Visiting International Publishers (VIPs) 2023

Meet the VIPs!

We are delighted to announce the 14 international publishers, editors, and literary agents participating in the 22nd year of the Visiting International Publishers (VIPs) program. The program will return as an in-person program in 2023 and will be held alongside the Sydney Writers’ Festival from 22–26 May.

The Australia Council also continues its valuable partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) for the fifth year.   

• Federico Andornino, Executive Publisher – Sceptre Books, UK
• Jon Baker, President – Baker Literary Scouting, US
• Erica Berla, Co-Founder & Literary Agent – Berla & Griffini Rights Agency, ITALY
• Peter Borland, Vice President, Editor in Chief – Atria Books/Washington Square Press, Simon & Schuster, US
• David Forrer, Literary Agent – Inkwell Management, US
• David Gressot, Editor – Editions Actes Sud, FRANCE
• Simona Herzig, Head of Children’s Books – Loewe Verlag, GERMANY
• Liwen Lin, Senior Editor – Locus Publishing, TAIWAN
• Simon Lörsch, Acquisitions Editor – Suhrkamp Verlag, GERMANY
• Jody Mosley, Vice President, Associate Publisher – Abrams Children’s and Abrams ComicArts, US
• Michael Reynolds, Editor in Chief – Europa Editions, US
• Emilia Rhodes, Editorial Director – HarperCollins Children’s Books, US
• Friederike Schilbach, Editorial Director – Aufbau Verlage, GERMANY
• Nick Thomas, Executive Editor – Levine Querido, USA

CLICK HERE to view the full bios and areas of interest of this year’s VIPs.

The selection of participants was made by the VIPs Committee, in collaboration with Australia Council staff. The VIPs represent a range of territories; genre specialties; boutique and multinational publishers; and English-language and translation markets.

Registration to request a one-to-one business meeting with this year’s cohort is now closed. You will be advised of the outcome of your meeting requests by mid-April.

To manage the high demand for one-to-one business meetings, and ensure the most targeted matches, the VIPs select the Australian publishers and agents with whom they’d like to meet.

The Australia Council is currently collating the submissions received for the VIPs to make their selection, and will confirm the schedule of meetings with selected applicants in mid-April.

Registration each year is open to Australian publishers or agents who publish or represent literary titles, in the areas of fiction, narrative non-fiction, poetry, or children’s books (i.e. creative writing).

Publishers primarily involved in educational or reference books and/or other non-literary titles, self-publishers, printers, and distributors, are not eligible to register for business meetings, but are invited to attend the free industry forum sessions which will be announced on this page in early April.

The 2023 VIPs program is delivered in partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).