When A Book Simply Doesn’t Need To Be

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We encountered a bit of radical and bit of paranoid this morning. Naturally, that intrigued us. A theory that not all books need to be put into book form coupled with the worry that digitizing content might lead to controlling access. How much fun is that? Publishers, someday, you are going to look back at those words and see the beginning of the beginning. Why do all books have to be in printed, bound format/ Especially those books designed to capture the pop personality of the moment? These are not books designed to sit on shelves, to be picked up, […]

The Future of Publishing

For Those About To Podcast, We Advise You

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It is probably safe to say that if you haven’t yet heard the word “podcast”, you are not paying attention. If you are not paying attention, do not worry. You’re missing out on lots of other things, too. If you are paying attention, you might be getting antsy, worrying as you did during the blog explosion, if you should be leaping on the bandwagon. If all the cool kids are doing it, shouldn’t you be doing it? As we often do when faced with certain topics, we turn to Jill as an example. We like hanging out with Jill because

Marketing For Introverts

File Under: It Could Happen To You

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Sometimes we look beyond the world of publishing. It’s a surprisingly big planet, all things considered. Yet in all corners of the globe, we find people just like us: An instant later, Mr Flynn’s 6ft, 13st frame was hurtling towards the first of the vases, all of which were displayed on a windowsill. “Although [I knew] the vase would break I didn’t imagine it would be loose and crash into the other two,” he said. “I’m sure I only hit the first one and that must have flown across the windowsill and hit the next one, which then hit the

Square Pegs

The Mysterious Voice

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In other Time Warner Books news (yes, we know, we didn’t mention the sale, but not because we don’t care; we are engaged in a new process for such news), MediaBistro interviews Kristen Weber editor at Mysterious Press and Warner Books. We’re going to end the suspense now: Mysterious Press, for those who aren’t reading closely, is dedicated to genre fiction. You may figure out the correct genre on your own. The key to a good mystery is a good mystery, but behind the clues and red herrings and series-building lies the one thing that separates an author from the

Publishers and Editors

Thinking Hard About The New HarperCollins Venture? Excellent, Excellent

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For our thoughts on HarperCollins’ recent decision to try an advertiser-supported program, look no further. Or rather look no further after you click the link. Yes, we heard you, one person who thinks our obsession with the future of publishing is bizarre. We have attempted to address your concerns, but strongly suspect it’s not going to take. We are lazy. HarperCollins Tries Online Publishing On For Size

Non-Traditional Publishing, The Future of Publishing

On The American Vernacular

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In his prime, a century after the Declaration of Independence, Twain was a Yankee original who rendered the vocabulary and tone of the American vernacular, previously despised, in a way that was neither parody, nor caricature, but literature. The voice of America: Through his novels – and heroes – Mark Twain was indisputably the United States’s first literary superstar. Ron Powers examines his life and work in an exhilarating new biography, says Robert McCrum

Quote of the Week

The World of Publishing, February Begins Edition

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And here is publishing world round-up for this week: James Freyed by agent who sez ‘trust broken’ – Kassie Evashevski of Brillstein-Grey dumped James Frey. Turns out he lied to her, too. Kate Rogers moves to Mountaineers Books as editor-in-chief. National Lampoon Plans to Yuk it Up in Print – National Lampoon, not satisfied with the highly-lucrative direct-to-video market opens an publishing division. Ten to twelve titles annuallly, distribution by Holtzbrinck, presumably funny. Juliet Ulman was named senior editor at Bantam Dell. Per Publisher’s Lunch: “At Harcourt, editor-in-chief Becky Saletan has been promoted, given the additional title of associate publisher.”

Agents, Publishers and Editors

When Booksellers Go, uh, Unexpurgated

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We’re going to say straight up that we don’t believe a new mission statement makes for a new mission, but we are always pleased when the publishing industry looks forward. The New England Booksellers Association has set forth an ambitious plan and created some interesting goals to achieve them: The committee also calls on NEBA to increase member competitiveness through better communication, including unexpurgated blogs, and a program for in-store peer review. We will spend the rest of our day wondering how “unexpurgated” blogs will fit into the mix. We have unfortunate visions at the moment, and surely do not

The Business of Publishing

On Opportunity

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. . .an email seen by L.A. Weekly suggests that Barrus is already attempting to parlay his newfound notoriety into a tell-all memoir. In an ironic twist, he calls the new work a novel. Nasdijj Shops Tell-All – And signs his real name to blog

Quote of the Week

Clever Author Tricks, Or How Booksellers Feel About Turning Titles Face-Out

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Bookseller Chick, who is somewhere on the West Coast, but probably not Pasadena as she never speaks of her home in terms that imply sheer perfection, answered reader questions this week. She deigned to address the issue of authors who turn their books cover out (or their friends who help do this), drive-by signings, and chocolate as bribery. We are pleased to see her stance on bookmarks and other important issues. And we are pleased to note that rudeness still doesn’t pay (at least not well): What appears to happen (and what has happened in my store) is that friends

Marketing For Introverts
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