Susan Batcheller has been promoted to group commercial operations director of the Walker Books Group, while continuing in her role as vp, marketing services and sales operations at Candlewick. In addition, David Macmillan has joined as group export product and sales manager. Previously he was senior US sales manager for Templar Books in the UK. In the UK, Penguin veteran and legal and human resources director Helena Peacock has been named group legal director for Penguin Random House UK, reporting to Ian Hudson. Random House UK human resources director Neil Morrison has been made Penguin Random House UK group HR […]
Dundurn Press Buys Thomas Allen Publishers
In Canada, Dundurn Press has acquired Thomas Allen Publishers, the publishing arm that Thomas Allen & Son started up in 2000, in a deal expected to close Thursday. The sale includes the publisher’s backlist of 126 titles, including Giller winners HALF BLOOD BLUES by Esi Edugyan and THE POLISHED HOE by Austin Clarke. Dundurn president Kirk Howard told the National Post the deal has been in the works since February, when Thomas Allen president Jim Allen approached him about a possible sale in order to return the parent company “back to its core business, which is distribution.” Dundurn will release the […]
People: Levin Named Acting Publisher of Hyperion, and More
Former publisher of Free Press Martha Levin will be reunited with Hyperion (where she was publisher from 1998 through 2001) on August 5 in the role of acting publisher, reporting to Michael Pietsch. Levin will work there “for at least six months to publish the books under contract and fully incorporate Hyperion’s backlist into HBG’s systems,” Pietsch said in an announcement to staff. In addition, Betsy Hulsebosch will remain with the reconstituted Hyperion, promoted to associate director of marketing and publicity. Levin is “assembling a team” for Hyperion, to include an editor, designer and support staff to work on the […]
Legal: Rowling Sued Leakers and Wins “Substantial Damages”; Klinger Moves For Summary Judgment Against Conan Doyle Estate
Not only was JK Rowling “very angry” with the attorney Chris Gossage at Russells, who leaked her secret writing identity, but she apparently sued both Gossage and his wife’s best friend Judith Callegari, whose ill-considered tweet unmasked “Robert Galbraith.” A statement read by Rowling’s new attorney in a UK High Court indicated she “was angry and distressed that her confidences had been betrayed and this was very much aggravated by repeated speculation that the leak had, in fact, been a carefully co-ordinated publicity stunt by her, her agent and her publishers designed to increase sales.” Plus, “The claimant has been […]
Sales Fall Again At Harlequin, As Higher Digital Royalties Bring Down Profits
Harlequin’s parent company Torstar reported second quarter results Wednesday morning. The book publishing unit had sales of $99.5 million (CA), down by $7.5 million. EBITDA was down $7.6 million in the quarter at $11.5 million, which Torstar attributed to “a combination of lower revenues, higher author royalties for digital sales and less favorable adjustments to prior year returns provisions partially offset by lower costs and savings from restructuring initiative.” The unit also took another $1 million charge — half for staff reductions as part of their ongoing restructuring, and half for “other charges.” As in the past, the 7 percent […]
Pinkus Seeks to Dismiss Latest McIntosh & Otis Suit
Though Samuel Pinkus has yet to respond to Harper Lee’s copyright lawsuit filed last May, he did file a motion to dismiss McIntosh & Otis’s suit from June, alleging he deliberately moved money from one shell company to another to avoid paying the agency more than $850,000. In his motion Pinkus called M&O’s suit a “work of fiction” that is “replete with misleading plot holes” and “wholesale cribbing from the complaint of another party’s pending action” (referring to Lee’s Federal suit). On the matter of whether Pinkus is the alter ego of Veritas Media, and is thus liable to pay that […]