Meet GCP

Ben Sevier

Executive VP and Publisher

I’m Ben Sevier, the Executive Vice President and Publisher of Grand Central Publishing. I am responsible for all aspects of our publishing activities for Grand Central and its imprints, including Balance, Forever, Legacy Lit, and Twelve. In my twenty-five years in publishing, I have been an editorial assistant, an editor, an editor-in-chief, and a publisher, working closely at each level with creative art directors and designers, tireless publicists, innovative marketers, and brilliant editorial colleagues. The holistic view of the publishing process that I have been privileged to develop over the course of my years in the book business informs the Grand Central publishing process every day, and the excitement and enthusiasm that I witness over and over again within our group is the secret to Grand Central’s many successes. Prior to Grand Central, I was the Vice President and Publisher at Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Random House, which followed editorial roles at Simon & Schuster, St. Martin’s Press, and HarperCollins Children’s Books. I have worked with the New York Times-bestselling novelists David Baldacci, Sandra Brown, Harlan Coben, Lisa Gardner, Thomas Harris, Colleen Hoover, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, Nicholas Sparks, Jonathan Tropper, and Scott Turow, and directed the acquisition and publication of bestsellers by Sally Field, Nick Offerman, Drew Barrymore, Brooke Shields, Dr. William Li, Admiral William McRaven, neuroscientist Daniel Levitin, and theoretical physicist Sean Carroll. I grew up in California, and I now live in Manhattan with my wife and our children.

Beth deGuzman

Beth deGuzman

Senior VP, Deputy Publisher

Let me come clean: I am a cliché.  I’ve always been a bookworm.  My favorites when I was growing up were The Arabian Nights and The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, and later Agatha Christie’s mysteries, P.G. Wodehouse’s hilarious novels, and E.B. White’s essay collections.  In college, I dreamed of landing a job that would pay me to read.  Lucky for me, that dream job has been mine for decades.  Finding great voices and great stories is as thrilling today as it was back when I was an Editorial Assistant, and how exciting that in my role as Deputy Publisher I work hand in glove with Editorial, Publicity, Marketing, Advertising, Art, and Sales to whip up enthusiasm for our books.  Like I said, a dream job.

Leah Hultenschmidt

VP and Publisher, Forever

My career in publishing started at the local library as a four-year-old. But my first real job in the industry came two weeks after I graduated college and moved to New York to work at a small, independent publisher. After 10 years there, I moved to Sourcebooks, where I acquired the #1 New York Times bestseller If He Had Been with Me and My Life with the Walter Boys, now a hit Netflix series.  I joined the Forever team at Grand Central in 2013 as editorial director and became publisher of the imprint in 2023. I’m currently acquiring commercial women’s fiction and romance.  In 2024, I’d particularly love to see steamy fantasy romance, any fairy-tale or mythological romance based in a different culture, a twisty-turny sexy modern gothic thriller, or a fabulous big summer contemporary by an author with a strong platform. Some of my current bestselling authors include Abby Jimenez, Kennedy Ryan, Natasha Lester, and Farrah Rochon. When not reading, I’m happiest travel planning, cardmaking, tending my terrace garden, or cheering on the Red Sox.

Krishan Trotman

VP and Publisher, Legacy Lit

Krishan Trotman is the Vice-President, Publisher of Legacy Lit. She joined Hachette Books in 2016. In 2020 she launched Legacy Lit, an imprint dedicated to books that give voice to issues, authors, and communities that have been marginalized, underserved, and overlooked. This includes BIPOC authors, all women, and any group that they believe deserves a spotlight. The imprint is committed to promoting equality, equity, and inclusion for all people. The books are bold, mission-driven commercial works. Social justice and empowerment are Trotman’s passion. She likes to work with authors who are candid, bold, and, in their own unique way, not afraid to shake things up.

