• Leave a Comment
• Send an Email
• Invite as Friend

MARK STEWART BIO
Mark Stewart is an American writer and editor of magazines, books and web sites. He is known for his books on sports, history and popular culture. Stewart was born on July 7, 1960 in New York City.

EARLY CAREER
Stewart’s first publishing job was Managing Editor of Racquet Magazine (1988–1992), an upscale tennis publication. He continued to edit magazines throughout the 1990s and 2000s, focusing on business publications in the Sports Product, Footwear, Consumer Electronics, Telecommunications and Outdoor Recreation industries. He also pursued numerous writing freelance assignments during this time, many of which focused on sports and popular culture. His corporate clients included Walt Disney, Pizza Hut, Denny’s, The Children’s Television Workshop, Woodstock ’94 and the NBA. He wrote the copy for the league’s 1992 sales catalog and created the slogan “I Love This Stuff.”

Stewart published his first book in 1992, The Ultimate Insider’s Guide to Baseball Cards (Crown Books). In 1994, Stewart helped International Masters Publishing create its popular Sports Heroes, Facts & Feats continuity product. He oversaw a team of 38 freelance sportswriters that produced more than 500 gatefold athlete profiles.

Also in 1994, Stewart was hired by Grolier to author the All-Pro Biography book series of authorized biographies. The series was aimed at reluctant readers, and featured athletes recounting the challenges and triumphs of their childhoods. Among the athletes Stewart worked with on the series were Dan Marino, Jerry Rice, Steve Young, Barry Sanders, Isiah Thomas, Chris Mullin, Martin Brodeur, Tony Meola, Jeff Gordon and Florence Griffith-Joyner. With his reputation established as a sports author in the educational publishing field, Stewart continued to author sports books for Grolier, Franklin Watts, Children’s Press, Millbrook Press and other companies in the field. He also wrote books under the pen names Rachel Rutledge and Caleb MacLean.


BLACK BOOK & JOCK BIO
In 2002, Stewart entered into a partnership with two publishing professionals with whom he had worked for nearly a decade on a number of challenging projects, Ron Jaffe and Mike Kennedy. They named their company Black Book Partners LLC. Together these three created a custom publishing business that fit hand-in-glove with traditional publishers looking for help with researching, writing, marketing, web design and book packaging.

In 2003, Black Book Partners launched JockBio.com. Each week the site posts a new, comprehensively researched and professionally written biography of a popular athlete. By 2009 JockBio.com was drawing more than a million readers a year.

In 2004, Stewart worked with All-Pro defensive end Simeon Rice on his autobiography, Rush to Judgment. The no-holds-barred account of life as a football star was well reviewed in various publications, including Sports Illustrated. Also in 2004, Stewart and Kennedy collaborated on Hammering Hank, How the Media Made Henry Aaron. Both books were published by the Lyons Press. Lyons later published Mummy Dearest, a book spawned by the hit TV show Mummy Road Show. Stewart and Kennedy worked with scientists Jerry Conlogue and Ron Beckett, the stars of the show. In 2008, Stewart and Kennedy partnered with two more scientists, Jeffrey Garside and Amy Tilmont, on a six-book series for NASCAR, published by Lerner Books. They are also co-authors of the award-winning Lerner titles Long Ball, Swish, Goal, Score and Touchdown, which explore the history and culture of a sport from the perspective of its “quintessential” or signature moment.

Since 2005, Stewart has authored more than 80 books in the Team Spirit series by Norwood House Press. Each Team Spirit book covers the history and culture of a professional sports team. The series is expanding into college football in 2009. Stewart continues to edit magazines, including the lifestyle publication EDGE, with a circulation of 80,000, primarily in Central New Jersey.

PERSONAL
Mark Stewart lives in Monmouth County, New Jersey overlooking Sandy Hook and the Atlantic Ocean. He is married to Sarah Converse Wilson, whom he met at Duke in 1978. They have two children, Mariah (1992) and Rachel (1995). Stewart serves as board secretary for Monmouth Hills and the Twin Lights. Both are National Historic Landmarks.

FAMILY BACKGROUND
Mark Stewart was raised in a publishing family. His grandfather was Lester Markel (1894–1977), the longtime Sunday Editor of the New York Times. Markel created the Week In Review and Sunday Magazine. Stewart’s first name MARK and middle initial L (which is not an abbreviation) create a phonetic version of “Markel.” Stewart’s parents, Jack (1919–1999) and Helen (1918–1990), were also publishing executives. His father worked at the Times for more than 30 years, and was head of the Book Division before it was sold. Stewart’s mother, who worked professionally as Helen Markel, was the Articles Editor for The Ladies Home Journal and McCall’s during the 1960s and 1970s. His stepmother, Linda Stewart is a syndicated travel writer.

EDUCATION
Mark Stewart went through the Ethical Culture School system and graduated from the Fieldston School in Riverdale in 1978. He attended Duke University and graduated with a degree in History in 1984.

MARK STEWART BIO Mark Stewart is an American writer and editor of magazines, books and web sites. He is known for his books on sports, history and popular culture. Stewart was born on July 7, 1960 in New York City. EARLY CAREER Stewart’s first publishing job was Managing Editor of Racquet Magazine (1988–1992), an upscale tennis publication. He continued to edit magazines throughout the 19... More