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Penguin Life promotes Amy McWalters to editorial director
Penguin Life has promoted Amy McWalters to editorial director with immediate effect. In her new role, McWalters will take responsibility for helping to shape the imprint’s editorial strategy across both frontlist and backlist to "ensure Penguin Life continues to build high-impact publishing programmes with ongoing sales which sustain strongly well beyond publication".
Her authors include Ellie Middleton, author of Unmasked: the Ultimate Guide to ADHD, Autism and Neurodivergence, and Sunday Times bestsellers Martha Swales author of gardening debut Give it a Grow, which was published in spring 2025, as well as Natalia Rudin, whose Cooking Fast and Slow was selected as one of the Best Cookbooks of 2025 by Waterstones, the Daily Mail and Amazon US.
McWalters said: "I am very proud to be taking this step up within the Penguin Life team, particularly in our 10th anniversary year as we look back at all the books on our list that have changed the conversation and helped readers improve their lives. I feel very lucky to work with such talented authors every day, and I am looking forward to welcoming more to the list as editorial director."
Pippa Wright, publishing director at Penguin Life, said: "Of our four Sunday Times bestsellers last year, three were published by Amy, and I’m so pleased to be able to recognise her hard work, strategic thinking and talent spotting with this well-deserved promotion. I’ve heard from authors and agents alike how much they love working with her, and I’m excited to see Amy continue to grow her list at Penguin Life."
