Editor's Panel: Tiff Liao

Tiff Liao is an editor at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers. She has had the pleasure of editing authors including New York Times bestselling author Tom Adeyemi, Jess Rothenberg, Margaret Owen, K.D. Halbrook, Henry Lien, Kristin O'Donnell Tubb, and Tochi Onyebuchi, among others.

Tiff was a bookish child. She had no idea editors existed. She thought books miraculously appeared on shelves.

Tiff started in the publicity side of publishing, but found she wanted to do more editorial work, and she knew she wanted to work in children's books.

Henry Holt publishes across all genres and bridges literary and commercial, with a good balance of award-winners and bestsellers. Tiff acquires middle grade and older, with a love for fantasy especially with transformative voice and perspective.

Tiff wants to be surprised and entertained by a book, something rooted in a world she hasn't experienced before. There's a visceral reaction to the stories she acquires. "You can feel when someone is writing for their life."