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Copestick to lead Short Books as founders Carpenter and Nicolson depart
Octopus Publishing Group has appointed Kyle Books publisher Joanna Copestick to take over the running of Short Books as founders Aurea Carpenter and Rebecca Nicolson depart.
Copestick will take the reins on 1st July 2022, with Carpenter and Nicolson set to “embark on a new independent venture”, details of which have not been revealed.
The duo founded Short Books in 2000 before selling it to Octopus in 2019 for an undisclosed fee, after which they stayed on as publishers.
They said: “When we set out on this journey 22 years ago, we could never have predicted what an amazing adventure lay ahead. Any success we’ve had is testimony to the talent and dedication of our brilliant team at Short Books, as well as all the wonderful authors we have published over the years.
“We are glad to be leaving the company in the excellent hands of Joanna Copestick. We would like to thank [Octopus m.d.] Anna Bond, and also express our gratitude to David Shelley for all his support in the past three years. We are looking forward to working closely with Hachette again soon.”
Copestick, who has been at Octopus since 2018, when she was brought in to integrate the Kyle list into the group, will combine managing Short Books with running Kyle.
Since joining the company she has streamlined and repositioned the list, according to Octopus, developing a Sunday Times bestselling series of Caldesi diabetes cookbooks along with some key brand publishing, most notably Wagamama.
“I’ve long been an admirer of the nimble publishing at Short Books led by Rebecca and Aurea, so I’m delighted to be taking on their inspiring non-fiction list and to be continuing their amazing work with stellar authors such as Dr Michael Mosley and Dr Clare Bailey and their nutrition-based Fast 800 titles,” she said.
Bond added: “Rebecca and Aurea have created a wonderful, innovative company in Short Books, and I have really enjoyed working with them since I joined Octopus. I wish them every success in their new venture and hope to work with them again in the future.
“I am delighted to promote Jo Copestick to take over as publisher for Short Books, alongside Kyle. Under Jo’s leadership, Kyle had more Sunday Times bestsellers in 2021 than ever before and I know that there will be many more to come from both Kyle and Short Books in the future.”
