Our Team

Louise Burke, President and Publisher

Louise Burke is the President and Publisher of Gallery Books. In her position she has responsibility for a publishing unit that includes the hardcover and trade paperback lines of Gallery Books; Pocket Books, the mass market publishing arm of Simon & Schuster; and Threshold Editions, the company’s conservative publishing imprint; and MTV Books, Star Trek, and WWE lines. Ms. Burke joined the company as Executive Vice President and Publisher of Pocket Books in June 2001. Among the New York Times bestselling authors published under Ms. Burke’s direction are Glenn Beck, Lisa Genova, Kresley Cole, Nikki Sixx, and Fifty Cent. Publisher of Pocket Books, the paperback home for some of the world’s best known and loved authors (founded in 1939 as America’s first paperback publisher), Ms. Burke has supervised the successful New York Times bestselling paperback publication of authors including Mary Higgins Clark, Stephen King, Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, and Ann Rule.

Jennifer Bergstrom, Vice President and Publisher

Jennifer Bergstrom is the Vice President and Publisher of Gallery Books. Jen has worked at S&S for more than fourteen years. In 1998, she launched Simon Spotlight Entertainment (SSE) as Editorial Director. In 2009, Pocket Books and SSE combined to form Gallery Books, a new imprint showcasing both fiction and nonfiction, across a variety of genres. Jen was named Vice President, Editor-in-Chief of Gallery Books and in her position she is responsible for the editorial content, growth, and overall development of her division’s varied lists. Some of Gallery Books’ successes under Jen’s direction include the New York Times bestselling authors Chelsea Handler, Tori Spelling, Tim Gunn, Kendra Wilkinson, Mackenzie Phillips, Melissa Gilbert, Snooki, Tucker Max, Jose Canseco, and Lewis Black. Jen has been hailed as the “reigning publisher” of celebrity memoirs by The Daily Beast. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Barnard College at Columbia University.

Karen Kostolnyik, Executive Editor

Interests: Commercial fiction, narrative nonfiction, memoir

Authors: New York Times bestselling YA author Lisi Harrison and her debut adult novel The Dirty Book Club, Mia March’s The Meryl Streep Movie Club, Harriet Evans, Hester Browne; also editor of the #1 New York Times bestselling Dewey by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter; New York Times bestselling authors Kate White and Karen Rose; Serena Williams’s memoir On The Line

Bio: Karen Kosztolnyik joined Gallery Books in September 2011 as an Executive Editor. She was previously at Grand Central Publishing for ten years. A native Texan and Smith College graduate, Karen lives in Manhattan with her husband and son.

Lauren McKenna, Executive Editor and Editorial Director of Pocket Star

Interests: Commercial women’s fiction, pop culture, and historical and contemporary romance

Authors: New York Times bestselling paranormal romance authors Kresley Cole and Gena Showalter, romantic suspense author Karen Robards, pop culture icons Snooki, Bethany Hamilton, Nikki Sixx, and Jill Smokler, the beloved “Scary Mommy” blogger. Women’s fiction authors Mary Alice Monroe and Pamela Redmond Satran, and her romance list includes such New York Times bestsellers as Teresa Medeiros and Jude Deveraux, as well as rising stars like Jennifer Echols and Meredith Duran.

Bio: Lauren McKenna is an Executive Editor in the Gallery imprint and Editorial Director of Pocket Star, Pocket's digital-first eBook imprint.

Mitchell Ivers, Vice President and Senior Editor

Interests: Commercial fiction, nonfiction, memoirs, popular history, true-crime, fiction, political books

Authors: Clint Hill, Gerald Blaine, Christopher Anderson, Ann Rule, Christopher Rice, Sean Hepburn Ferrer, Lorna Luft

Bio: Mitchell Ivers was named Vice President and Senior Editor in 2008. Mitchell joined Simon & Schuster in 1998 and has edited many bestselling books over the past fifteen years for both Gallery and Threshold Editions.

Tricia Boczkowski, Editor-at-Large

Interests: Memoir, women’s fiction, historical fiction, commercial fiction, illustrated

Authors: Chelsea Handler, Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea; Alma Katsu, The Taker Trilogy; Monica Holloway, Cowboy and Wills and Driving with Dead People;Tim Gunn’s Fashion Bible, Stanley Tucci, The Tucci Cookbook

Bio: Tricia Boczkowski is now Editor-at-Large, acquiring a select list of twelve books per year, with a focus on outstanding storytelling.

