Ola-Said is an editorial assistant at academic publishing house, SAGE Publishing. She has worked there for three years, starting off in Marketing and moving swiftly into the world of editing Social Science textbooks. She is also an avid book reviewer on Instagram with the handle @booksinote and guest writes book reviews for the BadContinue reading “Rhoda Ola-Said – Editorial Assistant at SAGE Publishing”

Mia Oakley – Editorial Assistant & PA at Ebury

Mia Oakley is an editorial assistant and PA at Ebury Partnerships (Penguin Random House UK), where she works with brands and authors to publish a wide range of illustrated and narrative non-fiction. She is also the Co-Chair of Colour[Full], PRH’s employee network for people of Colour. Before joining Ebury in December 2020, Mia worked asContinue reading “Mia Oakley – Editorial Assistant & PA at Ebury”

Aje Roberts – Assistant Editor at Quercus Books

Ajebowale Roberts is an assistant editor at Quercus Books, a publishing division of Hachette UK. Aje is part of the Quercus Fiction team and works on both commercial fiction and SFF at Jo Fletcher Books. She joined Quercus in January 2021. Aje was part of the Onyx Magazine Team ’20-’21 as Deputy Editor of Editorial. DuringContinue reading “Aje Roberts – Assistant Editor at Quercus Books”

Ashley Thorpe – Senior Editor at STORYMIX

I’m Senior Editor at STORYMIX: the inclusive fiction studio. My role includes developing original story ideas and finding and mentoring burgeoning writing talent to bring those ideas to life. STORYMIX then pitches these concepts to publishers for acquisition. As well as working in trade, I’ve also worked across academic and educational publishing over a 15-yearContinue reading “Ashley Thorpe – Senior Editor at STORYMIX”

K Bailey Obazee – Editorial Trainee at Ebury

K Bailey Obazee is Founder and Director of PRIM, a platform for storytelling which also produces OKHA, a monthly queer + Black book club. She is also a curator, consultant and researcher. K’s focus is storytelling, and in particular ensuring access to storytelling by people of Black ancestry is available and readily accessible. She has soContinue reading “K Bailey Obazee – Editorial Trainee at Ebury”

Tallulah Lyons – Assistant Editor at #Merky Books

Tallulah Lyons is an Assistant Editor at #Merky Books, Penguin Random House UK, where she works across fiction and non-fiction with authors including Jade LB, Ramla Ali and Calum Jacobs. Before joining #Merky Books, Tallulah was an Editorial Assistant at the PRH Audio team, casting audiobooks such as Emma Dabiri’s Don’t Touch My Hair, MrsContinue reading “Tallulah Lyons – Assistant Editor at #Merky Books”

Hannah Chukwu – Assistant Editor at Hamish Hamilton

Hannah Chukwu is an award-winning Assistant Editor at Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Random House UK, where she works on literary fiction and non-fiction, working with authors such as Bernardine Evaristo, Zadie Smith and Arundhati Roy. She is an editor for Five Dials magazine, and the series editor for Black Britain: Writing Back, and is looking toContinue reading “Hannah Chukwu – Assistant Editor at Hamish Hamilton”

Calah Singleton – Editorial Assistant at Profile Books

Calah Singleton is an Editorial Assistant at Profile Books, working in nonfiction across Profile and Souvenir Press, and fiction with Serpent’s Tail. Originally from Atlanta, Georgia, she graduated from Yale University in 2012 and came to London for her MSc at the LSE. She is the co-founder of Mendü, a startup focused on mental wellbeingContinue reading “Calah Singleton – Editorial Assistant at Profile Books”

Donna Greaves – Agent’s Assistant at Jo Unwin Literary Agency

Donna Greaves has been an agency assistant at Jo Unwin Literary Agency since 2017. She trained and worked as a speech and language therapist for six years, before changing careers aged thirty. She is working towards acquiring her own list of clients across fiction and non-fiction and is interested in the stories of what makesContinue reading “Donna Greaves – Agent’s Assistant at Jo Unwin Literary Agency”