Our Mission

We are a network of book professionals committed to supporting and increasing the number of Latine/x in the publishing industry, as well as promoting literature by, for, and about Latine/x people.

OUTREACH & ADVOCACY

Latinx in Publishing members are available for outreach and participation in school career fairs and for partnership with organizations and publishers that seek to promote diversity.

COMMUNITY

Latinx in Publishing members include professionals in all facets of publishing and at all career stages. Members benefit from this community through shared resources, support, and mentorship.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

In addition to networking, Latinx in Publishing also hosts professional development events in NYC and online.

BOARD MEMBERS

TONI KIRKPATRICK

Board Chair Toni@latinxinpublishing.com
Toni is a Senior Editor at Diversion Books, acquiring thrillers, sci-fi/fantasy, and horror. She previously worked at Crooked Lane Books and St. Martin's Press, after attending the Denver Publishing Institute and earning a Master of Professional Writing at USC. Originally from the Los Angeles area, Toni is also an author under the name Toni Margarita Plummer. You can follow her on IG @toni_m_plummer and on Twitter @tmargaritaplum.

TIFFANY GONZALEZ

**Board Treasurer Tiffany@latinxinpublishing.com**
Tiffany Gonzalez is the Senior Marketing Manager at Astra House. She previously worked in Production at HarperCollins Publishers. She has created marketing campaigns for Tyriek White’s award-winning debut novel *We Are a Haunting*, Alejandro Varela’s National Book Award finalist *The Town of Babylon*, Esther Yi’s The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize finalist *Y/N*, and Andrea Abreu’s *Dogs of Summer* (translated by Julia Sanches), among many others. She has earned her Bachelors and Master's degrees from Rutgers University - New Brunswick. She is Dominican-American and fluid in Spanish. You can follow her on Instagram @wandering_tiff_ and visit her website at wanderingtiff.com.

RUDDY LOPEZ

Board Secretary Ruddy@latinxinpublishing.com
Ruddy Lopez (she/her) lives in Inglewood, California, and attended California State University, Long Beach. She obtained a BA in English Literature and English Education and is a Fellow of the Los Angeles Review of Books Publishing Workshop. She is an educator, writer, editor, and executive assistant at Community Literature Initiative. In her spare time, Ruddy enjoys reading, writing poetry, and exploring what her city has to offer.

MARIA L. FERRER

Board Member, Events Director
maria@latinxinpublishing.com
Maria is the Director of Programs for Las Comadres Para Las Americas and the Project Manager of the Las Comadres & Friends National Latino Book Club. Maria is the Founder of The Latina Book Club; Past President of the Romance Writers of America / New York City; and a member of REFORMA. Maria lives in New York City, where she works as an international meeting planner.

**ANDREA MORALES**

**Board Member, Fellowship & Writers Mentorship Director Andrea@latinxinpublishing.com**

**Andrea Morales** is currently a Contracts Associate at Macmillan. She works on and negotiates various book agreements on the adult and young adult trade side. Previously, she interned for Red Hen Press and a literary agent as an editorial assistant, and graduated from the University of Southern California with a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Psychology. Andrea is from Los Angeles, where she is currently based, and a proud daughter of Guatemalan immigrants, heartening her dedication to uplifting Central American literature and local writers. She loves literary horror, translated literature, anything weird and slightly off, and can be found on socials **@guatemalcriada** and **@guatemalcriada**.

**STEFANIE SANCHEZ VON BORSTEL**

Board Member, Fellowship Director Stefanie@latinxinpublishin.com
Stefanie (she/ella) is co-founder of Full Circle Literary, a literary agency with a focus on discovering, developing, and advocating underrepresented creators of books and media. Some of the creators Stefanie represents include Monica Brown, Carmen Tafolla, Diana López, Celia C. Pérez, Jasminne Mendez, David Bowles, Rafael López, John Parra, Estelí Meza and Juana Martinez-Neal, to name a few. Prior to agenting, she worked in editorial, publicity and trade marketing for Penguin and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. A proud Tejana from San Antonio, Stefanie is now based in southern California. Follow her @fullcirclelit