Jeremie Ruby-Strauss, Senior Editor

Interests: Blockbuster nonfiction in celebrity, pop culture, diet/fitness, internet and television tie-ins

Authors: Tucker Max, Ace Frehley, Marilu Henner, La Toya Jackson, Jesse James

Bio: Since 1995, he has specialized in celebrity authors, from Marilyn Manson to Motley Crue to Ace Frehley, from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to Tucker Max to Marilu Henner.

Kathy Sagan, Senior Editor

Interests: Women’s fiction, book club fiction, literary-commercial fiction, historical fiction, suspense/thrillers, memoirs, narrative nonfiction, politics

Authors: New York Times bestselling authors Lisa Genova and Mary Higgins Clark, Sarah Bird, Joseph Monninger, Thomas Steinbeck, Jennifer Hillier, Sherry Jones, Kate Emerson, Dana Gynther

Bio: Kathy joined Simon & Schuster/Pocket/Gallery as a Senior Editor in 2007 with more than thirty years in book, magazine, and digital publishing. Her tastes are broad and eclectic. She is always looking for writers with a fresh voice and superior storytelling. Well-traveled, she holds an MA in English and an ABD in Medieval Lit.

Micki Nuding, Senior Editor

Interests: Commercial women’s fiction, romance, historical fiction, memoir, cozy mysteries, topical health (non-diet)

Authors: Fiction: Sabrina Jeffries, Karen Hawkins, Cindy Gerard, paperback editor for Jan Burke. Nonfiction: Dr. Spock, Dr. Barbara Roberts.

Bio: Micki Nuding is a Senior Editor at Pocket Books/Gallery, where she acquires commercial fiction and nonfiction, specializing in women’s fiction.

Abby Zidle, Senior Editor

Interests: Women’s fiction, romance, suspense/thrillers, historical fiction, narrative nonfiction, pop culture

Authors: Laura Griffin, Candace Camp, V.C. Andrews, The Brown Family, David Tutera, Catherine Crier

Bio: Abby worked at Bantam Dell and Harlequin before coming to Gallery; when she’s not reading, she’s horseback riding or watching reality TV.

Ed Schlesinger, Senior Editor

Interests: Dark fiction, horror, thrillers, media tie-ins

Authors: S.G. Browne, J.L. Bourne, Karen Traviss, Adam Mitzner, Chris Evans, Stephen Romano, Blizzard Entertainment, Stephen King, Joe Hill, Neil Gaiman, Chuck Palahniuk, Richard Matheson

Adam Wilson, Editor

Interests: Urban fantasy, paranormal suspense, cross-genre fiction, thrillers, popular nonfiction

Authors: Jennifer Estep, Rob Thurman, John Hornor Jacobs, Heather Graham, Jeff Somers, Michael R. Underwood, Mac Lethal, Cade Courtley

Bio: Adam joined Gallery in 2011, having previously worked at MIRA and Harlequin Teen. Raised in Colorado, he defected to Seattle, but somehow ended up in New York, where he reads for a living and places foremost importance on authorial voice.

Emilia Pisani, Assistant Editor

Areas of interest: Quality women’s fiction, historical fiction, voice-driven and commercial memoir, pop culture.

Authors include: Gwendolen Gross, Ann Hite, Benjamin Constable, Deborah Meyler, Rowan Coleman, and Phaedra Parks

Bio: Emilia attended the University of Virginia and worked as an English teacher in France before joining S&S in 2008. When she’s not reading, she’s usually riding horses.

Julia Fincher, Editorial Assistant

Julia Fincher, a graduate of New York University and the Columbia Publishing Course, joined Gallery/Pocket in 2010 after previous internships at Scribner and the Susan Golomb Literary Agency. She supports Ed Schlesinger and Adam Wilson on titles that run the gamut in genre from urban fantasy and thriller to pop culture and media tie-in.

Parisa Zolfaghari, Editorial Assistant

Parisa Zolfaghari realized her passion for books early on. After obtaining a degree in Community Health Education and a Master’s of Publishing from Portland State University, she joined Gallery/Pocket in 2011 to assist Micki Nuding and Abby Zidle in a wide array of fiction and nonfiction, including romance, thrillers, memoirs, and health.

