People & Publishing Roundup, July 2026

MILESTONES

ELEANNA CASTROIANNI is now represented by Arley Sorg of kt literary.

ERIN LATIMER, CORAL ALE­JANDRA MOORE, and J.C. SNOW are now represented by JABberwocky Literary Agency.

ROBERT J. SAWYER will be writer-in-residence at Calgary’s Alexandria Writers’ Centre So­ciety from September 1 to No­vember 30.

AWARDS

“Whatever Kills the Pain” by C.W. BLACKWELL won Best Long Story, “Blind Pig” by MI­CHAEL BRACKEN won Best Short Story, and “The Temporary Murder of Thomas Monroe” by TIA TASHIRO won Best Novelette in the 2026 Derringer Awards.

Trail of Shadows by MIKE AL­LEN won the Webster Award at RavenCon 2026, held April 24-26.

BOOKS SOLD

ADA PALMER’s And Loki in His Prison and And Odin on His Tree, in “a Norse duology,” went to Mal Frazier and Pat­rick Nielsen Hayden at Tor via Cameron McClure of Donald Maass Literary Agency. Jennifer Gunnels will edit. UK rights sold to Nicolas Cheetham at Head of Zeus via Harry Illingworth of DHH Literary on behalf of Cam­eron McClure.

JON COURTENAY GRIM­WOOD sold Thrones and Pow­ers and an untitled historical fantasy novel to Simon Taylor at Transworld in a pre-empt via John Jarrold of John Jarrold Liter­ary Agency.

JON GRACEY’s Midnight in Ravenswood, OLIVER K. LANGMEAD’s Beneath the Martyr’s Eye, and RILEY SIL­VERMAN’s Because the Night, in the world of social deduction game Blood on the Clocktower, sold to Lee Harris at Tor. Carl Engle-Laird will edit.

STEPHEN ARYAN sold Silver Tongued Devils and another title to Marcus Gipps at The Broken Binding Press via Juliet Mush­ens of Mushens Entertainment (world English).

CAITLIN ROZAKIS sold Dreadful sequel Half-Baked to George Sandison at Titan Books via Sarah Fisk of The Tobias Liter­ary Agency.

CASEY SCIESZKA sold Fu­ture You, “about a young woman working at a Catskills hotel who finds herself trapped in a four-month ‘time scramble,’” to Sarah Stein at Harper via Ali Lake of O’Connor Literary Agency.

TRAVIS J.I. CORCORAN’s Red State Earth, a prequel to Red State Mars, and another book went to Tony Daniel at Ark Press.

Kelley Armstrong (2024)

DUSTIN PLANTHOLT sold Homebound Apocalypse and two more books to Rhett Bruno at Aethon & Vault. Damian Was­sel will edit.

KELLEY ARMSTRONG’s Im­mortal Lies, in which a young woman teams up with a vampire hunter to save a college from a coven of vampires, and another book went to Elizabeth Agy­emang at 47North via Lucienne Diver of The Knight Agency.

ZACK PETROC and JUSTIN SLOAN’s “litRPG fantasy” Castle Crawl and another title sold to Elizabeth Agyemang at 47North via Connor Smith of Hesperides Literary.

JC ROSS sold an untitled “litRPG fantasy” and another book to Gwyn Jordan at Rogue­heart Press. Chelsea Karol will edit.

GENEVA LEE sold Harbinger and four more books to Liz Pel­letier at Red Tower for seven figures via Louise Fury of The Fury Agency. UK rights sold to Rebecca Hilsdon at Michael Joseph.

JULIE HALL sold “Bridgerton-inspired historical romantasy” The Secrets of Everlight and another title to Elizabeth Vinson at Ace via Flavia Viotti of Book­case Literary Agency.

JULIETTE CROSS’s “goth­ic standalone paranormal ro­mances” The Ayre Witch, Of Frost and Fyre, and Vanity and Vampires went to Erika Tsang at Bramble for seven figures via Rachel Brooks of BookEnds.

JESSICA CAGE’s I Inherited a Gargoyle, “following a reluctant succubus,” and two more books sold to Jason Pinter at Simon Maverick via Patrice Caldwell of The Caldwell Agency.

SCARLETT ASH’s The De­mon’s Kiss went to Amy Baxter at Avon UK via Haley Warrington of Booker Albert Agency.

KATE RHODES and JEN­NIFER XU, writing as KAIJU, sold Novae, with a romance between a necromancer and an astronomer, and two more titles to Rebecca Taylor at Inklore at auction via Ammi-Joan Paquette of Aevitas Creative Management. Sara Miller will edit.

COLETTE RHODES sold Harpy at High Tide, first in the Monsters at Sea series, and two more books to Elizabeth May at Kensington via Jill Marr of Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency.

