Kate Whitfield came to trade publishing via magazines and copywriting and later travel guides, working as an editor at Lonely Planet for almost ten years. In 2014 she came to Allen and Unwin as an editor of books for children and young adults and since then has worked on many bestselling and award-winning books with authors such as Paul Jennings, Wendy Orr and Barry Jonsberg.

Radhiah Chowdhury is a Muslim Bangladeshi-Australian author and editor living on unceded Bidjigal Land in Sydney's West. She is currently a commissioning editor and senior audiobook producer at Penguin Random House Australia, and was the 2019-2020 Beatrice Davis Editorial Fellow. Her most recent picture book, The Katha Chest, was published by Allen & Unwin in April 2021.

 

If you would like to read Rhadhiah's Beatrice Davis Editorial Fellowship report, see link below:https://www.publishers.asn.au/news/bdef-report-offers-australian-publishing-pathways-to-inclusivity

Kajal Narayan started her publishing career at Rockpool Publishing and joined Pantera Press in 2020 after working at HarperCollins for five years, most recently as a Senior Marketing and Communications Executive.

Lauren Ravida has worked in the book industry since 2014, starting out as a bookseller at Dymocks during her gap year. She is now the sales and distribution coordinator at Affirm Press, overseeing the Australian distribution of publishers such as The School of Life, The Experiment and Imagine That. She is passionate about publishing diverse stories and making books as accessible and inclusive as possible.

James Kellow has 30 years of publishing experience in Australia and the UK. Formerly HarperCollins ANZ CEO, he cut his teeth at Reed International in the early 1990s before landing the most creative role of his career as marketing director at Fourth Estate in London, then one of the UK’s leading independent publishing houses. James is known for his passion for the book industry, his championing of authors, and his focus on Australian stories.

Margot Lloyd has worked in the publishing industry since 2012, mainly as an editor, but also as an occasional rights manager, publisher, and dishy at book launches. She has been at the University of Queensland Press in the role of senior editor since July 2020.

Felicity Dunning is an editor who works across fiction, non-fiction, academic, poetry, children’s and young adult titles. She has worked at the University of Queensland Press since 2016 after starting her career in education publishing and has a passion for editing books that promote positive social and environmental changes.

Alex Adsett is a literary agent and publishing consultant with more than twenty years’ experience working in the publishing and bookselling industry. She has managed Alex Adsett Literary since 2008, and has helped hundreds of authors review and negotiate their publishing deals. As an agent she represents more than 45 authors of all ages and genres, including Melissa Lucashenko, Isobelle Carmody and Ruby Hamad. She regularly speaks on copyright and contracts around Australia, is an alumni of the Australia Council Arts Leaders Program 2019, and serves on the board of the Small Publishers Network.

Jasmin McGaughey is a Torres Strait Islander and African American author and editor. She is currently in the midst of a Master of Philosophy in creative writing. She also works at the Queensland State Library in the black&write! team as a Junior Editor. Jasmin is a recipient of the Wheeler Centre’s 2019 Next Chapter Fellowship and her work has appeared in Overland, Kill Your Darlings, Voiceworks, Homer, and Hot Chicks with Big Brains.

Hello, and welcome to the Foot in the Door podcast. A podcast about all things publishing and how to get your foot in that door. Here is a quick intro explaining a bit more about what the podcast is about and why I am starting it. Enjoy!