NEW YORK
,
May 5, 2022
(press release)
–
Simon & Schuster announced today that Olivia Taylor Smith will join the company’s adult trade publishing imprint as Senior Editor, starting July 5th. Olivia Taylor Smith comes to Simon & Schuster from the Unnamed Press which she co-founded with Chris Heiser in Los Angeles in 2014. As Executive Editor, Smith acquired titles such as A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers, Exalted by Anna Dorn, Homesick by Jennifer Croft, Like a Bird by Fariha Roisin, as well as books by Naheed Phiroze Patel, DeMisty Bellinger, Leslie Pietrzyk, Alex Espinoza, Pablo Medina, and many others. Unnamed Press has garnered a reputation as one of the most innovative and well-respected small presses in the nation. Tim O’Connell, Vice President, Editorial Director, Fiction, at Simon & Schuster, says: “Olivia has championed a remarkably broad and daring list of incredible authors, and I’m honored to have her experience and vision in the room as we continue to grow the Simon & Schuster fiction program. I remember very clearly when Olivia told me about the first novel she was going to publish. It was in Los Angeles, and she had just started Unnamed Press. From that moment on her remarkable eye for talent, brilliant publishing mind, and editorial acumen have been on full display.” A Frankfurt Fellow in 2018, Smith is dedicated to discovering and nurturing debut talent from the United States and around the world, and to supporting her authors’ vision on the page. Smith is also a certified Silver-Pin Sommelier with the North American Sommelier Association, the translator from the French of Panthers in the Hole, a graphic biography of the Angola 3, and a citizen of both the United States and Germany. “I have spent eight wild and wonderful years in the world of independent publishing, and I am immensely proud of what Chris and I have built at Unnamed Press, of the brilliant authors I have had the opportunity to work with, and of the many ways Unnamed will continue to grow,” Smith says. “The drive that I have always had to forge something new in the literary landscape, to create a space for immersive and compelling storytelling, and to uplift new voices is one that I see reflected in Tim O’Connell and Dana Canedy’s inspiring vision for the future of Simon & Schuster. Tim is an editor with exceptional taste whom I have long admired. I am delighted to join his team, and to work with all of the fantastic people that make Simon & Schuster thrive.” Dana Canedy, Senior Vice President and Publisher of Simon & Schuster, adds: “Olivia has edited and published a remarkable range of impressive books and created and ran her own successful imprint. I recognized immediately in her a fortitude and entrepreneurship that, in addition to her love of books, will make her a wonderful addition to the S&S team. We are fortunate that she is bringing her spirit of innovation and drive to this role.” Originally from Los Angeles, Smith currently divides her time between Frankfurt, New York City, and Los Angeles. Simon & Schuster, a Paramount Company, is a global leader in general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for readers of all ages, and in all printed, digital and audio formats. Its distinguished roster of authors includes many of the world’s most popular and widely recognized writers, and winners of the most prestigious literary honors and awards. It is home to numerous well-known imprints and divisions such as Simon & Schuster, Scribner, Atria Books, Gallery Books, Adams Media, Avid Reader Press, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing and Simon & Schuster Audio and international companies in Australia, Canada, India and the United Kingdom, and proudly brings the works of its authors to readers in more than 200 countries and territories. For more information visit our website at www.simonandschuster.com
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