Former Word Label Group President Barry Landis is joining Howard Books as vice president, associate publisher, effective Jan. 17.

“I am delighted to have someone of Barry’s caliber join our team” said Jonathan Merkh, vice president and publisher. “He brings a wealth of not only marketing and industry knowledge, but is a visionary and will help us take Howard to new heights.”

Tyndale House Publishers Corporate Publicist Mavis Sanders is retiring at the end of October after 40 years in publishing.

“With gratitude to God for His faithfulness, I have chosen to retire from Tyndale House Publishers at the end of October,” she said in announcing her retirement. “What a privilege I have had in a career that has spanned four decades—as an editor for 10 years, followed by 30 years in public relations. I am grateful for the opportunities I was given to work with numerous organizations, authors, retailers and media. In 1997, the door opened for me to serve at Tyndale House. I am grateful to our president, Mark Taylor, and other Tyndale associates, including our PR team led by Todd Starowitz, senior public relations manager.”

In her retirement, Sanders said she expects to spend time with her seven siblings and extended family, travel, engage in local ministry opportunities and “read a few more books!”

For nearly 30 years, Ball she led successful fiction lines for Tyndale House Publishers, Multnomah Books, Zondervan and, most recently, for B&H Publishing Group. She is credited for discovering several best-selling novelists, including Francine Rivers, Karen Kingsbury, Sharon Ewell Foster and Liz Curtis Higgs.

An award-winning novelist and speaker, Ball will work out of her office in Oregon, where she lives.

With 17 years of experience in sales management, Hofmann joined Nelson in 2005—serving most recently as senior vice president of general market and international sales, where she led the division to unprecedented sales growth.

"We are very committed to growing our live-events business," said Thomas Nelson President and CEO Mark Schoenwald. "Sally is a results oriented leader with a proven track record."

Knight brings nearly 30 years of experience in both the publishing and music industries. He joined Nelson in 2007 as vice president of independent retail, leading the Christian retail and ministry sales divisions for the last year and a half.

"Throughout his career, Tom has demonstrated the ability to develop strong teams and build alignment around strategic plans," Schoenwald said. "With his hands-on management, he will rally, support and augment each of our publishing sales divisions."