Kevin Doughten will join Crown as senior editor on September 24, focusing on non-fiction. He was most recently an editor at Viking. Olga Rogozina has joined the Van Lear Agency in Moscow as both a literary agent and contracts manager. Previously she was foreign rights manager at Astrel. Founder of Chicago’s 10-store Beck’s Bookstores, Bob Beck, 91, died last week at Northwestern Hospital. “Today, a marketing major would say he had a business plan. Back then, it was called an angle. He sold books at Beck’s for less than the college bookstores charged, and he paid more when the used […]
Hachette Further Clarifies Higher eBook Library Pricing
In follow-up correspondence Hachette spokesperson Sophie Cottrell clarified some additional points relating to its change of terms with ebook distributors to libraries and the “internal systems issue” that apparently delayed OverDrive’s ability to implement the new terms. Hachette reports that they did indeed realize several months ago that OverDrive had not ingested their library ONIX feed, adding “we don’t know why the OD system had more difficulties than others and have been working with them to resolve their issues.” The other library vendors Hachette works with “experienced no delay in ingesting new ONIX and reflecting new prices to their customers” […]
Higher Hachette Library eBook Pricing Draws Attention
In an email to customers Thursday afternoon, Overdrive told library customers to expect a substantial increase in prices on the catalog of Hachette Book Group ebooks they make available for library purchase (approximately 3,500 titles released prior to April 2010) by what they said is an average of about 220 percent. (A separate post from the distributor cites sample increases for individual titles ranging from 50 percent to 150 percent.) Overdrive said libraries could purchase ebooks at the old, lower prices up until midnight September 30. What’s missing from many other reports–and the Overdrive letter–is that Hachette says they “had […]
eNews: Amazon Publishing Promotes Sales Figures; Kobo Pairs With Livraria Cultura In Brazil; And More
In a letter to agents obtained by paidContent, vp, Amazon Publishing Jeff Belle touted supposed sales figures on a handful of titles released by the company’s West Coast imprints to encourage agents to publish with Amazon, saying he was “energized by the early results.” Among the citations, Belle said the cumulative sales numbers for the 87th Precinct titles by Ed McBain reissued by Thomas & Mercer over the past year exceeded 250,000 units (but that’s across several dozens of books); Sean Chercover’s thriller THE TRINITY GAME, published in July, “is already well on its way to surpassing 100,000 copies,” and […]
People: New Nonfiction Executives at Ballantine Bantam Dell; Burtenshaw Exits Reed
Ballantine Bantam Dell announced a realignment of its nonfiction publishing as well as new executive hires and promotions overseeing the department, similar to the division’s recent reorganization of its fiction publishing. Jennifer Tung will join BDD on September 17 in the new role of vp, editorial director, nonfiction, reporting to Libby McGuire. Tung was most recently deputy editor of RedBook, and she will work across all formats and acquire and edit narrative, prescriptive, and brand-focused nonfiction. Executive editors Pamela Cannon and Mamie Cochran will now report to Tung. In addition, Richard Callison will be promoted to associate publisher, nonfiction, also […]
People
Ben Adams will join PublicAffairs as senior editor on September 24. Previously he was a senior editor at Bloomsbury. At Holt, Jason Liebman has been promoted to associate director of online marketing. Tal Goretsky will join Scribner as art director on September 17. He was most recently senior designer at Penguin Press. Mike Underwood has joined Angry Robot as sales and marketing manager. He was most recently at Wybel Marketing Group, representing publishers such as Dark Horse Comics, Night Shade Books, Felony & Mayhem Press, and more to trade and wholesale accounts across the Midwest. Tamra Tuller has joined Chronicle […]