About Us

Lori Ames has been involved in book publishing and book publicity since the early eighties.  After receiving her degree from Hofstra University in 1979, she worked briefly for a mass market paperback publisher, and then began her publicity career at a boutique book publicity agency in New York City.  After more than three years there, she joined book publisher William Morrow, where she remained for six years, advancing to the position of publicity director. During her tenure with William Morrow, she worked with many bestselling authors, celebrities, and sports figures.

She returned to the boutique agency in 1991 where she remained until late 2010, helping run the day-to-day business, overseeing all publicity campaigns, and working on strategic planning to stay on top of new media while driving clients’ books to the country’s bestseller lists.

In late 2010, Lori’s son was diagnosed with an inoperable malignant brain tumor, so she left the fast-paced world of Manhattan to care for her son and in the process set up her own agency (her son Robert is doing very well and plays an important role at the company).  Lori serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. She is a regular speaker at the Principles of Marketing classes at the Zarb School of Business, at the Book Promotion course at Hofstra University, and has spoken at the National Speaker’s Association’s Mega Million Publishing Lab. In addition, Lori contributed a chapter to the book Adventures Of Women Entrepreneurs:  Stories That Inspire by Robin Behrstock & Contributors (Radius Press / 2017) as well as an essay to The Road Ahead:  Inspirational Stories Of Open Hearts And Minds by Jane Seymour (Post Hill Press / 2017).

Robert Ames is the inspiration behind the founding of the ThePRFreelancer, Inc.  Having worked for Lori in New York City as a part time publicity assistant, he was diagnosed with an inoperable malignant brain tumor in October 2010.  Fast forward to the present, Robert has battled hard and is in the office every day keeping everybody on their toes.

Jenna Mallimo graduated from St. Joseph’s College with a B.A. in English Literature along with a minor in Marketing. During her undergraduate career, Jenna interned at W.W. Norton in their Marketing and Publicity department. She enjoys promoting books while creating a community for clients and their audience. In her free time, Jenna loves to read, listen to music, and go to concerts.  

 

Michael Mejer started at ThePRFreelancer, Inc. as an intern, worked full time while finishing up his senior year at Dowling College and now works for the firm on a project by project basis while completing his journey towards an MBA.  Michael has mad graphics skills, helps clients create an online presence by developing a social media presence for them, and he also handles website and graphic design. He is also a noted young adult entrepreneur, having started his own clothing line while a freshman in college.