Greensburg, PA – Seton Hill University’s graduate program in Writing Popular Fiction will present “What’s Changing in Genre Fiction: A Panel with Publishing Professionals” Saturday, June 26 from 7 – 8 p.m. in Cecilian Hall on Seton Hill’s campus. The panel will feature Betsy Mitchell, Editor-in-Chief of Del Rey, Literary Agent Jennifer DeChiara and Susan Pezzack, Associate Editor of MIRA Books. Both the panel presentation and the reception to follow in the second floor parlors of Seton Hill’s Administration Building are free and open to the public.

Betsy Mitchell, Editor-in-Chief of Del Rey, received a degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska/Omaha and spent two years as a reporter for the Omaha World-Herald before moving to New York City. She served as managing editor at Analog magazine, senior editor of Baen Books, associate publisher of Bantam Spectra, and founded the Aspect line at Warner Books before joining Ballantine as Editor-in-Chief of Del Rey in 2002. Mitchell has edited such works as “Virtual Light” by William Gibson and “Star Wars: Heir to the Empire” by Timothy Zahn (both New York Times bestsellers); the Hugo Award-winner “Hyperion” by Dan Simmons and the Nebula Award-winner “Parable of the Talents” by Octavia Butler; and received a World Fantasy Award for co-editing the anthology “Full Spectrum 4.”

Before forming The Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency in 2001, DeChiara was a literary agent with Perkins, Rubie & Associates and The Peter Rubie Literary Agency. A New York City-based writer, she has worked in the editorial departments of Simon & Schuster and Random House and has been a writing consultant to several major corporations. Jennifer is a frequent guest at writers conferences, where she lectures on publishing and the art of writing. She is particularly interested in representing children’s books, mysteries, and mainstream fiction.

Susan Pezzack, Associate Editor, MIRA Books, is a born-and-bred Torontonian who grew up mere minutes from the Harlequin offices. She earned her Honours B.A. in Fine Art History and French Language & Literature from the University of Toronto. After taking a long hard look at her interests (reading) and strengths (pointing out other people’s mistakes), she decided that all signs pointed to book editing and so began her degree in Publishing from Ryerson University. Her first publishing job was in sales & marketing with McClelland & Stewart, the venerable Canadian publisher of such notable writers as Margaret Atwood, Robertson Davies, and Michael Ondaatje. Susan joined Harlequin’s marketing team in 1999 as Assistant Product Manager for MIRA Books. In 2000, she eagerly accepted a position in the editorial department to work on three of Harlequin’s romance series: Temptation, Blaze and Duets. Susan returned to the MIRA group in 2002, this time as Associate Editor, and now works with a number of wonderful contemporary fiction and romance authors. For more information on the panel or the Writing Popular Fiction Graduate program at Seton Hill University please contact Wendy Lynn at 724-830-4600 or lynn@setonhill.edu.

Seton Hill, chartered in 1918, is a coeducational Catholic liberal arts university with more than 30 undergraduate programs and 7 graduate programs, including an MBA. Seton Hill brings the world to its students through its distinguished lecturers and nationally and internationally renowned centers. For more information on Seton Hill please visit www.setonhill.edu or call 1-800-826-6234.