ASH LUKENS’s “polyamorous romantic fantasy” Signed in Shadows went to Katie McGuire at Alcove Press via Lauren Bieker of FinePrint Literary Manage­ment and Mara Hollander of Azantian Literary Agency.

Ronald Malfi (2025)

KIERSTEN WHITE’s Drown: A Love Story, “in which a woman possessed since childhood uses her bond with the unknowable entity inside her to undo other dormant possessions, until the attacks begin zeroing in on her home,” sold to Tricia Narwani at Del Rey via Michelle Wolfson of Wolfson Literary Agency.

RONALD MALFI’s Revenant, “in which a detective investigat­ing the disappearance of a local child is forced to confront the impossible return of his younger brother,” went to Ed Schlesinger at Gallery via Cameron Mc­Clure of Donald Maass Literary Agency.

CHRIS PANATIER sold Kill Me With Fire, in which a curse transforms two women into “fe­ral witches,” to Alan Lastufka at Shortwave via Sara Megibow of Megibow Literary Agency.

BEAR LEE sold “cosmic giallo novel” Morphia Slow to David-Jack Fletcher at Slashic Horror Press.

CHLOE SPENCER’s Make a House a Home, following a Midwestern tradwife, went to David-Jack Fletcher at Slashic Horror Press.

MARIAH STILLBROOK sold Betsy, “about a possessed man­nequin wreaking havoc on a group of teens in the ‘90s,” to David-Jack Fletcher at Slashic Horror Press.

ANTOINETTE VAN SLUYT­MAN’s Red Rhen, a “matriar­chal cosmic-fantasy,” went to dave ring at Neon Hemlock via Julie Crisp of Julie Crisp Literary Agency.

SAMANTHA COHOE’s adult debut The Devoured, in which twins are haunted by their 20-years-prior kidnapping, went to Elana Gibson at Crooked Lane via Sarah Phair of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates.

STEPHANIE FELDMAN sold “feminist folk horror” In Summer She Turns Cruel to Christine Neulieb at Lanternfish Press via Stacia Decker of Dunow, Carlson & Lerner.

KATE WESTON’s Death Looks Good on You, “pitched as body horror meets the beauty industry,” went to Aleena Hasan at Daphne Press via Chloe Sea­ger of Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency.

AMY GIACALONE’s “modern-day ghost story” This May Come Back to Haunt Me sold to Megan Stielstra at TriQuarterly Books.

Shameez Patel (2024)

GABRIELLA GYLLENHOFF sold My Demon Exchange Stu­dent to Ashlyn Inman at Keylight.

SHAMEEZ PATEL sold Fang-Girling and another book to Ashley Imane Fields at Forever via Cathie Hedrick-Armstrong of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.

EILIS O’NEAL’s “sci-fi dysto­pian duology” Redemption Ark and Renegade Stars, set on a reality TV show in outer space, went to Mary Kate Castellani at Bloomsbury Children’s at auction via Christabel McKinley of David Higham Associates. Meghan Maria McCullough will edit. UK rights went to Simon & Schuster UK at auction.

LIZ EDELBROCK sold Spec­tacle of Ruin, about a gods-cursed teen, to Wendy Loggia at Delacorte via Michelle Wolfson of Wolfson Literary Agency.

ELLE TESCH’s “YA adventure fantasy” The Gods We Buried went to Lydia Gregovic at Dela­corte via Pete Knapp & Stuti Telidevara of Park, Fine & Brower Literary Management.

MARC J GREGSON’s Bright Sky, first in the Below the Black fantasy trilogy, and two more titles sold to Jonah Heller at Peachtree Teen via Heather Cashman of Storm Literary Agency.

LAURA E. WEYMOUTH sold Willow Crowned, “in which an exiled king and a rebel serving girl clash on a remote island stronghold,” to Bess Braswell & Hana Tzou at Feiwel & Friends via Laura Crockett of TriadaUS Literary Agency.

JORDAN RIVET sold post-apocalyptic romance KA­THARSIS to Sara Goodman at Wednesday Books via Lanie Davis & Daisy Garrison of Alloy Entertainment on behalf of Jim McCarthy of Dystel, Goderich & Bourret.

AMANDA DEWITT and MA­RIA INGRANDE MORA sold “ac­ademic rivals-to-queerplatonic-besties fantasy-comedy” Royal Person Fiction to Ashley Hearn at Peachtree Teen via Cate Hart of Harvey Klinger for DeWitt, and Erica Bauman of Aevitas Creative Management for Mora.

CATHERINE CHENG’s de­but, literary horror Whitefish, “about a Michelin-starred chef who spirals into madness as he becomes increasingly entangled with a wealthy family, and the merman whose flesh he’s serv­ing them,” sold to Kate Lucas and Sophie Garcia-Cubas As­semat at Flatiron Books for six figures at auction via Maddy Belton of Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency. UK rights went to Delayna Spencer at Hodder & Stoughton at auction.

