In this blog series we will begin to introduce you to our many and varied publishers!! Each month we will feature a new team member so you can learn more about the goals and ideals of the people behind the books. Meet Lorena Jones from Ten Speed!!
How would you describe Ten Speed publishing as a whole? What are your/their goals?
Immersive, enduring, beautiful books with a distinctive point of view.
Our goals: (1) to maintain our reputation for publishing bespoke, original books by the top experts and (2) to use our development, design, and production skills to expand into more categories in illustrated publishing.
What are Ten Speed’s strengths as a publisher?
Our location in the San Francisco Bay Area means our staff sees consumer trends develop and emerge from a West Coast–culture vantage point. The team’s creativity, standards, entrepreneurism, and critical and commercial success attract and retain like-minded author talent. We work exceptionally well together to make the unexpected materialize.
How long have you worked for Ten Speed? / How did you get into publishing?
This is my 20th year working for Ten Speed.
I was Chronicle Books’ first editorial intern when I was in college.
What is your role on the Ten Speed team?
On a day-to-day basis, I work with Editorial Director Julie Bennett to lead the editors on book development and Associate Editorial Directors Kelly Snowden and Kaitlin Ketchum to guide acquisitions and list development; Creative Director Kelly Booth to support the design group; and Sr. Business Analyst Jan Tomsic to keep tabs on financials, office operations, and IT; and I liaise with Production Director Serena Sigona, Director of Marketing Windy Ferges, and Director of Publicity Kate Tyler across the list in print and upcoming releases. I also acquire and edit for my imprint, which is housed under Ten Speed.
What are your favorite Ten Speed books?
There are too many to name! Books I have loved over the years include: David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop, Jan Venolia’s Write Right!, Delphine Hirasuna’s The Art of Gaman, Heidi Swanson’s Super Natural Cooking, the Carle sisters’ Teens Cook, and Nigel Slater’s Eat.
What is one of your favorite books to have worked on?
A recent favorite is Yotam Ottolenghi’s Simple, which we published last fall. I usually cook from books primarily while I am working on them, but this is one I still frequently cook from. I am an evangelist for a handful of recipes from the book that are spectacularly good and genuinely simple (write me if you want to know which ones).
What’s a new book you’re really excited about and why?
It is perfectly emblematic of Ten Speed’s independent publishing DNA: intelligent, useful, expertly produced, and singular.
What’s your favorite kind of gift store to shop in? / What’s your favorite indie specialty retailer?
Gift stores that curate useful, stylish items for the whole me—mother, spouse, daughter, sister-in-law, friend, neighbor, professional—so I can be super-efficient when shopping. Like my colleagues, I love The Gardener in Berkeley and in my neighborhood in San Francisco I like Rare Device (both carry our books—thank you, Special Markets team!).
What is your personal favorite genre and/or book(s)?
Never ask an editor to choose just one favorite genre!
Nonfiction: Cookbooks that offer great reading and high utility and…biographies about hardship.
Fiction: Novels about regret (Remains of the Day is a favorite).
What are you currently reading?
The Overstory and How to Be an Antiracist.
Thank you for sharing Lorena!!