Her authors have included a range of award-winning and New York Times bestsellers, including: congressman John Lewis’ Across That Bridge; journalist Stephanie Land’s Maid; MSNBC political analyst Malcolm Nance’s The Plot to Destroy DemocracyNew York Times columnist Lindy West’s The Witches Are Coming and Shit Actually; UFC’s Mixed Martial Artist Paige VanZant’s Rise; Olympic medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad’s Proud; radio and TV host Zerlina Maxwell’s The End of White Politics; TV personality Ed Gordon’s Conversations in Black; journalist Talia Lavin’s Culture Warlords; Vanity Fair writer Nancy Jo Sales’ forthcoming memoir Nothing Personal; BRAVO’s Million Dollar Listing star Ryan Serhant’s Sell It Like Serhant and Big Money Energy; Morning Joe’s cohost Mika Brzezinski’s Earn It! and Comeback Careers; The Today Show’s cohost Al Roker’s You Look So Much Better in Person; and empowerment coach Gina DeVee’s The Audacity to Be Queen, to name a few.

Krishan has been featured in the New York TimesEssence MagazineNew York MagazinePublisher’s WeeklySalon, Shondaland, Cheddar TV, MSN, CSPAN, and more. She is the self-described Beyoncé of Books, and mom to her son Bleu.

Nana Twumasi

VP and Publisher, Balance

My career in publishing grew from a genuine love of reading and acquiring knowledge—whether for enjoyment, or for learning, getting into a good book is a thoroughly gratifying experience. My 20-year (and counting) path through the industry has taken me from an independent children’s book publisher in Minnesota, to John Wiley & Sons, and on to Callisto Media, where I built a self-help and trade-psychology publishing program from the ground up, developing such titles as Retrain Your BrainThe Complex PTSD Workbook, and The Complete Ketogenic Diet for Beginners. My focus is on health and wellness inside and out, for all the spaces life occupies, in all the forms and shapes it takes. As Publisher, I keep market analysis and consumers’ needs at the forefront of Balance’s publishing program. As an editor, I seek out a diverse range of authors whose work is steeped in research, education, and innovation — and who are dedicated to helping people be the best version of themselves.

Colin Dickerman

VP, Editorial Director, Nonfiction

I have, much to my astonishment, been working in publishing for over thirty years. I started as the receptionist at Alfred A. Knopf (where I actually had to use a Dictaphone) and moved on to Grove Atlantic. I’ve held senior editorial and management positions at Bloomsbury, Penguin Press, and Flatiron Books, where I helped launch the imprint as Editorial Director, and most recently at Farrar, Straus and Giroux. I have acquired and edited many bestselling and award-winning books and authors, including in recent years Promise Me, Dad by President Joe Biden, How Not to Die by Dr. Michael Greger, Boys in the Trees and Touched by the Sun by Carly Simon, The Deviant’s War by Eric Cervini, How Not to Be Wrong by Jordan Ellenberg, and The Fact of a Body by Alex Marzano-Lesnevich. At Bloomsbury I acquired and edited the multi-million copy bestsellers Schott’s Original Miscellany by Ben Schott and My Horizontal Life by Chelsea Handler, and I’ve had the great pleasure of editing the novelist Paul Beatty across multiple publishers, including Beatty’s Man Booker and National Book Critics Circle award-winning novel The Sellout for FSG. I’m currently acquiring across a wide range of categories, including pop culture, memoir, narrative history, and pop science. I grew up in Vermont and earned a B.A. in English from Amherst College.

Karen Kosztolnyik

Karen Kosztolnyik

VP, Editorial Director, Fiction

I began my career in book publishing after graduating from college and moving to New York. I worked at several houses, including John Wiley and Harlequin, before landing at Grand Central Publishing’s editorial team where I worked for ten years, before leaving for a stint at Gallery Books/Scout Press, a division of Simon and Schuster, where I acquired and published Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg, longlisted for the National Book Award and Booker Prize. I have since returned to GCP as VP, Editorial Director where I oversee the Fiction program and manage a team of talented editors who primarily acquire fiction for the imprint. I also acquire a list of my own, and I am lucky to work with and publish a number of tremendous authors such as Colleen Hoover (Verity), Patricia Cornwell (Unnatural Death), Sandra Brown (Out of Nowhere), Tia Williams (A Love Song for Ricki Wilde), Kira Jane Buxton (Hollow Kingdom, Thurber Prize Finalist), Lily Brooks-Dalton (The Light Pirate, Dayton Literary Peace Prize Runner-Up), Robyn Harding (The Drowning Woman), Kirthana Ramisetti (Dava Shastri’s Last Day). What excites me most about being in this business is discovering storytellers whose voices can entertain, educate, and enlighten me as a reader. I’m a native Texan who now lives in Manhattan with my husband and son.

