Publishers and Editors

As a follow up to our discussion about publishing as a business, we’d like to highlight Dan Wickett’s interview with David Poindexter, publisher of MacAdam/Cage. MacAdam/Cage is a small publisher with an unusual policy: they read everything that is submitted. Okay, we’re not being fair — we know full well that other publishers read what is submitted (in fact, we know of publishers whose editorial staff reads all submissions even after the work has come back from the reader “not recommended”). We believe, but cannot be certain, that the point being made here is that MacAdam/Cage isn’t an “agented-only” house […]

Where we keep up with the Joneses so you don’t have to. There are certain jobs where one is, by definition, isolated from reality: politician, Hollywood executive, and book publisher. That is the only possible explanation for the fact that, gulp, Gangsta Lit is any sort of phenomenon. After all, there is no evidence on MTV or the streets to indicate that the hip hop lifestyle (yes, that is our tongue firmly in our cheek) has gone mainstream. White kids in small mid-western towns call each other “homie”. Yet publishers shied away from so-called hip hop stories (something about sending

We read Sarah Weinman’s post on the publishing business without our rose-colored glasses (they were lost in an unfortunate incident we’d rather forget). Her comments and experience certainly mirrored ours. A few other bloggers have weighed in on the topic, and while we appreciate idealism (we even exhibit it sometimes), we feel compelled to offer our thoughts on their thoughts. Maybe it’s because we suffered in Hollywood for too long, but we know the struggle between art and commercially viable. It is the commercially viable that often makes the art possible, as much as we hate the idea that the

The recent announcement that sales of ebooks increased in the first quarter of 2004 reminded us that it wasn’t quite a year ago that funeral arrangements were underway for the medium. After all, if you couldn’t buy them from Barnes and Noble, where could you buy them? We were being rhetorical, of course Powell’s would be our first destination. We never bought into the “I prefer to hold something” argument, especially given the fact that an entire generation is growing up with fingers attached to keyboards. Perhaps it was that the Internet made all revolutions seem so effortless — ebook

We doubt we’re alone in thinking that adolescence should be banned. It is, hands down, the worst life has to offer — and then some. Yet there are authors who persist in revisting this inglorious time. Perhaps it’s the fantasy of finally getting high school right, maybe it’s repressed revenge on the head cheerleader. Places for Writers offers up a new market for authors who write with the soul of a teenager. Lobster Press seeks YA fiction

Red Dress Ink, building on its success in English-speaking chicklit (we may revisit this sentence later), will begin issuing books in Spanish. Seven titles, originally isssued in English, are hitting prime markets as we speak. More will follow, depending on the success of the initial run. Given the careful and extensive market research done by Harlequin, we predict success both for Red Dress and its authors. Red Dress Ink

Okay, students, pay attention. We have changes at Random House (you do keep your publisher org charts in pencil, right?). One: Nancy Miller (Ballantine) is now an executive editor. This means some of you may need to reprint your query letters. Two: Jonathan Karp is editor-in-chief of the imprints, including, but not limited to, RH Trade Paperbacks and Modern Library. Daniel Menaker is now executive editor-in-chief of RH Publishing Group (this is what happens when you run out of vertical titles; they expand horizontally). Apparently everything else will remain the same. Random House

While gay romance isn’t exactly new, it isn’t exactly mainstream. Yet. Scott Whittier and Scott Pomfret want to change that — and they’ve created Romentics for that very purpose. In a convenient tie-in to our posting on the demise of Lad Lit, it turns out women are interested in gay romance. Actually, we’re not sure how much of a tie-in that is, but what the heck. We do have a small quibble with the two Scotts (yes, we’re going to refrain from commenting on the cuteness of that). Sure, there’s a formulaic element to romance, but don’t be guys about

First, the story from Variety has a suspiciously…normal headline. That sort of makes us think the whole thing is a prank. Second, we’re of the belief that movie studios should keep their grubby paws out of publishing. Sure, Time Warner enjoys some success, but for New Line Cinema to acquire The Chicken House, a UK children’s publisher? Um, well, it’s a great deal for the head of the publisher (whose stable of writers will be developing their own screenplays). We don’t mean to come off as pessimistic first thing in the morning, but let’s just say we’ve seen this before.