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MargaretRaymo
Our 2025 Editor Mentors!
MARGARET RAYMO
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers: Hachette
2025 Picture Book Mentor
Margaret Raymo has been a children’s book editor for over 30 years. Currently an Executive Editor at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, she previously worked at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt where she cofounded the Versify imprint. Authors she has worked with include Kwame Alexander, Lois Lowry, Raúl the Third, Chris Van Allsburg, and Veronica Chambers. She edits books for children of all ages.
FeatherFlores
FEATHER FLORES
EDITOR
Atheneum Books for Young Readers: Simon & Schuster
2025 Middle Grade Mentor
Feather Flores joined Atheneum in 2022 after four years at Chronicle Books. She works on smart, joyful picture books; middle-grade romps with coming-of-age themes; distinctive, atmospheric graphic novels; and bold, open-hearted YA that reimagines everything our identities can be. Her list encompasses fiction and nonfiction, with an emphasis on stories by, about, and for people from marginalized communities. Across the board, Feather is drawn to upmarket, voice- and character-driven narratives with addictive plots and a solid command of their readers’ emotional responses. She champions books that depict the beauty and diversity of the human experience: the humor, the complexity, the curiosity, the magic. Anything that encourages young readers (especially queer readers and readers of color) to be more fully and unapologetically themselves, she wants to see it.
AnumShafqat
ANUM SHAFQAT
ASSISTANT EDITOR
McElderry and Atheneum Books for Young Readers: Simon & Schuster
2025 Young Adult Mentor
Anum Shafqat joined Simon & Schuster in 2021 and is an assistant editor to Sarah McCabe at McElderry Books and Julia McCarthy at Atheneum Books for Young Readers. A fan of lovely queer stories, slasher plots, and everything in-between, she is on the lookout for rich worlds with earnest tropes. While on the hunt for powerful fantasy, horror, and contemporary romance in the young adult space, she is also seeking whimsical and electric upper middle grade (think spy worlds, heists, and first crushes). And finally, sweet character-driven picture books that celebrate underrepresented identities are right up her alley. She also has an interest in graphic novels, with a soft spot for stubborn, loveable protagonists and stories of grand adventure. When she’s not reading, you’ll find her in an obscure Wikipedia rabbit hole, calling her mom about some Pakistani drama, or making a fairly respectable cup of chai.
CatClyne
CAT CLYNE
SENIOR EDITOR
Graydon House & HQN: HarperCollins
2025 Adult Romance Mentor
Cat Clyne joined Harlequin in the fall of 2019, where she works with marquee authors such as Lori Foster, Brenda Jackson, and Julia London. Cat came to appreciate romance fiction later in life, when she moved from social-justice magazine publishing to books. At the time, she needed a job and assumed romance was a frivolous, outdated kind of fantasy fiction. Cat knows better now, and adores acquiring the most relationship-positive, feminist literature on the planet. Of particular interest are underrepresented voices and experiences, especially in rom-coms. Cat loves curl-her-toes romance, messy protagonists, and character arcs that address toxic masculinity in surprising ways. Top of her wish list are big feel-good romances that touch on social issues, swoony love stories with all the feelz, and characters, both young and old, who are still figuring out this whole ‘adulting’ thing and discover they are worthy of giving and receiving love. Cat has a Master’s degree from New York University and lives in Brooklyn.
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