Stephen King‘s next novel 11/22/63, a 1000-page book “counterfactual” account of the JFK assassination, will be published by Scribner and Hodder & Stoughton on November 8. Announcement The next installment of George RR Martin’s Song of Ice & Fire epic fantasy series will be released by Del Rey/Spectra on July 12. A Dance with Dragons is “close enough to being finished” and comes six years after the previous series entry. EW Finally, HarperCollins will publish Billy Joel’s memoir State of Mind on June 14. The book will explore the “emotional ride” of Joel’s marriages and his struggles with depression and substance abuse.
Authors
People, Awards, and Announcements
Kensington Books founder and chairman emeritus Walter Zacharius died Wednesday at the age of 87. He was also the author of the 2005 novel The Memories We Keep, publishing when he was 81. Agent Richard Curtis writes: “His career paralleled and exemplified the rise of the great postwar paperback industry, and his genius shaped his company into a major force in the industry. Yet, even at an advanced age, he recognized the significance of digital technology and inspired his company to forge into the new era.” Obit At Simon & Schuster, Doug Stambaugh has been promoted to vp, business development […]
People, Awards, Etc.
As part of Bloomsbury’s global restructuring, co-founder and managing director of Berlin Verlag Elisabeth Ruge will be stepping down as of March 15th.Publishing Perspectives At Henry Holt and Company, Lauren Culley has been promoted to assistant editor. Marcus Gipps has been appointed editor at sci-fi and fantasy imprint Gollancz. Previously he was the sales and events manager for Blackwell’s. Linda Clark Associates has been appointed literary scout for Dalai Editore,Milan (formerly Baldini,Castaldi,Dalai) effective immediately. First Lady Michelle Obama, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and a host of film, television and sports personalities will join the National Education Association today […]
Briefs: HMV Warns It May Violate Banking Covenants; Debts Owed to REDGroup Creditors; Lewis Sued for Defamation by Asset Manager; and More
As speculation mounts over whether minority stakeholder Alexander Mamut will buy Waterstone’s, the chain’s parent company HMV warned investors this morning that it expects to violate banking covenants as a result of full-year profits falling below expectations. While HMV said it was in talks with lenders to amend its credit loan agreements, which remain available, chief executive Simon Fox admitted in a statement that “trading conditions remain tough, reflecting a difficult consumer environment as well as the changing markets in which we operate.” He added that HMV “is adapting quickly to respond to these external factors, and we are confident […]
Briefs: Kodansha and Dai Nippon Buy Vertical; Syracuse University Press Pulls Fictionalized Memoir; and More
Kodansha and Dai Nippon Printing announced they are buying nearly equal stakes in smaller Japanese publisher Vertical, for an undisclosed sum. Kodansha will own 46.7% of the company, and Dai Nippon will hold a 46% stake. In addition, current COO Yoshinobu Noma will succeed Sawako Noma as Kodansha CEO in April.Anime News Network Syracuse University Press will no longer print copies of Montclair State University professor Fawzia Afzal-Khan’s fictionalized memoir Lahore With Love: Growing Up With Girlfriends Pakistani Style, published last year, after receiving legal threats from a woman in Pakistan who says that a character is based on her […]
Author of Historical Novel Featuring JRR Tolkien Files Pre-Emptive Complaint To Counter Estate Objections
The JRR Tolkien Estate’s perennial objections to the use and licensing of the author’s work and characters were back inn the spotlight last week after Stephen Hilliard, the Texas-based author of “Mirkwood, A Novel About J.R.R. Tolkien”, an historical novel featuring Tolkien as a character, filed a lawsuit in Texas District Court in an attempt to release the book, published through BookSurge. Hilliard told the Hollywood Reporter that on the eve of the novel’s release, the Tolkien Estate filed a cease-and-desist letter alleging “it had a property right to commercially exploit the name and likeness of J.R.R. Tolkien” and that […]