Natasha Simons, Editorial Assistant

Natasha Simons, editorial assistant to Mitchell Ivers and Kathy Sagan, joined the imprint in 2011. She works on a myriad of titles ranging from politics and current events to commercial fiction, by authors such as Dick Cheney, Mark Levin, and Mary Higgins Clark. She graduated summa cum laude with degrees in English and Film from George Washington University.

Alexandra Lewis, Editorial Assistant

Alexandra Lewis joined Gallery Books in 2011 and has since worked with a range of fiction and nonfiction authors, from Alma Katsu to Tim Gunn. Originally from New Hampshire, she previously worked at Cider Mill Press, Workman Publishing, and Pocket Jeunesse. She has a degree in English Literature and French Studies from Smith College.

Heather Hunt, Editorial Assistant

Heather Hunt joined Gallery Books in 2011 after attending NYU’s Summer Publishing Institute and interning at Sourcebooks, Inc. and Writers House. Heather was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, and has a degree in English and Communications from Wheaton College.

Jennifer Robinson, Vice President and Director of Publicity

Jennifer Robinson joined the Simon Spotlight Entertainment imprint in 2004 and worked on bestselling books including Sippy Cups Are Not for Chardonnay by Stefanie Wilder-Taylor, sTORI Telling by Tori Spelling, and Freakin’ Fabulous by Clinton Kelly. In 2009, Pocket Books and SSE combined to form Gallery Books, a new imprint showcasing both fiction and nonfiction, across a variety of genres. Jennifer was named Vice President, Director of Publicity and oversees the publicity for Gallery Books, Threshold Editions, and Karen Hunter Books. Recent bestsellers Jennifer has worked on include Marilu Henner’s Total Memory Makeover, Taylor Armstrong’s Hiding From Reality, Dick Cheney’s In My Time, and Rosemarie Terenzio’s Fairy Tale Interrupted. Prior to joining Simon & Schuster, Jennifer worked for ten years at ReganBooks/HarperCollins Publishers.

Jean Anne Rose, Director of Publicity

Jean Anne Rose has been in publishing for nearly thirty years, where she began her career in subsidiary rights before switching to publicity in 1997. Jean Anne joined Pocket Books as Director of Publicity in 2006, shortly after the Threshold Editions imprint was launched. Among the bestselling books she worked on were Glenn Beck’s An Inconvenient Book, Mark Levin’s Rescuing Sprite, and Jerome Corsi’s The Obama Nation. Since the 2009 debut of Gallery Books, Jean Anne has continued to work on subsequent bestsellers by Glenn Beck and Mark Levin, as well as those including Lisa Genova’s Left Neglected, Karl Rove’sCourage and Consequence, and Janet Jackson’s True You.

Melissa Gramstad, Publicity Manager

Melissa Gramstad has been with Simon & Schuster since 2002 and embraces working in all genres, from political to health, fiction to biography. Recent titles include Say Amen, Again by ReShonda Tate Billingsley (2011 NAACP Image Award Winner), Redefining Diva by Sheryl Lee Ralph, Alger Hiss by Christina Shelton, The Last Blind Date by Linda Yellin, and Outrage by Robert K. Tanenbaum.

Kristin Dwyer

Kristin Dwyer joined Gallery Books in May 2007 and handles a wide range of titles from celebrity memoirs to women’s fiction. Recent projects include the New York Times bestselling celebraTORI by Tori Spelling, Michael Ian Black’s You’re Not Doing It Right, and Mia March’s The Meryl Streep Movie Club. Other authors she has worked with include Lisa Rinna, Marlee Matlin, Melissa Gilbert, and Samantha Bee.

Mary McCue, Senior Publicist

Mary McCue joined Gallery Books in August 2010 and handles both political and commercial titles. Recent projects include the New York Times bestselling Mrs. Kennedy and Me by Clint Hill and Guts by Kristen Johnston. She is also the lead publicist for the Threshold Editions imprint, having worked on titles including Jose Rodriguez’s Hard Measures and Herman Cain’s This Is Herman Cain!.

Stephanie Deluca, Publicist

Stephanie Deluca joined Gallery Books in 2008 after an internship at S&S. She has created publicity campaigns for New York Times bestselling author Jill Smokler’s Confessions of a Scary Mommy, Townsend Prize nominee Ann Hite’s Ghost on Black Mountain, Jennifer Hiller’s Creep, and is the publicist for Gallery’s zombie genre.

