The Daily Square – If We Can Land A Man On The Moon, Surely I Can Win Your Heart Edition
Today’s links of interest: Jim-Butcher.Com: New Fanfiction PolicyInteresting. An author embraces fan fiction and Creative Commons. Well done.
On Acknowledging Truths
The shifts in today’s publishing business are happening lightening fast and iceberg slow. Epiphanies strike at odd moments. Brett Sandusky had one. Below is where he ended up; read his entire post (linked below) to see how he got there. In the end, no amount of market research, anecdotal evidence, kaffee klatsches, or cocktail parties can ever replace actual and real interaction with our customers. Recently, I attended a conference where a panelist kept repeating throughout her presentation, “The reader is the consumer who is your customer. I openly admit that, at the time, I begrudged this panelist for stating
Small Teams and Acquisitions: A Collection of Messy Thoughts
Since the announcement that HarperStudio was being shuttered and its staff, Bob Miller excepted, would be absorbed into the larger HarperCollins machine, I have been thinking about what this means for publishers. HarperStudio was a high-profile experiment that barely had time to emerge from start-up mode, much less to achieve goals great and small. From my outsider perspective, one of their greatest accomplishments was proving the effectiveness of small teams. I may be romanticizing Studio, but it seemed to me an entity that functioned fairly autonomously within the larger HarperCollins entity. Yes, they could tap into the mighty HC machine,
The Daily Square – Warmer Edition
Today’s links of interest: Amazon.com Cuts Prices on Penguin Hardcovers in E-Book TiffOh, the antics of major corporations. Too cute.
The Daily Square – Silverado Days Edition
Today’s links of interest: Me, Mom, and Ray Bradbury : The New SleeknessA mostly true story. Crown Restructured Into Distinct Groups; Shaye Areheart Books ClosedLots of big news in here. A bit disconcerted about the Shaye Areheart news — though the editor remains with the company — as it seems like one of the few identifiable brands created by publishers these past years.
The Daily Square – The Aristocratic Swells Edition
Today’s links of interest: Patrons Are Consumers, and Consumers Are Patrons; or, How Publishers Can Learn To Stop Worrying and Love Libraries AgainLibrarian Heather McCormack on the synergy between libraries, booksellers, and publishers: I respect publishers’ right to make money. I want houses large, medium, and small to thrive, or I’m out of a job and a calling. Why Men Don’t Read: How Publishing is Alienating Half the PopulationWhile Jason Pinter makes good points, we respectfully disagree with his thesis, particularly as you slice and dice book categories. Literary fiction? Way too much male navel gazing. Non-fiction? Probably a lot
The Daily Square – Comrade’s Twenty-Sixth Edition
Today’s links of interest: Los Angeles Book Festival Draws Record Crowd130,000 people. Just amazing. Even better? How great the festival is for booksellers. On serendipityOr, how can we create the tools needed to reach audiences who have diverse interests and needs…but not so much time? GetGlue links Web resources for movies, books and music togetherWe love Glue (and are wondering who the cool chick with the massive laptop might be)! Press Release: Perseus Book Group Joins EdelweissEdelweiss continues to impress by making great deals and a great product.
The Daily Square – Ballad Of The Lonely Argonaut Edition
Today’s links of interest: Random House Cedes Some E-Rights to Styron ClanIn the first major decision of what will be a long battle, Open Road Media gets digital rights to works by William Styron. The real challenge ahead? Traditional publishers proving their worth to authors whose contracts don’t explicitly give digital rights to their current publishers. Or, want to keep the author? Cough up better terms. Yeah, I Carry My iPad in a Purse? Wanna Make Something Out of It?Richard Curtis focuses on the key topic of the day: unicorn scabbards. Book Expo America 2024: Reading Lives!Ah, predicting the future.
The Daily Square – Calm Go The Wild Seas Edition
Today’s links of interest: Big ‘Tinkers’ Shipment Rolling Next WeekHoping demand for Tinkers meets supply of 100,000 units. That would be awesome. Book was happily available for Kindle users — why not ready ready in EPUB for others?
The Daily Square – Emma Blowgun’s Last Stand Edition
Today’s links of interest: Books as Weather: Or, Help Me OutGenius. Also, useful. ‘Who I Am’: Poetry Not Wasted On The Young : NPRIt’s National Poetry Month, and we were thrilled to hear this NPR story. Yay for Sourcebooks! A New Source for eReader Data Says 5 Million eReaders Shipped in 2009Entity that tracks display screens for ereaders (and you thought you were specialized!) indicates a large number of readers shipped in 2009 (as opposed to sold). Kindle shipments estimated at 3.3 million. (PubLunch, membership required)