Book scouting might be seen as one of the more glamorous positions in publishing, but the job is more than gossipy lunches and international travel. Scouting is a rigorous job with ties to all aspects of the business, influenced as much by local book trends as the global economy. As part of our compensation series, we spoke to literary scouts about how the job works, where the money comes from, and why the segment is shrinking. Scouts are essentially consultants hired by foreign publishers and film/TV studios to help them acquire books for publication or adaptation. They trade in information, […]
Bloomsbury Reports Strong First Quarter
Bloomsbury released a brief trading update on Tuesday for the four months ended June 30, reporting “strong performance” that was in line with expectations for the year (£319.3 million in sales and £37.6 million in profit before taxation and highlighted items). The company acquired Roman & Littlefield’s academic publishing business during the period, which they expect will boost their Bloomsbury Digital Resources sales from £27 million in 2023/24 to £41 million in 2027/28. “The enlarged Academic business will focus on wider international sales, subject area expansion and continued innovation in digital scholarship and learning,” they said in a release. “The […]
People 7/16
New Books Publishing July 16
This week’s fiction releases include new titles by Lev Grossman and Alexander McCall Smith, while Liz McNeil and Rosemarie Terenzio and James Patterson publish new biographies. Also out this week are new titles by Hyeseung Song, Ruby Todd, and Wendy Grolnick, Benjamin Heddy and Frank C. Worrell, all of which are excerpted in our Buzz Books 2024: Spring/Summer sampler. 28 works of fiction https://bookshop.org/lists/new-fiction-publishing-july-16 17 works of nonfiction https://bookshop.org/lists/new-nonfiction-publishing-july-16 From Buzz Books https://buzz.publishersmarketplace.com/ We consult a number of sources in compiling our weekly lists and PM members can see our […]
People 7/15
Reisman Says Stepping Back from Indigo CEO Role Was a “Two-Year Misstep”
After a rough pandemic, a cyber attack that shut down digital and in-store operations in 2023, and turnover in its executive ranks, Indigo CEO Heather Reisman noted in a podcast taping that the company has had a “tough four years,” the Canadian Press reports. Reisman stepped back from the company’s CEO role in 2022 and retired last year, a “wrong decision” that she said cost the company $120 million (CA). She said that the pandemic cost Indigo $160 million (CA) in cash, and the combined hit took a toll on the chain. “That’s a lot of money for any retail […]