Editors Amy Mae Baxter and Elisha Lundin promoted at Avon

Amy Mae Baxter has been appointed senior commissioning editor at Avon, as Elisha Lundin has been made commissioning editor.

The promotions have taken place with immediate effect and the editors will continue acquiring commercial fiction across all genres, including women’s fiction, crime, thrillers and "uplit". 

Helen Huthwaite, publisher, said: "These are two thoroughly well-deserved promotions for two bright stars of the industry. Elisha has always been a huge talent, and it has been both a joy and a privilege to see her flourish over the years at Avon, becoming the astute and gifted editor she is today. With an ever-growing list of exciting books under her belt, she has proven herself to be the best possible champion for her authors, publishing best-in-class commercial fiction that readers can’t put down."

Huthwaite continued: "Amy proved herself to be invaluable from the moment she joined us, bringing to Avon her killer instinct for finding the hottest new book."

Baxter joined Avon in July 2023 and is also the founder of Bad Form, a magazine by and about writers of colour.

At Avon, she’s recently published Offtrack by Esha Patel and Love at First Knight by Megan Clawson. She’s been nominated for numerous awards for her work, including the Allbright Awards and LBF Trailblazer Awards in 2023, and previously named a Big Issue Changemaker of 2022, and a Bookseller Rising Star of 2021. She has also worked at Dialogue Books (Hachette), with authors such as Ashani Lewis, Sara Desai and Pyae Moe Thet War.

Baxter said: "I’m proud to be promoted at Avon. I’ve enjoyed my time so far at the company immensely, and it’s been so rewarding to have been able to acquire and publish two titles before my first year here is out. I look forward to continuing to work with the amazing team, and the brilliant Avon authors."

Meanwhile, Lundin joined Avon in January 2021 as an editorial assistant and has since worked her way up, publishing books by authors like Alice Hunter, Eve Kellman and Kate Storey. She has managed the backlist publishing of Kitty Neale and Trisha Ashley as well as assisting on big brand authors like C L Taylor, Helen Fields and Sue Moorcroft.

Lundin said: "Avon stands out in commercial publishing, and I’m excited to discover and support even more new voices as I take this next step. Most importantly, my authors are at the heart of everything I do, and I look forward to championing their work and celebrating more of their successes."