PROGRAM DIRECTORS & VOLUNTEER STAFF

VANESSA AGUIRRE

Writers Mentorship Program Co-Director
Vanessa Aguirre’s heart alternates between Texas, New York, Michoacán, and coastal Colombia. She’s currently an editor at St. Martin’s Press, as well as a fiction editor at Hugo-nominated speculative fiction magazine and a committee member of the Latinx in Publishing Writers Mentorship Program. In everything she does, she is passionate about promoting underrepresented voices and firmly believes joy is a form of resistance. Because she can never read enough, she is always looking for book recommendations @vnssaguirre.

MARIANA FELIX-KIM

**Communications Co-Director**
Mariana Felix-Kim (she/her/ella) is a biologist and a bookstagrammer (@mariana.reads.books). As a Mexican and Korean reader, Mariana centers her bookstagram around amplifying diverse voices. She currently lives in Washington, D.C. with her cat, Leo. Mariana is proud to have five library cards and loves to use them to read non-fiction, literary fiction, romance, YA, and thrillers.

ALEJANDRA CID

Communications Co-Director
Alejandra Cid is a proud Angeleno, a product of Southeast LA. She is a graduate of the University of Southern California from which she earned a B.A. in Narrative Studies and a M.A. in Literary Editing and Publishing. Alejandra loves all things fiction, but is especially drawn to romance, women's fiction, and short stories. She is interested in storytelling, the (positive) power of social media, and creating accessible, inclusive, and engaging spaces in the literary sphere.

ADVISORY COUNCIL

**NADXIELI NIETO**

Board member, Advisory Council
Nadxieli is Executive Editor at Flatiron Books. She is an editor of literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, and illustrated anthologies including the Shirley Jackson award finalist *Tiny Crimes* with Lincoln Michel and the Premis Ciutat de Barcelona winner *Carteles Contra Una Guerra* with James Mann. She has published writers including Carmen Maria Machado, Lilliam Rivera, Yuri Herrera, Danielle Evans, Leslie Jamison, Laura Van den Berg, Rion Amilcar Scott, Stephen Graham Jones, Helen Phillips, and Amber Sparks, and is the former director of the PEN America Literary Awards Program. Follow her @nadxinieto.

BOARD MEMBERS EMERITUS

**NORA DE HOYOS COMSTOCK**

Board Member Emeritus, Founder
Nora de Hoyos Comstock Ph.D. is the national and international founder of Las Comadres Para Las Americas. She served as the organization’s President and CEO since its founding in 2000 until 2015. She is a key player in the Las Comadres and Friends National Latino Book Club and the Comadres and Compadres Writers Conference, along with founders, Adriana Dominguez and Marcela Landres. nora.comstock@gmail.com

**SOPHIA JIMENEZ**

Board Member, Mentorship Program Co-Director
Sophia is an Associate Editor at Atheneum Books for Young Readers, a division of Simon & Schuster. She’s previously worked at the Junior Library Guild, reviewing a wide range of children’s and YA in both English and Spanish, and in editorial at Simon & Schuster’s flagship adult imprint. She is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and the Denver Publishing Institute. Follow her @SophiaJay42

**NANCY MERCADO**

Board Secretary, Special Events Director
Nancy began her career in the Scholastic Book Clubs in 1998 and since then has held editorial positions at Penguin, Macmillan and Scholastic. She now manages a team of brilliant editors at Dial Books for Young Readers and edits a select list of picture books, chapter books, middle grade and young adult novels, with an occasional non-fiction project and graphic novel thrown in for good measure. Over the years, Nancy has had the good fortune of editing books by Paul Acampora, Lexie Bean, Cassie Beasley, Veronica Chambers, Diana Lopez, Isabel Quintero, Peter Raymundo, Gabby Rivera, Lauren Tarshis, and many others. Nancy helped to establish the CBC Diversity Initiative in 2012.

GET INVOLVED

Latinx in Publishing Inc. hires seasonal interns, and welcomes volunteers interested in learning about publishing. Email us if you’re interested in volunteering!