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SHANA DREHSSenior Editorial Director, Sourcebooks & Sourcebooks Landmark
WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR
FICTION... Book club fiction that’s gripping, emotional and dramatic (contemporary women’s and feel-good fiction, near-historical that illuminates the past in a new and entertaining way, domestic/psychological suspense) NONFICTION... Women-driven memoir, self-help and personal development, smart and prescriptive reference nonfiction, books that entertain and inspire RIGHT NOW DON'T SEND ME... Romance genre fiction, fantasy, gardening |
HOW I GOT INTO BOOKS... I think I might hold a record for most library books checked out at one time from my hometown library, and as a child I did everything one-handed, with a book in my other hand. I entered the business of books as a bookseller at two B. Daltons, in Iowa City and Sioux City, IA, and after some stints in online media, jumped to the publishing side of things at Random House. I had the pleasure of working in the Crown division, editing both fiction and nonfiction, where I worked with Wayne Coffey (NYT bestselling author of The Boys of Winter) and Suzanne Hansen (NYT bestselling author of You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again among others).
JUST A FEW OF THE BOOKS AND AUTHORS I'VE ACQUIRED AND EDITED IN THE PAST FIVE YEARS... The 20- week New York Times bestseller Sold on a Monday, Marie Benedict’s bestsellers, including The Other Einstein, The Only Woman in the Room, and The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, the 10-week New York Times bestseller The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, Marianne Richmond’s blockbuster children’s classics, including If I Could Keep You Little and Be Brave, Little One, the instant bestseller The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, Katherine Wintsch’s Slay like a Mother, and Julie Clark’s instant New York Times bestseller The Last Flight
JUST A FEW OF THE BOOKS AND AUTHORS I'VE ACQUIRED AND EDITED IN THE PAST FIVE YEARS... The 20- week New York Times bestseller Sold on a Monday, Marie Benedict’s bestsellers, including The Other Einstein, The Only Woman in the Room, and The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, the 10-week New York Times bestseller The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, Marianne Richmond’s blockbuster children’s classics, including If I Could Keep You Little and Be Brave, Little One, the instant bestseller The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, Katherine Wintsch’s Slay like a Mother, and Julie Clark’s instant New York Times bestseller The Last Flight
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SOME FAVORITE BOOKS AND AUTHORS I DIDN'T PUBLISH... The Girl Before, The Marsh King's Daughter, The Reminders, You are a Badass, The Night Circus, Margot, The Art Forger, The Rosie Project, The Other Typist, Where'd You Go Bernadette, Gone Girl
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS AN EDITOR DOES FOR AN AUTHOR IS... work with an author to shape a manuscript's structure, positioning and message, taking it from a rough draft to the most polished book it can be, and talking about it in a way ("positioning for the marketplace") so that the right audience finds it!
I LOVE MY JOB BECAUSE... I can't believe sometimes that I have a job in which I get to read all day, and I'm absolutely never bored. And I know that I'm spreading the love of reading every day, in a way that can really influence and impact folks. As we say here, "books change lives."
I KEEP MY READING PILE... Overflowing from my nightstand, in my car, on my phone, on my iPad. I'm happiest when there are books everywhere!
BOOKSTORES YOU SHOULD VISIT BEFORE YOU DIE... A shout out to my home state of Iowa -- Prairie Lights in Iowa City. There's also Powell's in Portland, which blew me away. Anderson's Bookshop here in Naperville is everything you'd want a local bookstore to be.
WHEN I'M NOT READING, I'LL BE... Spending time with my family, running
I FOLLOW READING, WRITING AND PUBLISHING NEWS AT... PW Daily, Publishers Lunch, Shelf Awareness
ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS AN EDITOR DOES FOR AN AUTHOR IS... work with an author to shape a manuscript's structure, positioning and message, taking it from a rough draft to the most polished book it can be, and talking about it in a way ("positioning for the marketplace") so that the right audience finds it!
I LOVE MY JOB BECAUSE... I can't believe sometimes that I have a job in which I get to read all day, and I'm absolutely never bored. And I know that I'm spreading the love of reading every day, in a way that can really influence and impact folks. As we say here, "books change lives."
I KEEP MY READING PILE... Overflowing from my nightstand, in my car, on my phone, on my iPad. I'm happiest when there are books everywhere!
BOOKSTORES YOU SHOULD VISIT BEFORE YOU DIE... A shout out to my home state of Iowa -- Prairie Lights in Iowa City. There's also Powell's in Portland, which blew me away. Anderson's Bookshop here in Naperville is everything you'd want a local bookstore to be.
WHEN I'M NOT READING, I'LL BE... Spending time with my family, running
I FOLLOW READING, WRITING AND PUBLISHING NEWS AT... PW Daily, Publishers Lunch, Shelf Awareness
AGENTS CAN CONTACT ME AT... shana.drehs@sourcebooks.com
