Deborah Treisman Will Make You Feel Like an Underachiever.

Deborah Treisman replaced Bill Buford in '03 as The New Yorker's Fiction Editor when she was just twenty seven years old. Before being promoted to Fiction Editor, she was Buford's Deputy Editor and served as Managing Editor of Grand Street Magazine.

Treisman typically comes under scrutiny in June when the magazine's 20 Under 40 List comes out. She's responsible for putting all those names on the list. Here's her talking to the Wall Street Journal about the process.
"It was a long taxing process but also fun. We started about six or seven months before the initial fiction issue came out last June."

The process, according to DT, goes like this:
-Brainstorming in the office with all the other fiction editors.
-Conferring with other publishing houses and writers for additional names for their list.
-Aggregating submissions from their selected authors to read and discuss (all the authors have to have new writing to be accepted)
-Short listing a group of around 40 authors.

The interview is a little dry, being the WSJ, but a good way to get a sense of who this overachiever is.

PS it turns out LOTS of boys in the blogosphere have 'smart girl' crushes on Ms. Treisman.
PPS All their hopes for geek love are for naught because Mrs. Treisman is married to indie rocker Ken Cumings of Shelby.