Penguin Canada hires new commercial fiction editor

Penguin Canada has just announced the hiring of the person who will be my Canadian editor -- and will head up the commercial-fiction publishing list for the company. (I copied the job listing here back in January.)

Laura Shin, formerly a Senior Editor at Harlequin -- where she worked on crime, fantasy, and women’s fiction -- will be the Canadian editor for my new WWW trilogy, as well as other science fiction, fantasy, crime, thriller, horror, and women’s commercial fiction titles.

Penguin Canada publisher David Davidar and Executive Editor Nicole Winstanley spent a lot of time looking for just the right person, and I'm very much looking forward to working with Laura.

For those who have paid accounts, there's a long article about Laura being hired at Quill & Quire; the opening, which nonsubscribers can read for free, begins:

Over the past few years, Penguin Canada has been making efforts to bolster its genre output, signing sci-fi author Robert Sawyer, thriller writer Michael Slade, and several others. Now they’ve taken the next logical step -- hiring a full-time commercial fiction editor.

Laura was praised by her Harlequin author Kathleen O'Brien of Florida in an online interview:

My own editor, Laura Shin, is the kind of person you'd like to be stranded on a deserted island with. She's smart and funny and capable and literate and great fun to talk to! I think that kind of editor creates the best environment for creativity.

I'm very excited about Laura's appointment, and look forward to working with her. (Guy Gavriel Kay is going to work with Nicole Winstanely, who used to be his literary agent.) Now, as all good penguins do, let's waddle boldly into the future!

The Robert J. Sawyer Web Site