Years late to the party but still interesting, Barnes & Noble announced this morning that they will provide free in-store wi-fi. (The bookselling chain has provided paid wi-fi service from AT&T ever since that company took over Wayport. AT&T continues as their provider–and is also the provider selected by Plastic Logic for their ereader.) Clearly one part of the strategy is to help promote their new ebookstore and link the physical stores to sales of ebooks: “All customers shopping in Barnes & Noble stores can now freely download and preview any of the over 700,000 eBook titles with hundreds of […]
People, Booker Longlist and More
Jill Santopolo will join Penguin Children’s Philomel as executive editor in mid-August, reporting to Philomel president and publisher Michael Green. She was formerly senior editor at Balzer & Bray imprint. The Booker Prize Longlist was announced this morning, and Sarah Hall’s How to Paint a Dead Man is the only hope for independent publishers (with Random UK taking 5 slots). Coetzee is a two-time Booker winner; Byatt has won once. The Children’s Book, AS Byatt (Chatto and Windus)Summertime, JM Coetzee (Harvill Secker)The Quickening Maze, Adam Foulds (Jonathan Cape)How to paint a dead man, Sarah Hall (Faber)The Wilderness, Samantha Harvey (Jonathan […]
Sales Rise at Penguin on Currency; Profits Decline, But Education Powers Pearson Gain
Sales rose 22 percent at Pearson for the first half of their fiscal year, at 2.398 billion pounds, with earnings of 28 million pounds, compared to a loss of 62 million pounds this time a year ago. Education, which comprises over 60 percent of the total revenues, was up 29 percent for the period. Penguin sales of 452 million pounds were up 11 percent from a year ago, or 44 million pounds, though operating profit for the division fell 19 percent to 21 million pounds, down from 26 million pounds a year ago. The sales gain was due entirely to […]
People
At HarperCollins, Margot Schupf has been named to the new position of SVP, editorial director, digital publishing for the Morrow/Avon/Eos group. She will “oversee e-book publishing from a content perspective, working to create enhanced products that drive sales and create added value for readers.” Schupf will also acquire “high-profile non-fiction” for Morrow, focusing on lifestyle, diet, and health. At the Simon & Schuster imprint, Danielle Lynn and Kimberly Cowser have both joined the publicity department as senior publicists. Most recently Lynn was a publicist at CBS News, and Cowser was previously at Harper. Simon & Schuster Children’s has hired Fiona […]
E. Lynn Harris Dies
“Pioneer of gay black fiction” and “literary entrepreneur E. Lynn Harris died last night, “after being stricken while at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills” according to the AP. The 54-year-old author was on a book tour for BASKETBALL JONES. His personal assistant indicates to EW “that Harris’ health had declined.” Doubleday says “to our knowledge, the cause of his death is unknown at this time.” Harris’s longtime publicist at Doubleday Alison Rich says: “We at Doubleday are deeply shocked and saddened to learn of E. Lynn Harris’ death at too young an age. His pioneering novels and powerful memoir […]
People
Vanessa Mobley and Lorraine Glennon are joining Broadway reporting to recently-hired publisher Diane Salvatore, starting August 3. Mobley had most recently been at the Penguin Press. Glennon was books editor and senior articles editor at Ladies Home Journal. Webb Younce is leaving Holt and moving to Frankfurt where he will acquire English-language books at Suhrkamp Verlag. At Langenscheidt, Christine Ramos has been promoted to marketing director, and Gina Garza has been promoted to publicity director. Christian Frederking has joined Thames & Hudson as Sales and Marketing Director, an appointment that will take effect after this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair.