In June, nonprofit children’s book organization We Need Diverse Books (WNDB) announced that it would stop using the term #OwnVoices, in favor of authors’ specific descriptions of themselves and their characters. WNDB said that use of the term has forced authors to self-identify in ways that are uncomfortable or dangerous; some diverse identities, such as disability or LGBTQ identities, aren’t self-evident. The hashtag has also become a way to police marginalized writers, “questioning authors who do have lived experience about whether they ‘count’ as ‘diverse enough’ to write about that specific community (for example, in making multiracial or bi+/pansexual authors […]
Archives for July 2021
Warwick Is New Scholastic CEO; Lucchese Becomes Board Chair
Six weeks after the unexpected death of longtime ceo Richard Robinson, independent board member Peter Warwick was named the new president and CEO, approved and announced by the board, effective August 1. Mr. Warwick, 69, has served on the board since 2014. He was EVP and chief people officer at Thompson Reuters until the end of 2017. Warwick says in the announcement, “Dick Robinson built Scholastic into the most admired global children’s book and education business. His devotion to children’s literacy, education, and journalistic integrity was so profound it is ingrained in the culture of the Company. I am deeply […]
People 7/16
Daniel Marrs has joined nonfiction imprint Nelson Books as associate publisher. He was most recently at Ave Maria Press.
Sourcebooks Plans Remote Work Flexibility
Sourcebooks will reopen their offices in Illinois, New York, and Connecticut on September 7, when the company will “welcome back all employees who choose to work out of the office.” Their broader plan will allow every employee to meet with their manager and “define individual plans for their work process.” Depending on their responsibilities, options include working fully remote, a hybrid of remote and in-office, or working in the office full time. The company will also let employees work remotely for up to a month anywhere in the continental US (as long as it’s allowed by the state). On a standing […]
Honoring Mehta and Frank, Writers’ Voices, and Readers
Knopf executive editor Jonathan Segal remembers his colleagues Sonny Mehta and Dan Frank for their “enthusiastic, expansive vision for American literary life” in the Atlantic. And he honors their legacy of focusing on readers to examine the larger moment in publishing: “Readers want the widest possible choice, and the choice is greatest, and the culture richest, when writers have the leeway to initiate a dialogue—an exchange of ideas—in which readers can freely participate.” As he notes, “Condemnation and dismissal lead nowhere, but criticism can be valuable.” More broadly: “Many legitimate and important concerns have surfaced on social media, but Twitter […]
People 7/15
At Penguin Random House, Bryan Bixler has been promoted to vice president, business operations, and Matt Godzieba has been promoted to vice president, director of publishing operations systems.