On Friday the Treasury Department issued “final regulations and other guidance” to help clarify the application of last year’s tax cut for many owners of sole proprietorships, partnerships, trusts, and S corporations. One closely-watched provision for high-earning authors and other creators, as well as independent publishing professionals such as agents, scouts, publicists and others, is the section that exempts a “specified service trade or business” (SSTB) from taking the new business deduction if the person’s taxable income exceeds $157,500 (or $315,000 for a married couple filing jointly). Among the exempted fields are “the provision of services” in the “performing arts” […]
Authors
Briefs: BN Book Club Expands, Costa Awards, and More
Picks Barnes & Noble has named Marie Benedict’s The Only Woman in the Room as the January selection for the chain’s Book Club. Quarterly-ish until now (the last selection was Hank Green’s An Absolutely Remarkable Thing in September), the company said the club will now convene monthly “at all store nationwide,” which they say is “due to its overwhelming popularity with customers.” Awards The Costa Award category winners were announced, going to: The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, Stuart Turton (First Novel); Normal People, Sally Rooney (Novel); The Cut Out Girl, Bart van Es (Biography); Assurances, J.O. Morgan (Poetry); The Skylarks’ War, Hilary McKay (Children’s). […]
People
Senior editor Ira Silverberg is leaving Simon & Schuster at the end of the year, after a little more than 3 years with the company. Publisher Jonathan Karp calls the forthcoming HARK by Sam Lipsyte, acquired by Silverberg, something “we expect to be one of our fiction highlights in 2019.” He notes, “Ira has been an ardent champion of his authors, a keen observer of international literary talent, and valued colleague.” Forthcoming Diana Gabaldon previewed her ninth book in the Outlander series, GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE, a couple of months ago but said she was still […]
Penguin Random House US CEO Talks Author Earnings at NYPL
The New York Public Library and the Authors Guild co-hosted a panel discussion as part of their “Who Owns the Word?” series on December 10, moderated by novelist and Authors Guild vp Richard Russo. Authors Kurt Andersen, Alexander Chee, and TJ Stiles, along with Madeline McIntosh, the CEO of Penguin Random House US, joined Russo onstage. Much of the conversation focused on the continuing importance of physical stores to book discovery, narrowing in on online buying as a major contributor to the challenging environment faced by emerging novelists today, and by fiction authors more broadly. McIntosh kicked off that part of […]
People, Etc.
Marnie Cochran will move over to become executive editor at Harmony and Rodale, starting January 1. She has been at Ballantine for over 10 years. Kerri Kolen has joined Audible as executive editor on their originals team. Most recently she was executive editor at Putnam. Lucille Rettino has been promoted to the new position of vp, associate publisher, director of marketing and publicity for Tom Doherty Associates. In addition to her existing reports, Melissa Singer will report to Rettino in her scheduling/list management capacity while continuing to report to Patrick Nielsen Hayden for editorial work. Rachel Richardson is joining Watson, Little as their […]
People, Etc.
Former Weidenfeld & Nicolson publisher Kirsty Dunseath will become publishing director for Doubleday UK, starting March 25 and reporting to fiction publisher Sarah Adams. As of January 1, Nation Books will be renamed Bold Type Books, as the Nation Institute itself is changing its name to Type Media Center. Jon Krakauer has moved to Gersh for representation (while continuing to work with attorney Becky Hall). And correcting yesterday’s representation item on Rupi Kaur, she remains with Suzanne Brandreth at CookeMcDermid for literary representation; ICM will represent Kaur for film, television and theater. Forthcoming Robert Caro‘s next book is about himself rather than Lyndon Johnson, […]