Publishing Professionals

Sarah Grill

Sarah Grill is an Associate Editor at St. Martin’s Press. She has been working in publishing since 2016, interning at Harvey Klinger, Janklow & Nesbit, and Writers House before joining the editorial staff at St. Martin’s in 2018. Prior to her work in publishing, she lived in Los Angeles and worked in development at Alloy Entertainment, packaging, adapting, and pitching books for films and TV shows. Sarah is actively acquiring upmarket fiction, elevated mysteries and suspense, contemporary YA, and narrative nonfiction.

Kayla Lightner

Prior to joining Ayesha Pande Literary, Kayla worked as an assistant at Liza Dawson Associates. A Georgia native, she earned her B.A. in English from Vassar College. Before finding her way to publishing, she held various positions including a fashion market assistant at Harper’s Bazaar and a freelance writer at Creative Loafing Atlanta. An adventurous reader, Kayla loves stories—across commercial fiction, literary fiction, and nonfiction—that masterfully straddle the line between story-telling and teaching her something new. She’s particularly enamored with speculative fiction that centers BIPOC voices, humorous essay collections, and compelling family sagas. When Kayla’s not reading, she can be found writing, performing stand-up, and reminiscing on her rugby days.
@LightnerKayla

Finn Cohen

Finn Cohen is an associate editor at The Sun. He grew up in Durham, North Carolina, and has a music degree from Duke University. He has been an editor and writer at The New York Times, Apple News, and The Moscow Times.