Lyssa Keusch

VP, Executive Editor

Having come from a family of doctors and science-oriented professionals, I was very proud to forge my own way as an English major in college. I began my editorial path at Avon Books then shifted over to William Morrow where I continued to work for more than three decades. While there I had the pleasure of launching the careers of #1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn, whose beloved Bridgerton novels are the inspiration for the recent Shondaland/Netflix series, and #1 New York Times bestselling thriller author James Rollins (Kingdom of Bones). As my list developed, I published a range of other thriller writers, among them New York Times bestselling authors J.A. Jance (Nothing to Lose) and Gillian McAllister (Wrong Place Wrong Time); and multi-award-winning authors Alison Gaylin (The Collective), Sheena Kamal (The Lost Ones), Glen Erik Hamilton (Past Crimes), and highly acclaimed science-based thriller writer Alice Henderson (A Solitude of Wolverines). In 2023, I took the opportunity to join Grand Central and work with some of the house’s premier authors, among them Harlan Coben, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, and Steve Berry. In addition, I’m excited to continue developing new voices in popular fiction. I was born in Bangkok, Thailand but have spent the majority of my life in New York City, where I live with my husband and children, and still hope to find a perfect pad thai.

Suzanne ONeill

Suzanne O’Neill

VP, Executive Editor

I joined Grand Central in 2016. In more than two decades in publishing I have held editorial roles at Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster. I specialize in Nonfiction, including Memoir, Biography, Humor, Women’s Issues, Pop History, Current Events, and Pop Culture (celebrity, music, film, television). Some of my critically acclaimed and bestselling books are Acid for the Children by Flea; I Might Regret This by Abbi Jacobson; Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me and Why Not Me by Mindy Kaling, Dad Is Fat and Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan, Sisters First by Barbara and Jenna Bush; Rod by Rod Stewart; and Me & Patsy Kickin’ Up Dust by Loretta Lynn. Upcoming books include titles by Rachel Bloom, Jamie Foxx, Andrew McCarthy and Sutton Foster; a biography of the fascinating and tumultuous relationship between Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh by Stephen Galloway; Stolen, a riveting memoir by Elizabeth Gilpin about herharrowing experience of psychological manipulation and abuse at a “therapeutic” boarding school for “troubled” teens; Rafa the Great, the story of how as a teenager, screenwriter Rafael Agustin accidentally discovered his family was undocumented and how he and his parents navigated their shared secret life; and Five Floors Up, a history of the NYC fire department through the eyes of a four-generation firefighting family by journalist Brian McDonald.

Amar Deol

Executive Editor

Amar Deol joined Grand Central in January 2024. He acquires across many categories of nonfiction, including current affairs, sports, politics, history, and memoir, among many others. Amar’s published seven New York Times bestsellers, with his titles having received citations from the Whiting Foundation & J. Anthony Lukas Prize Committee, selected for inclusion on Barack Obama’s Summer 2022 Reading List, and longlisted for the 2024 Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.

Alex Logan

Alex Logan

Executive Editor

My favorite night at home—and we’ve certainly had plenty of those—involves cracking open a new thriller and reading until the crack of dawn. However, I’m always on the lookout for intriguing fiction of any kind. I acquire primarily women’s fiction, historical fiction, thrillers/psychological suspense, and romance/rom com. For nonfiction, I’d love to be able to incorporate my own personal interests by adding heartwarming pet books and art history about well-known artists.  Right now, it’s an honor to be the editor of mother-and-son New York Times bestselling authors Iris and Roy Johansen, and I’m so pleased that Nina Laurin’s Girl Last Seen has gone back to press fifteen times. In the near future, I’m looking forward to the publication of WWII women’s fiction from Kelly Bowen and Jaclyn Goldis and upcoming thrillers from New York Times bestselling author Nancy Allen and USA Today bestselling author Cate Holahan as well as Angela Marsons, who has sold over four million copies of her Detective Kim Stone series.  And I’d like to give a special shout-out to my hardworking romance authors, including USA Today bestsellers Debbie Mason, Hope Ramsay, Annie Rains, and Melinda Curtis. It’s a thrill to discover new authors and help them find success, and I have always loved sharing my favorite books. After earning a journalism degree from Northwestern, I worked as a bookseller at Borders (remember them?) on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue. I did not yet have the dream to come to New York City but I’m so glad that I did.

