Both authors and former employees of Foundry Literary + Media have indicated problems recently in receiving payments due from the agency. In September, Foundry’s co-founders Yfat Reiss Gendell and Peter McGuigan went separate ways to create YRG Partners and Ultra Literary respectively. Authors represented by Foundry report having received royalty checks that bounced, starting some time in late November. Two authors contacted the Authors Guild for assistance, and the organization has heard from some former Foundry agents as well. A demand letter sent to Gendell and McGuigan did result in a wire payment. (Knowingly issuing a bad check is a […]
Instituting A Winter Editors Buzz Panel: Seven Great Editors and Authors, and More
After a great inaugural virtual Buzz Panel last May (and a Romance Buzz Panel over the summer), we are excited to add a Winter Editors Buzz Panel to our schedule, ahead of the now-virtual Winter Institute. We are proud to be joined by the American Booksellers Association as co-presenter of the event, with ABA board member and co-owner of Solid State Books in Washington, DC Jake Cumsky-Whitlock serving as moderator. The panel convenes Wednesday, January 27 at 7 PM EST. You can register starting now — and the first 50 booksellers who register will get a package of printed galleys […]
Another Chance for PublishersMarketplace At A Discount
Many people took advantage of our holiday offer earlier this month to try a deep dive into the full resources of PublishersMarketplace.com at a substantial discount. So we’re finished the year with one more short window to try again: Use the “promo code” HNY21 in the indicated field when you register and enjoy the first month of service for just $15. Feel free to share this offer with anyone you think might be interested. (Please note, you must enter code in the “Promo Code: ___” box when registering to work.) This code is valid for a few days only, and […]
NetGalley Was Hacked, Customer Data Compromised
On Monday, December 21 NetGalley “experienced a data security incident” that included the hacking of a backup database file. (A profane image was also posted on their home page, initially leading the company to believe the attack was “a simple defacement of our homepage.”) User data — including passwords and associated personal data — “became easily attainable by a hacker” due to “a temporary lapse in security protocol for one of our testing servers.” All NetGalley users will need to reset their passwords to access the site. More importantly, if you used your NetGalley password for any other site, that […]
People, Etc.
Obituaries National Book Award winner Barry Lopez, 75, died Christmas Day following a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. Publishing veteran Roland Elgey, 65, died recently of colorectal cancer. He was 65 years old. His 40 years in publishing included serving as president of Que Computer Publishing and svp of sales at Que/Sams, Hungry Minds. Later in his career he worked in publishing services, most recently as vp for business development at Integra Software Services. Biographer Scott Donaldson, 92, died on December 1 of lung cancer. Poet Jean Valentine, 86, whose collection Door in the Mountain, won the 2004 National Book Award, […]
Briefs
Elizabeth A. Harris has been named a new publishing reporter at the New York Times, and will move over from culture to books. Harris joined the NYT in 2009. Book of the Month readers picked Brit Bennett‘s THE VANISHING HALF as their Book of the Year. The book was also the No. 1 checkout at the New York Public Library this year. The Book Industry Study Group (BISG) has published the 2020 update to the BISAC book publishing subject codes.This year’s update added 155 codes and modified 123 literals. As executive director Brian O’Leary notes, “The BISAC Subject Codes are […]