The Foundry Team

Peter H. McGuigan
With over 13 years of publishing experience, Peter has worked as an active agent for more than eight of those years and served as Rights Director for two literary agencies. Reflecting his background in both general trade and science publishing, Peter is drawn to smart, offbeat non-fiction, particularly works of narrative non-fiction on pop culture, niche history, biography, music and science. He also represents novelists, both commercial and literary, across all genres, especially first-time writers. He works closely with each author to develop innovative, rock-solid proposals and manuscripts and is happiest when representing controversial, out of the ordinary or provocative subjects and authors. Peter studied creative writing, journalism and literature at Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University and has a degree in English.

Yfat Reiss Gendell
Drawing on her early careers as a lawyer and small publisher, Yfat looks for projects with a strong, defined brand. She favors non-fiction books focusing on all manners of prescriptive: how-to, science, health and well-being, memoirs, adventure, travel stories and lighter titles appropriate for the gift trade genre. Yfat also looks for commercial fiction highlighting the full range of women's experiences - young and old - and also seeks science fiction, thrillers and historical fiction. Yfat welcomes first-time writers and veterans crossing over from the entertainment industry and the theatre arts. Her titles regularly receive national media exposure and endorsements, sell foreign rights translations all over the world and are adapted into film and television projects and merchandise lines. She understands what her authors go through, because she was one. Yfat has published eight commercial non-fiction titles with Chronicle Books, Stewart, Tabori & Chang, Penguin Avery Books, and others. She holds a B.A. in Fine Arts from Brandeis University and a J.D. from U.C.L.A. School of Law.

Stéphanie Abou
With a background in literary publishing and fashion magazines, Stéphanie Abou has been in New York publishing for 10 years. Since 1999 she has worked at literary agencies as both Rights Director and as a Domestic agent. In fiction and non-fiction alike Stéphanie is always on the lookout for authors who are accomplished storytellers with their own distinctive voice, who develop memorable characters, and who are able to create psychological conflict with their narrative. She is an across-the-board fiction lover, attracted to both literary and smart upmarket commercial fiction. In non-fiction she leans towards projects that tackle big topics with an unusual approach. Pop culture, health, science, parenting, women's and multicultural issues are of special interest. She is a graduate of the Sorbonne in Paris, France, her hometown, where the focus of her masters in comparative literature was on the poetics of translation.

Chris Park
Prior to joining Foundry, Chris worked as an editor for several New York publishing houses (Hachette Book Group, Random House) and helped launch an independent publishing company. She acquired and edited works of narrative nonfiction, autobiography and memoir, inspiration, Christian interest, sports, humor, current events and fiction, including bestselling titles such as THE PREACHER AND THE PRESIDENTS by Time's Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy, and NFL quarterback Brett Favre's illustrated autobiography FAVRE. Chris is particularly drawn to memoirs, narrative nonfiction, Christian nonfiction and character-driven fiction, and she enjoys working with authors to develop books that are appealing and accessible to a broad audience. She has a degree in English from Harvard University and lives in a Chicago suburb with her family.