Karyn Marcus

Executive Editor

With a degree in philosophy, it made sense to work as a bartender then enter publishing. My path took me from a literary agency, to Doubleday, Macmillan, and finally ten years at Simon & Schuster. Over the years, I acquired and edited both bestselling and award-winning books, including Anna by Amy Odell, The Right Call by Sally Jenkins, The Way I Heard Itby Mike Rowe, Keep It Moving by Twyla Tharp, What My Mother and I Don’t Talk About by Michele Filgate, Whip Smart by Melissa Febos, The Lion in the Living Room by Abby Tucker, On Trails by Rob Moor, Sounds Like Me by Sara Bareilles, The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion, Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley, and Seinfeldia by Jennifer Armstrong. At Grand Central, I acquire across a wide range of nonfiction including arts and culture, narrative nonfiction, upmarket self-help, biography, business, psychology, and memoir. I currently live in Brooklyn with my family and a dog named Bear.

Maddie Caldwell

Senior Editor

I am a senior editor at Grand Central Publishing, where I acquire primarily narrative nonfiction as well as the occasional novel. The best way to describe me is to say that I’m an escapist at heart. I grew up in a house in the woods on the side of a mountain in Wyoming, and reading was the first way she saw the world. Now that I have left the Rockies behind, I am drawn to strong voices that have feminism, identity, and diversity at the forefront and offer unique takes on recent history and our contemporary life, especially cultural criticism, true crime, science, history, investigative journalism, memoir, and personal essays. My list includes bestsellers  The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe  by Dr. Steven Novella and Save Yourself by Cameron Esposito,  The Heir Affair  by bestselling authors Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks, Out East by John Glynn, Too Much  by Rachel Vorona Cote and the forthcoming  We Keep the Dead Close  by Becky Cooper. Prior to joining Grand Central, I made stops at Weed Literary and Alfred A. Knopf.

Madeleine Colavita

Madeleine Colavita

Senior Editor, Forever

When it comes to romance, I’m a bit of a late-bloomer, having not discovered the genre until I was a publishing intern. But I’ve been making up for lost time, consuming every happily-ever-after I can get my hands on. Since joining the Forever team in 2013, I’ve had the pleasure of working with many bestselling and critically acclaimed writers including A.J. Pine, Tessa Bailey, Paula Quinn, Lauren Smith, Piper J. Drake, April Hunt, Cecilia Tan, and Carly Bloom, among others.  As an Editor, I’m looking for fun, fresh, diverse voices across all subgenres of romance—especially historical, cowboy, small-town contemporary, and romantic suspense—as well as in romantic comedies and women’s fiction. I want to be surrounded by characters who mostly make me laugh, only occasionally make me cry, and always make me believe in true love.  When not helping my authors craft HEAs, I enjoy baking, watching old movies, and needlepointing Christmas ornaments.

Junessa Viloria

Senior Editor, Forever

I’ve loved romance since probably before I should have, and I enjoy all forms of HEAs. I joined the Forever team in 2019, after spending eleven years at Penguin Random House, and I acquire all subgenres of romance and commercial women’s fiction. I love when stories make me feel things, whether they make me laugh out loud or sob uncontrollably, and stories that highlight women’s relationships and experiences, both modern and historical. I am particularly drawn to #ownvoices, fun romcoms with unique hooks, and emotional dramas about family, sisterhood, and friendships. Throughout my career, I have worked with many New York Times, and USA Today bestselling authors and I’ve been lucky enough to work with authors such as Mariah Stewart, K.A. Linde, Monica McCarty, Emily March, Christy Craig, Jenny Holiday, R.C. Ryan, among many others. When not immersed in romance, I love hanging out with my kids, watching football, and discovering new restaurants.

