Lori Perkins
Lori Perkins | |
|---|---|
| Born | White Plains, New York, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | New York University (B.A.) |
| Occupation(s) | Literary agent President, L. Perkins Agency Book publisher Owner, Riverdale Avenue Books Partner, RomanceBeat.com |
Lori Perkins is an American literary agent, book publisher and author. In 2012, she founded Riverdale Avenue Books, an e-book publishing company, in Riverdale, Bronx.[1][2]
Early life and education
Perkins was born in White Plains, New York, and grew up in Upper Manhattan, where she went to Barnard School for Girls and graduated from The Bronx High School of Science in 1977.[citation needed] She earned a B.A. in art history and journalism from New York University in 1980.[3][4]
Career
In 1987, Perkins founded her own literary agency, the L. Perkins Agency in 1990, which has represented seven books on the New York Times Best Seller List including How to Make Love Like a Porn Star by Jenna Jameson, J.K. Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter by Marc Shapiro and The Hunger Games Companion by Lois Gresh.[5] The New York Chapter of Romance Writers of America named her Agent of the Year in 2010.[6]
She co-founded the e-publishing company Ravenous Romance in 2012[3] and was the editorial director from 2008 to 2012. The Story of L by Debra Hyde won a Lambda Literary Award in 2012, which was published by Ravenous Romance.[7] In 2012, she founded Riverdale Avenue Books located in Riverdale, Bronx which publishes e-books and audiobooks.[8] Riverdale's imprints include a Riverdale/Magnus joint imprint of LGBT titles as well as titles focusing on horror, science fiction and fantasy, erotica and romance, mystery and thriller.[8][9] In 2013, Riverdale was named the Bisexual Publisher of the Year from the Bi-Writer's Association.[10] Riverdale's authors include Cecilia Tan, Riki Wilchins, Trinity Blacio, Marc Shapiro, Chris Shirley, Gabby Rivera, and Andrew Gray. In February 2020, Riverdale Avenue Books acquired Circlet Press.[9]
She is the author of The Cheapskate's Guide To Entertainment; How to Throw Fabulous Parties on a Budget, The Insider's Guide To Getting A Literary Agent,[11] The Everything Family Guide to Washington, D.C., The Everything Family Guide To New York and Fifty Writers on Fifty Shades Of Grey (BenBella Books).[1][2] She is also the co-author of Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Watergate* But Were Afraid to Ask with journalist Brian J. O’Connor,[12] as well as the historical romance novella Two Dukes and a Lady and Two Dukes are Better Than One under the pseudonym Lorna James, co-authored with USA Today author Jamie Schmidt.
She is the editor of 1984 in the 21st Century, published by Riverdale Avenue Books, a collection of 25 essays and opinions on today's relevance of George Orwell's classic dystopian novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four.[13] Perkins has also edited more than twenty erotica anthologies, including Hungry For Your Love, a zombie romance anthology, which was published by St. Martin's Press.[14] In 2017, Perkins edited and published an anthology of 26 essays titled #MeToo: Essays About How and Why This Happened, What It Means and How to Make Sure It Never Happens Again.[15][16][17]
She has blogged about feminism for the Women's Media Center[18] and is an author member of Romance Writers of America and serves on the Lambda Literary Awards Host Committee.[19]
Personal life
She regularly speaks on panels and conferences on publishing and the value of female-centered erotica.[5][20][21] Perkins is also a member of the Lambda Literary Awards Host Committee.[19] After receiving chemotherapy following a cancer diagnosis, Perkins cut back to 50 hours/week at Riverdale Avenue Books.[22]
References
- ^ a b "Fifty Writers on Fifty Shades of Grey edited by Lori Perkins". Kirkus Reviews. November 20, 2012.
- ^ a b "Nonfiction Book Review: Fifty Writers on Fifty Shades of Grey by Edited by Lori Perkins". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on September 20, 2012.
- ^ a b Schultz, Ricki (January 3, 2010). "Agent Advice: Lori Perkins of L. Perkins Agency". Writer's Digest. Retrieved April 1, 2025.
- ^ "NYU Class Notes | 1980s" (PDF). alumnimagazine.nyu.edu. Fall 2009. p. 57. Retrieved April 1, 2025.
- ^ a b "Lori Perkins: An agent with L. Perkins Agency". duotrope.com. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
- ^ "Golden Apple Awards Honorees 1996-2019". www.rwanyc.com/. Romance Writers of America. Retrieved 1 April 2025.
- ^ "24th Annual Lambda Literary Award Finalists and Winners". Lambda Literary. Archived from the original on July 1, 2012. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
- ^ a b "New E-book House, Riverdale Avenue Books, to Launch in December". Publishers Weekly. December 7, 2012. Archived from the original on December 9, 2012.
- ^ a b Reid, Calvin (February 26, 2020). "Riverdale Avenue Books Acquires Circlet Press". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020.
- ^ "2013 Bisexual Book Awards Winners". Locus Magazine. June 4, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
- ^ Gray, James L. (December 1999). "'Agent' shares inside secrets". The Quill. 87 (9): 42. ProQuest 219748143.
- ^ "Brian J. O'Connor - Penguin Random House". www.penguinrandomhouse.com. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
- ^ "Interview With Author Lori Perkins". bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.ca. 19 March 2017.
- ^ Bexte, Matina. "Hungry For Your Love: An Anthology of Zombie Romance edited by Lori Perkins". Book Loons Reviews.
- ^ Moustakas, Tiffany (3 November 2017). "'Me too' conversation comes to Riverdale". Riverdale Press. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
- ^ Jarema, Kerri (29 November 2017). "You Can Get This Book Of #MeToo Essays For Free Right Now". Bustle. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
- ^ Ramsland, Katherine (November 12, 2017). "MeToo: A Watershed Moment | Collection of sexual assault narratives illuminates shared trauma and healing". Psychology Today. Retrieved April 2, 2025.
- ^ Perkins, Lori (August 14, 2012). "Plunging Necklines, Helen Gurley Brown, and Me". Women's Media Center. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
- ^ a b "29th Annual Lambda Literary Award Finalists Announced". lambdaliterary.org. 14 March 2017.
- ^ "Key Note Speaker". shadesofromancecon.com. Archived from the original on 2015-01-23.
- ^ "Lori Perkins". Gke2014.sched.org. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
- ^ Bussewitz, Cathy (February 19, 2025). "Working well: Saying no can be difficult for some people, but setting boundaries can improve health". National Post. Toronto. p. A11 – via newspapers.com.