Meet Little, Brown Spark

Meet Little, Brown Spark

Michael Szczerban

VP, Publisher

I publish nonfiction books across a range of interests, from food and culture to storytelling, science, current events, and beyond. I love working with authors to connect readers to their passions. Happily, those collaborations have resulted in many acclaimed bestsellers, including Pete Souza’s Obama: An Intimate Portrait, Samin Nosrat and Wendy MacNaughton’s Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, and Sarah Knight’s No F*cks Given Guides. I got my start as a reader of poetry manuscripts at Carnegie Mellon University Press while studying computer science, and joined Little, Brown in 2014 after working for Simon & Schuster and the Regan Arts imprint at Phaidon. I was a 2017 Publishers Weekly Star Watch honoree and the 2012 recipient of the Lawrence Peel Ashmead Editorial Award, and I write occasionally for Poets & Writers.

Michael Szczerban

Talia Krohn

VP, Editorial Director

I joined Little Brown Spark in 2022 after sixteen years at Penguin Random House. I acquire primarily idea- and research-driven books in business and economics and in the behavioral and social sciences. I am particularly drawn to expert voices with unique insights that help us better understand ourselves, each other, and the ways in which we live and work. Books that I am proud to have published include: Zero to One, Brave, Not Perfect, Essentialism, The Lonely Century, Humor, Seriously, Acting with Power, It’s About Damn Time, Makers and Takers, Insight,The Happiness Advantage, The Power of Broke, and The Start-up of You. While I did not technically attend Stanford University, I have worked with many authors who did.

Karina Leon

Editorial Assistant

As an editorial assistant at Little, Brown Spark, I work on nonfiction books in the categories of health, science, business, self-help, psychology, and social science. I love books that challenge our current perspectives and inspire us to work towards a better reality. My previous publishing experience includes positions at Penguin Random House and Joyland Magazine. I earned my bachelor’s degree from New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where I focused on literature and social and cultural analysis.

Jessica Chun

Senior Marketing Director

I have been with Little, Brown Spark since its launch in 2018. I love working on books that inspire and challenge readers. Previously, I worked at various imprints across Penguin Random House, including Dutton, Gotham Books, Avery, and Dorling Kindersley. At Spark I have the pleasure of working with some really amazing authors such as Daniel Kahneman, Kerry Washington, Marie Kondo, Dr. Mark Hyman, Tricia Hersey, Dr. David Perlmuttter, Nicholas Christakis, Ingrid Fetell Lee, and many more.

Katherine Akey

Senior Marketing Manager

I joined Little, Brown Spark and Voracious in 2021, with focus in marketing nonfiction books that inform and feed readers’ passions. At Little, Brown Spark, I’ve worked with incredible authors including Lyndsie Bourgon, Arline Geronimus, Roy Peter Clark, and Priya Fielding-Singh. Previously, I marketed ELT books at Oxford University Press and medical books at Thieme Medical Publishers. I have a master’s degree in Literature from the University of Colorado, and BAs in English and French.

Gianella Rojas

Marketing Assistant

I joined Little, Brown as the Marketing Assistant in 2022, working across imprints with Voracious, Little, Brown Spark, and Mulholland Books. I’m passionate about sharing books that offer new and thoughtful insight into the world around us, and love finding homes for each book in its different audiences. At Little, Brown, I’ve had the honor of working with wonderful authors such as Marcela Valladolid, Kerri Maniscalco, and Claire Goodchild. A graduate of Macalester College, I earned a BA in Education and English.

Juliana Horbachevsky

Director of Publicity

I am the publicity lead for Voracious and Little, Brown Spark, focusing on the cooking, lifestyle, health/wellness, science, and psychology/self-help categories. I’ve spearheaded publicity campaigns for bestselling authors including Nicholas Christakis, Bobby Flay, Josh Axe, Mark Hyman, David Perlmutter, Jillian Michaels, and Deepak Chopra. At Little, Brown, I’ve had the pleasure of working alongside authors such as Christopher Kimball, Maida Heatter, Isaac Toups, Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, and David Tamarkin. Previously, I worked in publicity at Penguin Random House, Abrams, and Simon & Schuster. A graduate of Loyola University Maryland, I earned my BA with majors in Writing and Marketing.

Lauren Ortiz

Publicity Manager

I joined Little, Brown in 2020 as an associate publicist with our Little, Brown Spark and Voracious. Now, as a publicity manager with the imprints, I spearhead campaigns for our lifestyle, cooking, health and wellness, business,  science, and psychology titles. Prior to joining Little, Brown, I worked at NBCUniversal as a Page in NBCU’s Page Program and later as a publicity coordinator with NBC Entertainment, where I assisted in publicity campaigns for late night- and prime-time television shows including Saturday Night Live and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. 

In my time at Little, Brown, I’ve had the opportunity to work with celebrities, influencers, and impactful thought-leaders from every corner of the world. Highlights include Sam Heughan, Leah Thomas, Arlan Hamilton, Hannah Ritchie, Marcela Valladolid, Christopher Kimball, and many more. In addition to my love of publicity, I am passionate about the diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts at HBG, as such, I serve as the co-lead of the Employees of Color ERG and on Carrie Bloxson’s DE&I Advisory Board.  A graduate of Rutgers Business School – New Brunswick, I earned my BS in Business Marketing. In my free time I love exploring and walking new neighborhoods, paint by the numbers, and traveling. 

Aayushi Agarwal

Publicity Assistant

I joined Little, Brown as a publicity assistant in 2023, after graduating from the University of Connecticut with a BA in English and Psychology. I mainly work as part of the Little, Brown Spark and Voracious imprints, focusing on lifestyle, cooking, health and wellness, science, and psychology. Previously, I have interned at Beacon Press and Barefoot Books.