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Laurie Johnson has been appointed senior commissioning editor at Severn House, an imprint of Canongate Books. She will move to the press from Harlequin. Lucy Page, formerly senior accounts manager at Scholastic, has been appointed sales and operations manager, while Lianne Slavin will move from Manchester University Press to take up the job of managing editor.
The three new staff members join Severn House as sales and operations director Michelle Duff is retiring after over 25 years at Severn House, where she has held multiple roles and took the lead on sales after the press was acquired by Canongate Books in 2017. “We’d like to congratulate Shell on her well-earned retirement and wish her all the best," said publisher Joanne Grant. She has been an integral part of the Severn House team for 25 years — half of Severn House’s existence! — and her deep knowledge of our books and her hard work have helped steer us through years of transformation and evolution."
Severn House, which began as an independent publisher re-releasing out-of-print titles to the US and UK library markets, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It now publishes new works from a list of genre fiction authors such as Simon Brett and Cynthia Harrod-Eagles, as well as rising stars like Adam Oyebanji and Erica Wright.
Jamie Byng, chief executive officer of Canongate, added: “Acquiring Severn House seven years ago and bringing this distinctive and rich list into the Canongate fold was one of the smartest decisions we have ever made. Witnessing it turn 50 this year is a testament to all the brilliant writers who have helped build the list into such a force in the library market, as well to all the staff at Severn House who make the whole list sing — not least Michelle Duff. I wish Shell all the very best in her retirement and thank her for her years of hard work. I am excited to welcome the new staff to the team.”