Neal Pollack is the latest traditionally-published author to give self e-publishing a try this September, for his next novel JEWBALL, “a funny, gritty noir about a barnstorming Philadelphia Jewish basketball team in the late 1930s who battle for supremacy on and off the court under the growing shadow of anti-Semitism. He writes about it in the Sunday Times Book Review, with less fire and brimstone than some authors who have gone the same route: “For a writer like me, which is to say, most working writers — midcareer, midlist, middle-aged, more or less middlebrow, and somewhat Internet savvy — self-publishing […]
Agency News
ABA Adds Over 100 Members; Publishers, Agents and Retailers Look to Each Other’s Turf Pre-BEA
In other bookselling news, the ABA says in advance of next week’s annual meeting at BEA that their membership increased for the second year in a row–this time gaining a significant 102 members, to 1,502 in all. (A little bit of that gain may also be attributed to the ABA’s merger with the Association of Booksellers for Children.) Repeating a hint he gave in a speech in the UK recently, ABA ceo Oren Teicher says the organization is “working on a project to help some stores where Borders has closed. There is an opportunity in some markets that might be […]
People: Lotts, Schelling Open New Agencies
Chris Lotts and Christopher Schelling have left Ralph Vicinanza Ltd to open new agencies. The Lotts Agency will continue Lotts’s representation of commercial fiction and targeted upmarket non-fiction in a mix of domestic and foreign rights, working on behalf of Stephen King, George R.R. Martin, Robin Hobb, Connie Willis, Robert J. Sawyer R. Scott Bakker, Stacia Kane and Lia Hable, among many others. At Schelling’s new shop, Selectric Artists, he will continue with authors like Augusten Burroughs, Cinda Williams Chima, John Elder Robison, Louis Bayard, Kim Stanley Robinson and Haven Kimmel, while also expanding his representation into other media, such […]
In and Out of Traditional Publishing: Victor, Curtis Brown UK, and Stephen Leather
Following the announcement of agent Ed Victor’s publishing venture Bedford Square Books, Curtis Brown UK managing director Jonathan Lloyd admits that his agency is well down the path of formulating their own strategy for republishing their clients’ out-of-print works. “We are right behind him, but with a rather larger list,” Lloyd tells The Bookseller. Meanwhile, Victor told us that while he is “having a lot of fun, going back to my roots” as a publisher, “first and foremost I’m an agent…. My day job is being a literary agent and taking care of my clients.” At the same time, Victor […]
People: Macdonald to Stay As Zondervan CEO, and More
Zondervan’s interim president Scott Macdonald remain in the position formally as president and CEO. Macdonald joined Zondervan’s business unit The City in December 2010 as acting general manager. HarperCollins ceo Brian Murray says in the announcement, “Scott brings more than 30 years of experience and business leadership to this role. His extensive experience in the Christian retail market as well as sales, operations and management, coupled with his steady demeanor and his strong faith make him the ideal leader for Zondervan.” Elsewhere, Lauren Flower joins HarperCollins Children’s Books this week as director of integrated marketing. Previously she spent eight years at […]
People, Etc.
Kathryn Beaumont has joined Kneerim and Williams as an agent. She has been a reporter, editor and working lawyer for the past 15 years. Rochelle Stolzenberg will oversee all online sales in the US for TheReadingRoom.com. (She also sells advertising for Publishers Lunch, and has represented other properties such as The Daily Beast.) South African Lauren Beukes won the UK’s Arthur C Clarke award for science fiction for her novel ZOO CITY, published by Angry Robot. Ian McDonald had been considered the favorite, and other nominees included Richard Powers. Guardian Most publishing people who think about BitTorrent are trying to […]