At Knopf, publisher Pat Johnson is taking early retirement to, as a spokesperson noted in a company-wide announcement, "pursue some long-held dreams." She has been at Knopf for 16 years and will leave at the end of this year.

Ira Silverberg is leaving the agenting world to work for the National Endowment for the Arts. Silverberg, who is currently an agent at Sterling Lord, has been named literature director at the government agency. Silverberg has been at Sterling Lord since 2008 and is expected to start at the NEA some time in November.

Mariel Dawson has been promoted to director of advertising and promotion for Macmillan Children's Publishing Group.