Skyhorse Publishing’s Arcade imprint announced Monday morning that it acquired world rights to Woody Allen’s autobiography APROPOS OF NOTHING and has published the book today. Allen added a postscript to the new edition, the AP reports. He writes, “Hachette read the book and loved it and despite me being a toxic pariah and menace to society, they vowed to stand firm should things hit the fan. When actual flak did arrive they thoughtfully reassessed their position, concluding that perhaps courage was not the virtue it was cracked up to be and there was a lot to be said for cowering.” […]
Archives for March 2020
Strand Bookstore Lays Off “The Majority” of Staff
The Strand Bookstore laid off “the majority of our staff” due to store closures caused by the Covid-19 outbreak. Owner Nancy Bass Wyden wrote in a statement, “In order to preserve The Strand as a business, with no revenue coming in and no clear idea as to when we can reopen our doors, we have had to temporarily lay off the majority of our staff.” As of late 2018 the store employed over 230 people, and PW says the layoffs affected 188 people. The store closed a week before the New York state government mandate that went to effect Sunday […]
Ingram Deemed “Essential” and Operates As Nashville Gets Shelter In Place Order
On Sunday, March 22, the Metropolitan Nashville mayor issued a “shelter in place” order beginning at midnight, asking all non-essential businesses to close for 14 days. Ingram Content Group said in statement that their wholesale, distribution, print on demand, and digital services are all considered essential, and they “are encouraged to remain open.” Therefore, “Based on the guidance provided from the various authorities, Ingram Content Group’s global operations remain open at this time. ” ICG president and ceo Shawn Morin said in the release, “At this time, we can report that all our facilities and distribution centers around the world remain open. Ingram […]
Waterstones to Close All UK Branches On Monday
Waterstones announced Sunday that it will close all 280 UK stores at the end of the business day on Monday, after a few workers had complained to the Guardian that few safety precautions were being observed. CEO James Daunt announced the news in an internal email at 4:00 PM Sunday (UK time) — only four afters after vowing that the stores would remain open until the government forced a closure. He made the decision “with great regret” and acknowledged “having heard from many booksellers that they feel obliged to continue to work as long as the shops are open.” Daunt […]
Free Resources: More Updates
A lot of updates came in to our sharable, free web pages on resources and measures the publishing community is taking. Continue to let us know as you add initiatives and information. Also, publishers, since all of your new educational permissions policies vary slightly, try to post the complete guidelines somewhere on your website so that we can link to them, thanks. How to help booksellers — and authors [http://publun.ch/supportBooksellers] Updates include Bookshop’s store directory, and a fund to help authors in the UK How educators can get publisher permissions [http://publun.ch/permissions] Updates from Candlewick, Abrams and Simon & Schuster How students […]
Corporate: Scholastic Closes DCs in Cost Cutting, Bloomsbury Acquires Zed, and More
Scholastic reported results for the third quarter ending February 29, and announced cost and service cuts due to the pandemic: “We are taking aggressive actions to reduce operating expenses throughout the company, including the temporary closing of warehousing and distribution centers, and a freeze on hiring, travel and other discretionary spending not directly tied to short-term revenue, while working hard to ensure the safety and well-being of our staff worldwide,” ceo Richard Robinson said in the release. Overall sales for the quarter were $373 million, up $13 million compared to a year ago. Trade sales were even stronger — at […]