Sam Brody

Associate Editor, Forever

I’m a hopeless romantic, so it’s no surprise I love bringing happily-ever-afters to life. But like any good story, it’s the journey that’s important, and my publishing path has been anything but linear: I spent over five years at literary agencies and in sales before joining Team Forever in 2019. Since then, I’ve had the privilege of working with New York Times bestselling and acclaimed authors such as Mia Sheridan, Manda Collins, Amalie Howard, Rachel Van Dyken, and Alexis Hall. My own list includes bestselling and award-winning authors such as Helena Greer, Felicia Grossman, and Adib Khorram as well as exciting debut authors like Ana Holguin and Jessica Lepe. I’m now on the lookout for works specifically from queer and BIPOC voices and from people of underrepresented genders and faiths. I’m drawn to the paranormal and fantastic as well as the untold eras of history, and I have a soft spot for retellings, high-concept rom-coms, and unexpected genre mash-ups. In truth, the best way to sweep me off my feet is with an exciting hook, heartwrenching and emotional romance, fantastic friendships, or found family. And when not reading or editing, I can usually be found singing (and pretending) my life is a musical or practicing for my future win on The Great British Bake Off.

Kirsiah Depp

Associate Editor

I’ve been with Grand Central Publishing since 2017, but my love of books goes all the way back to first grade when I used to sneak Harry Potter books into my room to keep reading them because my mom just couldn’t keep reading out loud anymore. And since then, I’ve cultivated a love of commercial fiction that whisks me away on an amazing adventure in a face-paced read that I can’t put down. Which of course means I acquire and have on my list speculative fiction, historical and contemporary women’s fiction, retellings (mythic and fairy tale), and more! I am also proudly a part of David Baldacci’s editorial team which has been such an honor. Other authors I’ve had the immense pleasure of working with include Freida McFadden, Emily Hourican, Phong Nguyen, Adam Plantinga, Nicole Trope, and many more. What they have in common is that they make me feel ALL the feels, and between you and me, if there’s that spark of magic in the story, all the better. Before joining GCP, I worked at HarperCollins and Penguin Random House, both in children’s and adult publishing, and I have a Master’s in Publishing from NYU and a Bachelor’s in Literary Studies from Bard College.

Sabrina Flemming

Associate Editor, Forever

My love of romance books began when I started sneaking them out of my mom’s room as a kid, and it hasn’t dwindled since! So after graduating from GSU’s creative writing program and moving across the country to gain editorial experience with publishing internships, I landed in my role as an Editorial Assistant to Leah Hultenschmidt and Alex Logan in the Forever team in 2019. I most enjoy reading books that allow me to explore a colorful tapestry of voices. When I’m not reading, I’m coming up with new dinner recipes in the kitchen or watching my latest K-drama obsession.

Amina Iro

Associate Editor, Legacy Lit

Amina Iro is an Assistant Editor at Legacy Lit. She started her publishing career as an Editorial Assistant at Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, where she worked on titles by esteemed authors such as Cicely Tyson and Zora Neale Hurston. A writer and performance poet originally from Prince George’s County, MD, Amina was a 2020 Fellow for the Watering Hole Winter Writer’s Retreat. She has performed at venues in the US, England, Nigeria, and South Africa. Amina is a graduate of the First Wave program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she studied Neurobiology and English Creative Writing. She is interested in books with brave motifs that invite readers to the juncture of identity and social change. She is particularly passionate about books that illuminate the vastness of Black and queer life.

Rachael Kelly

Associate Editor

I joined the Grand Central team in February 2019. Originally from Canada, where I completed a Bachelor of Journalism Honors degree, I moved to New York to complete a Masters in Publishing, which led to internships at two literary agencies and a boutique publishing firm in the city. During my tenure at GCP, I have assisted with a number of New York Times bestselling authors, including Colleen Hoover, Sandra Brown, David Baldacci, Preston & Child, and Nicholas Sparks, and started building my own list with Maria Dong’s Liar, Dreamer, Thief (1/23) and Kehinde Fadipe’s The Sun Sets in Singapore (10/23). I am drawn to atmospheric, voice-driven fiction from authors who have fresh perspectives and a strong connection to their subject matter—books that combine sharp social commentary with a compelling hook. At Grand Central, I am looking to acquire commercial and upmarket fiction across genres—books that combine rapid pacing with artistic prose, nuanced character development, and complex themes—but will admit that I have a soft spot for love stories, escapist fiction, elevated mysteries, and psychological thrillers. On the nonfiction side, I gravitate toward narrative nonfiction and memoir, especially works that reflect on art, identity, culture, and the lasting effects of history.