Jillian Vandall, Publicity Assistant

Jillian Vandall worked in the CBS News division before joining Gallery Books in 2012. She handles titles in a variety of genres in fiction and nonfiction.

Brigitte Smith, Publishing Manager

Brigitte Smith joined Pocket Books publicity in 1997 and after holding several positions she became Publishing Manger. Brigitte has acquired titles by authors such as ReShonda Tate Billingsley, Victoria Christopher Murray, and Jacquelin Thomas. She has also worked with the Karen Hunter Publishing imprint on projects that have included authors such as: E. Lynn Harris, Janet Jackson, and Kris Jenner to name a few.

Natalie Ebel, Marketing Manager

Natalie joined Gallery Books in 2010. She previously worked in sales and marketing roles with Andrews McMeel in Kansas City and Abrams & Chronicle in London. Natalie is responsible for conceptualizing and implementing marketing campaigns for individual titles, as well as managing author brands.

Ellen Chan, Online Marketing Manager

Ellen Chan joined Gallery Books in March 2012. She works with the publisher’s office in spearheading all online marketing initiatives. Previously, she held positions at Macmillan’s start-up unit, Quick & Dirty Tips and Simon & Schuster’s Children’s Division.

Sally Franklin, Managing Editor

Sally Franklin acts as liaison between all departments and oversees the production process from manuscript to finished book for Gallery Books, Pocket Books, Threshold Editions, MTV/VH1 Books, Karen Hunter, and Pocket Star Original eBooks. She is also responsible for title information maintenance for metadata (ISBN, title, author name, price, pub dates, etc.), scheduling promotional materials, and coordinating legal review.

Paul Bozzo, Managing Editorial Assistant

Paul Bozzo assists Sally Franklin in all of her duties, with a greater role in managing production for the Pocket Books mass market imprint.

Lisa Litwack, Art Director

Chris Sergio, Art Director

Lisa Keim, Vice President and Director of Subsidiary Rights

Lisa Keim oversees all domestic subsidiary and international rights for the Gallery list.

Karen Hunter is the publisher of Karen Hunter Publishing, an imprint of Gallery Books. She is also a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and has written seven New York Times bestsellers. Karen started her career as a journalist with the New York Daily News and was a member of the paper's editorial board. In 2001 she was awarded her own column, becoming the first African-American woman to have a news column in the paper. In addition to her writing, Karen has served as Assistant Professor in the Film & Media Department at Hunter College for the past four years and was named Distinguished Lecturer in 2007. Prior to that, she was an adjunct professor at New York University.

Charles Suitt is a former Vice President of A&R for Universal Records, overseeing the careers of acts like the Lost Boys, Canibus, and teen pop sensation Jo-Jo. He also managed Mr. Cheeks and hip-hop icons, Salt-N-Pepa. In addition to being co-founder of Karen Hunter Publishing, Charles is also CEO of Suitt-Hunter Enterprises, which works with celebrities and emerging artists to expand their brand into ancillary markets, like the "Patti Labelle Good Life" product line for superstar Patti LaBelle (www.pattilabellefoods.com).

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Liz Psaltis, Marketing Director

Liz Psaltis joined Gallery Books in 2012. Previously she worked at Penguin Group for nearly fifteen years, marketing a variety of imprints and #1 New York Times bestselling authors. With Gallery Books she is responsible for crafting marketing campaigns, encompassing consumer advertising, social media, bookseller outreach, convention presence, author branding, third-party partnerships, and strategic planning.

Kiele Raymond, Assistant Editor

Areas of interest: Commercial women’s fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, mystery, humor/pop culture.

Authors include: Marta Acosta, C.B. Bryza, J.M. Darhower, Christina Dodd, Lisa Hinsley, Catherine LaRoche, Roberta Rich.

Bio: Kiele received her M.A. in the Humanities from the University of Chicago and worked at Touchstone before joining Gallery in 2013. A New Hampshire native, she has a soft spot for all things New England.

Kimberly Ladouceur, Marketing Coordinator

Kimberly joined Gallery in August of 2012. She previously worked in marketing at an accounting firm before enrolling in New York University’s Summer Publishing Institute. She supports Gallery’s marketing efforts in both the digital and print platforms.

Michelle Martin, Vice President and Publisher