The Writers’ Trust of Canada and The Writers’ Union of Canada (TWUC) created a Canadian Writers’ Emergency Relief Fund to support professional authors. The fund will distribute grants of $1,500 to “writers that have seen contracted or projected income evaporate due to the current public health crisis.” RBC joined the two organizations in funding the initial pool of $150,000. Rakuten Kobo has formed a joint venture with Australia’s largest online bookseller, Booktopia, to sell ebooks, digitial audiobooks, and ereading devices. In the UK, distributor Bertram’s has joined Gardner’s in temporarily suspending all operations, and the company is furloughing its staff, […]
Authors
People, Etc.
Allison Carney has joined Holt as assistant director of marketing. She was most recently marketing manager at Riverhead, Viking, and Penguin. Maia Sacca-Schaeffer has joined as assistant marketing manager; previously she was digital marketing & sales associate at Farrar, Straus. Kneerim & Williams agent John Butman died unexpectedly on Monday, March 23, from what appears to have been a heart attack. He was at home in Maine after a vacation with his family. The agency remembers him as, “A priceless agent, thinker, writer, and pal. He brought us his overflowing wit, intelligence, kindness, and joy, and we will miss him sorely.” […]
Authors Guild Joins Opposition to Internet Archive’s Uncontrolled Lending
On Friday the Authors Guild joined the AAP in expressing outrage at the Internet Archive’s self-declared “emergency” powers to lend scanned, copyright books around the world without limitations. “IA has no rights whatsoever to these books, much less to give them away indiscriminately without consent of the publisher or author. We are shocked that the Internet Archive would use the Covid-19 epidemic as an excuse to push copyright law further out to the edges, and in doing so, harm authors, many of whom are already struggling.” Authors Guild president Doug Preston says in their post, “IA’s Open Library is giving […]
Authors Guild Issues New “Model Contract”
The Authors Guild has released a new version of their “model trade book contract,” the first update in almost a decade. The guild calls the model “both an advocacy initiative as well as an instructional tool.” They had the Association of Authors’ Representatives (AAR) and other independent agents review the model this time. (The model is only viewable by Authors Guild members.) AAR president Gail Hochman comments in the release, “We were pleased to provide suggestions to this new model that aims to recognize the differences between ideal and realistic terms that publishers may grant…. As the title ‘Model Contract’ […]
Hachette Still Wants to Publish Woody Allen, At Least In France
Following Friday’s cancellation of Woody Allen’s memoir A Propos of Nothing by Hachette Book Group, at least some of the international licensees expressed their intention — or desire — to go forward with publication. Most prominently, Hachette’s Editions Stock wants to proceed. Director of the imprint Manuel Carcassonne told Le Point: “The American situation is not ours. Woody Allen is a great artist, filmmaker, writer, and his New York Jewish humor can still be read in every line of this autobiography, in self-mockery, modesty, and the art of disguising the tragic in comedy. Including at his expense. It is sad […]
Hachette Cancels Woody Allen Book After Employee Protest
On Friday afternoon Hachette Book Group announced that it “has decided that it will not publish Woody Allen’s memoir A Propos of Nothing…and will return all rights to the author.” The cancellation followed a protest from HBG employees on Thursday that drew international media attention. The company noted in their statement that, “We are committed to offering a stimulating, supportive and open work environment for all our staff. Over the past few days, HBG leadership had extensive conversations with our staff and others. After listening, we came to the conclusion that moving forward with publication would not be feasible for […]