Andrea Joyce has joined Duckworth Books to handle its North American rights sales. She was most recently rights director at Canongate.
Shanna Hogan, journalist and true crime author of books including Dancing With Death and Picture Perfect: The Jodi Arias Story, died on September 1, following a tragic accident. (She suffered brain damage after stumbling, hitting her head and falling into the family’s pool last week.)
Hogan was working on a new book at the time of her death. Her editor Charles Spicer said “Shanna Hogan was an intrepid journalist, a talented writer, a natural podcast star – and an enthusiastic and loving first time mother. Speaking as her editor, she was a dream to work with, the consummate professional who was also a kind and thoughtful person with a natural warmth and a delightful sense of fun. We at St. Martin’s Press will miss her terribly.”
Randall Kenan, 57, North Carolina author of Let the Dead Bury Their Dead and most recently If I Had Two Wings, has died.
Awards
The Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize winner is Voice of the Fish by Lars Horn.
Forthcoming
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s Best American Mystery Stories will be renamed Best American Mystery & Suspense Stories, and Steph Cha will take over from longtime founding series editor Otto Penzler for the 2021 edition.
Cha tells Sarah Weinman, “I’ve always thought that race should be a driving factor in American crime fiction. If you were paying attention to the news over the last several months, how could we not make that connection…. BAMS should reflect some of these recent changes and reckonings.”
Bookselling
Independent booksellers face a host of challenges this fall, and ABA ceo Allison Hill writes a thorough overview of recommendations and resources. One theme that is reinforced multiple times: Between printing issues, Covid-related supply chain slowdowns, and shipping delays, “booksellers will still need to prioritize stocking up early this year and ordering up on titles they anticipate to be hot.”
ABA “has been in conversation with Ingram about both the anticipated demand for the indies and Ingram’s preparation for Q4. Ingram is hiring seasonal associates and increasing shift hours; they have ordered up early to have seasonal books a month earlier than last year; they’re working with their transportation partners to anticipate challenges; and they’ve increased customer service staffing.” Ingram is also incentivizing early ordering ahead of the holidays and “will be announcing promotions in October to encourage stores to stock up.”