Jean Feiwel, Publisher
Jean Feiwel’s career was forged first at Avon Books and then Scholastic as the architect for their Trade Publishing program from 1983-2005. She is best known for her invention of Ann M. Martins Baby-Sitter’s Club and the publishing of Goosebumps, Animorphs, Dear America and many other bestselling series. In February 2006, she joined Macmillan as Senior Vice President and Pub
lisher, where she founded her own imprint, Feiwel and Friends. Her first book at Feiwel and Friends was Nancy Tillman’s On the Night You Were Born, which now has over 2.5 million copies in print. Other notable authors on her list are Anne Aguirre, S.A. Bodeen, Andy Griffiths, Karen Hesse, Ann M. Martin, James Preller and Cat Valente. Her most recent bestsellers include: Staying Strong: 365 Days A Year by Demi Lovato, My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish by Mo O’Hara, and The Lunar Chronicles (Cinder, Scarlet and Cress) by Melissa Meyer. In May 2007, she launched Square Fish (Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group’s trade paperback imprint) known for its innovative repackaging of both current bestsellers such as Kerstin Gier’s Ruby Red trilogy and Nick Bruel's Bad Kitty and classic backlist titles like Madeline L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time and Natalie Babbitt’s Tuck Everlasting. Square Fish has published over 1,000 titles to date. In addition to Feiwel and Friends and Square Fish, she was also named Publishing Director of Henry Holt BYR in 2009. And on September 30, 2013, she officially launched Swoon Reads, a groundbreaking new crowdsourced imprint dedicated to finding and publishing original YA Romance. Jean lives in Westchester County, New York. Liz Szabla, Editor-in-Chief
I started my career in bookstores and publishing in the days of typewriters (do the math). Here at F&F I work on everything from picture books through teen fiction; authors and artists I work with include Ann M. Martin, Marissa Meyer, Cat Valente, Dan Yaccarino, James Preller, and Matt Cordell. When I’m not working, I’m spending time with my husband and our son, friends and neighbors, and plugging (guility, sort of) into reality TV while on the bike at the gym. Rich Deas, Senior Creative Director
As a kid, I used to watch my father ink-up the entire area surrounding the daily New York Times crossword puzzle with character sketches and images of childhood heroes. So, in appreciation, I began doodling on any surface I could find: walls, books, desks, aluminum siding, bricks, newspapers and eventually pads of paper. I continued to experiment with art and design through college and eventually landed a job at Scholastic working as an Art Director in the Advertising and Promo Dept. From there, I moved into designing and art directing children's books. I still get to doodle and have illustrated two picture books and many book covers. I'm very fortunate to work and create with such a great team here at Feiwel and Friends! Thank you Jean, Liz, Liz, Nicole and gang! Dave Barrett, Managing Editor
Coming from a long line of snake oil salesmen [and the occasional writer], I hail from New Jersey, where I still live with my wife. I’m a veteran of the publishing industry who has worked in 5 other pub houses prior to F&F ["The first manuscripts I ever read were submitted on prison stationery. I'm not even kidding here."], when not at my desk, I can be found screaming at sporting events on his television, or otherwise galloping through Central Park, trying to outdistance people vastly younger and infinitely more athletic than me. Holly West, Associate Editor to the Publisher
I grew up on a series of farms in southern Kentucky as "that girl who reads a lot" and people were regularly astonished by the number of books I could fit into my room. (Yes, I really have read them all!) During college, I was able to study abroad in London twice, and I fell completely in love with London, city life, and the idea of living in a place where you didn’t have to drive for forty-five minutes to get to a bookstore. As soon as I possibly could, I moved to New York to work with books and you can’t make me go back! I spent the first couple of years working in the publicity department of St. Martin’s Press, but after a while I decided that children’s books would be much more fun. When not busy working, I tend to hang out with my knitting circle, play video games, explore the city, and attempt to save enough money for Broadway and traveling. But my favorite activity is still curling up in my apartment with my cat while reading fantasy, romance, and other things that end with happily-ever-after. Nicole Moulaison, Production Manager
I started my career in Publishing at a small magazine, and then worked on the printing side of the biz before I found my home at Macmillan; first at St. Martin's Press and ultimately here at Macmillan Children's where I now work on Feiwel & Friends and Square Fish titles. No matter how many books I've worked on (far, far too many to count) it is always exciting to open the box of advances, and hold the product of what so many people have worked so hard on for so many months (years, in many cases)! When I am not at work, I spend time with my husband and toddler, reading books. Lauren Burniac, Editor
Books. Dogs. Coffee. Give me one of these three things and I am a happy person. Give me all three at once and I will love you forever. No really, forever. This is one of the many reasons why I love my job. Not only am I surrounded by books and coffee all day, but I sometimes get to sneak in one of my two dogs. (But shhh don’t tell. That is top secret information.) Here at MCPG I have the pleasure of working on all of our imprints, all of our books, and with all of our authors to cultivate our fabulous paperback list, Square Fish. I feel lucky every day. Anna Roberto, Assistant Editor
I inherited my love of reading from my mom who would sit with me and read American Girl Doll books every night. But for a while, when I was a teenager, I was convinced that I was going to be a coroner. I came to my senses quickly and realized that publishing was a much better fit, and it did not, in fact, smell of formaldehyde. After publishing internships here and there, I settled in at Feiwel and Friends and have never been happier. More often than not, I can be found either talking or reading. Perhaps even talking about what I’m reading. The best books, I believe, are the ones that make you laugh until you cry…or just cry. Really, really hard. Christine Barcellona, Administrative Assistant to the Publisher
I've been an avid book consumer since before I could read (my mom used to spend whole afternoons reading me Dr. Seuss books). As a kid in suburban Texas, I fell in love with how a good story could transport me from mundane daily life to new worlds. Nowadays, I read anything and everything, but children’s books hold a special place in my heart (after all, they’re what I was reading when I fell in love with books). My book habit nowadays sometimes creates space problems in my NYC apartment, and the “to-read” stack of books in my bedroom will be as tall as I am soon (I’m short, but still). I interned at Feiwel & Friends and Square Fish back in my college days, and recently returned to my home away from home in the Flatiron Building. I couldn’t be happier to be surrounded by MCPG’s amazing books (and team) again!
