Renni browne biography definition

Renni Browne founded The Editorial Department in 1980 and retired in December 2023 after 57 years editing fiction and nonfiction.

Before she became an editor for Scribner’s in 1966, she was a copy editor for Time-Life Books, co-author of a novel, and assistant fiction editor for Woman’s Day.

When she left Scribner’s, she worked part-time for a paperback publisher and a literary agent while reviewing books for Kirkus, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly. She interviewed to be a senior editor but was told by more than one publisher that although she was qualified, “women aren’t senior editors.” Then the literary agent she worked for told her, “Sol Stein is looking for a senior editor—you’re perfect for him.”

So in 1968 she became senior editor at Stein & Day, where a number of books she acquired and edited over her seven years there landed on the New York Times bestseller list.

She next became a senior editor at William Morrow, where she was encour