Just as folks on the East Coast were getting ready to ditch their offices and start the long weekend, the Endeavor Talent Agency sent out a press release from Los Angeles announcing that it had just hired Shawn Coyne (left) as the third member of the New York literary team created when Richard Abate joined the agency earlier this year, followed by Rebecca Oliver. Coyne was most recently the publisher at Rugged Land; before that, he did stints at Dell, St. Martin’s, and Doubleday. His first major editorial accomplishment was to sign up Harlan Coben as an editorial assistant at Dell, while his nonfiction side flourished at Rugged Land with books from the likes of Joe Namath, Brett Favre, and Chris Wallace until the company ceased operations earlier this year.
“I think Shawn has proven to be one of the most dynamic people in publishing,” Abate said when contacted by phone Sunday afternoon. “We’re thrilled to have him, and looking forward to growing with him.”