Publishers Lunch

People, Etc.

Emily Griffin will join Harper as executive editor on October 19. Previously she was senior editor at Grand Central.

Amanda Aleksey has joined Perseus' international sales team as marketing and publicity manager. Previously she was marketing coordinator at Knopf.

Chief executive of the Publishers Association in the UK Richard Mollet is leaving after five years to join Reed Elsevier as head of European government affairs.

Heidi Hess Saxton will join Catholic publisher Franciscan Media as editorial director for the Servant imprint on October 12. Most recently she was acquisitions editor at Ave Maria Press.

J.K. Rowling announced that the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child -- set to debut in London in summer 2016 -- will be staged in two parts. Rowling says the expansion is "due to the epic nature of the story we’ve been working on."

Salman Rushdie will give the keynote address at the opening press conference of the Frankfurt Book Fair on Tuesday, October 13. The fair says that "freedom of expression and boundaries are key topics at this year's book fair."