Jacqueline Young

Associate Editor

I joined GCP in 2019 after working at Palgrave Macmillan, having previously interned at HSG Literary and Frances Goldin Literary Agency. Having majored in English and Economics in college, I decided to pursue the former and promptly forgot everything I learned regarding the latter. Over the last few years, I assisted on a number of critically acclaimed and bestselling titles, from Andrew McCarthy’s Brat to Seeing Ghosts by Kat Chow, before beginning to build my own list with the acquisitions of Colton Gentry’s Third Act (4/24) and Make It Count (6/24). 

I’m particularly drawn to narrative nonfiction and memoir that explores pressing social and cultural concerns through a deeply personal, unique, or compassionate lens. I’m also passionate about pop culture analysis and criticism. On the fiction side, I tend to gravitate towards big-hearted commercial and upmarket projects that explore universal themes including friendship, familial bonds, and identity with an elevated hook or unexpected angle. Across the board, I appreciate a sense of humor and offbeat sensibility. 

Natalie Bautista

Assistant Editor, Balance

Working with books has always been a dream of mine! After graduating college with a B.A.in Creative Writing, and taking a detour through a few other professional industries, I found myself coming back to what I’ve always been passionate about: amplifying the voices and stories of others. I managed to make an industry switch, and after interning with Folio Literary Management and Catapult, I eagerly accepted an Editorial & Marketing Assistant position with GCP Balance. I am passionate about perspectives that reflect the nuanced, in-between spaces that many of us occupy, and believe we can only be the best versions of ourselves (physically, emotionally, spiritually) when we honor and nurture these diverse facets of who we are.

Lauren Bello

Editorial Assistant

I am a recent alum of Pennsylvania State University where I graduated with a BA and MA in English, and was also an adjunct professor. I have worked at Centennial Leading Group as an executive assistant and been an editorial intern at The Philadelphia Art Museum. I enjoy nothing more than a great story and spend much of my free time reading a wide range of fiction, along with going to museums or catching a show. I currently live in Philadelphia but will be making the move to NYC in the near future. I report to Seema Mahanian and Wes Miller.

Ian Dorset

Editorial Assistant

My road into publishing was long and roundabout. After a stint trying (and failing) to make it in the punk music scene, my passion for books took me first into education, where I worked for several years as a high school English teacher for the NYCDOE. From there, it took me to the iconic Barnes and Noble at Union Square, where I worked launch events for writers ranging from Elizabeth Strout to Tom Segura. Finally, I finally made the leap into publishing, and I’m excited to now be part of the Grand Central team. I work in non-fiction, supporting Colin Dickerman and Karyn Marcus.

Grace Fischetti

Editorial Assistant

My love of reading began when my favorite local librarian, Stephanie, nurtured my passion for books. Since then, I have known I wanted to be part of the process that brings great stories to readers. After graduating from Boston University, I joined HBG as a publicity intern. My genre of choice has always been romance, so I am excited to now be a Forever team member, especially on the editorial side of things. Although I favor rom coms, I enjoy exploring women’s fiction, historical fiction, and narrative nonfiction titles. When I’m not reading romance, I’m probably watching a romantic movie or creating videos for BookTok about the genre. I assist Alex Logan and Madeleine Colavita.

Morgan Spehar

Editorial Assistant

My path into publishing began as a kid who, every week, wanted to check out so many books from the library that I couldn’t lift the extra-sturdy tote bag my mom brought with us. After studying journalism and environmental studies at Ohio University, I spent a year and a half at Princeton University Press as a fellow and, later, an assistant on the history and economics lists. I still love to read anything I can get my hands on! I’m incredibly excited to be working on compelling nonfiction at Grand Central, where I am supporting Suzanne O’Neill and Maddie Caldwell.