ASH HUANG sold debut speculative novel The Secret Lives of Immortals, about a love story between “a poet from the Imperial Chinese palace and the Roman gladiator who tricks her into eternal life,” and another title to Angelica Chong at Redhook and Jenni Hill at Orbit UK in a pre-empt via Hana El Niwairi of CookeMcDermid.

JESSICA PLUMMER’s debut Magestruck, “a queer fantasy rom-com,” and another book went to Leyla Erkan at Harlequin via Eric Smith of Neighborhood Literary. The Conman’s Guide to Dragon Slaying, pitched as “an adult How to Train Your Dragon meets Heated Rivalry,” sold to John Morgan at Grand Central at auction via Smith.

LIVVY JANE BAKER’s debut, “sapphic enemies-to-lovers cozy fantasy” Advanced Alchemy, sold to Elana Gibson at Alcove Press via Fabienne Schwizer of Ki Agency.

Filmmaker and screenwriter LINDSEY ANDERSON BEER’s debut novel Hollow, “a feminist retelling of ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’,” sold to Tara Singh Carl­son at Putnam in a pre-empt via Alyssa Reuben of WME. Beer will adapt and direct a film version through the Honey Trap produc­ing label with producers Sydney Sweeney and Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap.

MADELINE HAZE CURTIS sold debut A Light Mistaken for the Sun, pitched as a sapphic Interview with the Vampire, to Brittany Adames at Simon & Schuster at auction via Sasha Landauer of Writers House.

KATY LAIRD sold debut, horror Occult Entertainment, pitched as Squid Game meets Backrooms, and another title to Troix Jackson at Nightfire in a pre-empt via Kiana Nguyen of Donald Maass Literary Agency.

RORY FORREST sold “humor­ous sci-fi” Dave, the Space Pet to Summer Stewart at Unso­licited Press, by Stacey Kondla while at The Rights Factory (world English).

LILIA VARGAS COSTELLO sold debut Borderline, “for fans of Stranger Things and Rules for Vanishing,” to Ardyce Alspach at Union Square Kids via Stephen Barbara & Sidney Boker of Ink­well Management.

Cynthia Pelayo (2023)

CYNTHIA PELAYO sold Eve­rina, a novella reworking of Frankenstein “inspired by Mary Shelley’s experience as a griev­ing mother,” to Mika Kasuga at Union Square & Co via Lane Heymont of The Tobias Literary Agency.

EMAN ABDELHADI and M.E. O’BRIEN will edit anthology When We Win: Dispatches from Revolutionary Futures for Dao Tran at Haymarket.

BEATKA LAKE sold “sapphic western horror novella” Beneath the Veins to Mika Kasuga at Union Square & Co via Paul Lucas of Regal Hoffmann & As­sociates.

AMALIA STONE sold 6 Steps to Survival, a “sapphic, dual timeline space opera novella,” to Veronica Holmes at Scylla.

BOOKS RESOLD

M.H. FOSTER resold The Demon Overlord’s Retirement Plan, first in a previously self-published fantasy series, Love, Politics, and Other Acts of War, and Band of Others to Morgan Spehar at Grand Central via Seth Fishman of The Gernert Company (NA).

KATE ASHER resold Crown of Olympus, Blood of Olympus, Blade of Olympus, and another book to Christine Ebbs at Penguin Australia via Saffron Dodd of ASH Literary.

ERICK THIEMKE, writing as ALWAYSROLLSAONE, sold three books in the series A Soldier’s Life to Rhett Bruno at Aethon & Vault. Damian Wassel will edit.

PUBLISHING

CAILIN DUFFY has joined Orbit as assistant editor and NI­COLE PUAPATTANAKAJORN has joined as administrative assistant.

EDEN RAILSBACK has joined Tor Publishing Group as an associate editor. She was previously at HarperCollins.

SARAH BLUMENSTOCK has been promoted to executive edi­tor at Berkley.

Uncanny Magazine Manag­ing Editor MONTE LIN will also become nonfiction editor starting with Uncanny Magazine Issue 72.

At Harper Collins, MAY CHEN and TESSA WOODWARD have been promoted to VP, pub­lishers of Avon Group, which includes the imprints Harper Voyager, Avon, and Avon A. MORGAN PAGER has joined as senior director, marketing for Avon. RICH THOMAS has been promoted to SVP, group publisher and HEIDI RICHTER to VP, marketing and publicity at Harper Children’s.

MEDIA

REBECCA YARROS sold film rights to The Things We Leave Unfinished to Lionsgate. Yarros, Arash Amel of Amel Company, and Carly Kleinbart Elter and Alex Young of Hidden Pictures are executive produc­ers. Todd Lieberman will also produce, Thea Sharrock will direct, and Amel will adapt the script.

Film rights to SARAH BLUE’s The Marriage Hex and The Fang Arrangement went to Molly Cusick at ReelShort.

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