The Zora Neale Hurston Trust is now being represented by the Joy Harris Literary Agency. (Hurston’s work was previously represented by Victoria Sanders & Associates.)
Singer-songwriter, poet, and novelist Leonard Cohen, 82, died Thursday. Jared Bland at his longtime publisher McClelland & Stewart said in a statement, “His work, in all its forms, touched our hearts, informed our lives, and made our world better. It is almost impossible to imagine a world without his singular voice. His presence will never be forgotten. His profound art will endure.”
Literary agent Ed Victor celebrated 40 years in business at a party in London on Thursday night, and the Bookseller joins the celebration with a long interview: “I think agents mediate and enhance and improve the publishing process,” Victor says. “I regard my role as being independent, I will say to an author, ‘No, no, the publisher is right in this case.’ It is not my job to blindly support the author. I think you support them better by telling them what you regard as the truth.”
More broadly: “If there is a person I really like and want to be close to, whose work is OK but doesn’t make very much money, I’ll do it. If there is another, one who isn’t a very nice person but who has written an extraordinary book, [even if ] it won’t make a lot of money I’ll do it, because I love books. If you find something great, you want to disseminate it and bring it to the world. And if there is a book by someone who [he laughs] is not wonderful, and the book is not particularly good, but it is going to make a lot of money, I owe it to my company to do it. I have to feed its hungry maw.”
Bookselling
One week after reports of a delay, Barnes & Noble has now announced a plan to open its first new concept store in Eastchester, NY on Thursday, November 18. So far, attention has focused on the launch of Barnes & Noble Kitchen, a 2,600-square-foot serving food all day along with wine and local craft beers. Apparently the store will also sell some books.