Just as the Authors Guild has made its signature “model contract” (and new translation model contract) openly available, the organization’s ceo Mary Rasenberger joins us at noon on Wednesday, April 19 as our next weekly AMA guest on the PM forum Discuss. Some people are already posting their questions for Mary; the discussion will happen at this link. As we explained previously, these are straightforward typed message board conversations. No cameras, no sound, no zooming, no separate apps required. Use the “reply” button to type your questions or comments, and Mary will post back. While all of these conversations are […]
Simon & Schuster Decides Not to Distribute Book By Police Officer Who Shot Breonna Taylor
On Thursday evening, following building public pressure online — including objections from house authors including Kiese Laymon and Jennifer Weiner — Simon & Schuster declared it would not distribute a forthcoming book by Louisville Sergeant Jonathan Mattingly, one of the officers who shot Breonna Taylor. The company said in their statement: “Like much of the American public, earlier today Simon & Schuster learned of plans by distribution client Post Hill Press to publish a book by Jonathan Mattingly. We have subsequently decided to not be involved in the distribution of this book.” Earlier on Thursday, S&S had taken their standard […]
Looking At Interest In Books Post-Pandemic
Ingram Content Group held a webinar on Wednesday reviewing some key learnings and trends for the book publishing industry from 2020, and how those developments are carrying over to 2021. Among the topics covered, the company’s digital sales are even stronger so far in 2021 than they were in 2020, with overall sales up 30 percent — driven by academic digital sales, which are up by more than 120 percent. Looking at consumer behavior around books, Pete McCarthy noted, “We saw in 2020 about a 50 percent rise in book-related searches on Google and Amazon…which is a huge shift.” He […]
London Book Fair Officially Cancels Live Event for 2021
The London Book Fair has belatedly confirmed the conclusion already reached by its constituency: The live event, first rescheduled from early March to June 29 – July 1, will not be possible. Fair director Andy Ventris says in the announcement, “With the continued uncertainty around international travel and vaccination rollouts, it has become apparent that an in-person fair for 2021 would not be able to offer the full value to participants that we want to deliver.” At the same time, he says, “We want to do whatever we can to support the international publishing trade as we transition to a […]
Ingram Sells VitalSource to Private Equity Firm
Ingram Content Group has an agreement to sell their etextbook platform VitalSource Technologies to Francisco Partners, an investment firm focused on technology businesses. The acquirer says in the announcement it is, “Committed to furthering the VitalSource mission of improving learner outcomes and accelerating our commitment to developing innovative, forward-thinking solutions and platforms that open doors to affordable and impactful learning experiences to students and professionals around the world.” The deal is expected to close this summer. Ingram bought the business in 2006 and has grown it to service 16 million learners worldwide. VitalSource president Kent Freeman says in the announcement, […]
Book Excerpt: The Patience Behind Lightning In A Bottle
Print on demand is a key part of the supply chain now, with Ingram’s Lightning Source as the leading independent vendor, but that success was hardly a foregone conclusion. As we learn in the forthcoming book THE FAMILY BUSINESS: How Ingram Transformed the World of Books by Keel Hunt, Ingram’s early entrance into the business required extraordinary patience and long-term investment in order to become a success. The book publishes next Tuesday, April 20. Following on our excerpt from last month, we now present an edited version of the chapter, Lightning in a Bottle: What would become one of the most […]