Chip Gibson has stepped aside from his position as president/publisher at Random House Children’s Books. Barbara Marcus will take Gibson’s place.

Random House Chairman/CEO Markus Dohle made the announcement in a memo sent to Random House employees this morning. He praised Gibson’s work. He wrote:

Chip has transformed the workplace culture at Children’s and impacted young readers everywhere – not just with their beloved books but also with their genuine commitment to philanthropy and community service. With Children’s enjoying a successful 2012, and well set for the future, Chip feels he has accomplished almost everything he originally set out to do professionally.  Now, he wants to take an extended break from work. Read more

According to Chase’s Calendar, September is “Be Kind To Editors & Writers Month.”

Which editors and writers would you like to celebrate?

This GalleyCat contributor would like to salute the editors behind some of the world’s most beloved YA titles, including editorial director David Levithan (The Hunger Games trilogy), publisher Megan Tingley (The Twilight Saga) and publishing consultant Barbara Marcus (The Harry Potter series).

This spring, Open Road Integrated Media will publish the final product from The Novel: Live! writing marathon. Sales generated from the novel will be donated to various literacy non-profit organizations.

The writing event commenced on Monday, October 11th at Hugo House in Seattle, and will end on Saturday. Thirty-six authors are participating in this charity event, including:  Frances McCue, Erica Bauermeister, Sean Beaudoin, Dave Boling, and Peter Mountford. The last day will feature Jamie Ford, Clyde Ford, Elizabeth George, and Susan Wiggs.

Recently, Open Road hired children’s publishing veteran Barbara Marcus as a consultant to help them enter the children’s market.

Open Road Integrated Media hired children’s publishing veteran Barbara Marcus as a consultant for their endeavors to enter the children’s market. Marcus’ role also allows her to consult on international business development and general strategic issues for the company.

Marcus has been in publishing for more than 27 years. For 22 of them, she worked at Scholastic, eventually ascending to president and bringing the Harry Potter series to the United States. She currently acts as a consultant for a number of companies and organizations including the Penguin Young Readers Group, Knowledge Adventure, and Media Source.

Marcus commented: “I believe that Open Road will establish an important presence in children’s digital books and I am excited to be part of that effort. E-reading devices will become part of children’s backpacks and classrooms and as a result ebooks sales of children’s books will flourish.”

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