Natasha Simons has been promoted to senior editor for the “revitalized” Free Press imprint, while continuing to acquire and edit for Simon & Schuster’s general list. Jonathan Karp said in the announcement: “In the search for a new Free Press editor, I met with numerous outside candidates, but after reading Natasha’s ideas for the imprint, I was quickly convinced that she would infuse Free Press with new vision. As she put it, ‘I look forward, as a conservative millennial woman, to bringing a unique perspective to building a fresh, modern, forward-thinking imprint.'” He also notes, “Natasha is committed to helping […]
Authors
Author News
Opening Sales Omarosa Manigault Newman‘s UNHINGED sold over 33,000 hardcovers in its first week on sale through outlets tracked by Bookscan — making it the No. 2 hardcover nonfiction book for the week, well behind Rachel Hollis’s still strong GIRL,WASH YOUR FACE, published in February and ahead of Gregg Jarrett’s The Russia Hoax (which sold more than twice as many hardcovers in its opening week at the end of July). Gallery Books comments, “We’re delighted that readers have responded enthusiastically to UNHINGED. It is selling well in all formats — print, ebook and audio. Omarosa continues to promote the book and […]
People, Etc.
Hotchkiss and Associates is changing its name to Hotchkiss Daily & Associates, as Sean Daily is promoted. Founder Jody Hotchkiss comments: “I like to say that agenting is about ‘chopping the wood and hauling the water each day’—doing the work. Sean has certainly done the work since the day he started here, and he has also brought great insights while at the same time developing into an effective and respected agent.” Matthew Barblan will join the Association of American Publishers as vice president, public policy on August 27. He was most recently the executive director of the Center for the Protection […]
Treasury Department Proposals Could Give High-Earning Authors, Agents Benefit of New Tax Cut for Businesses
The Treasury Department released proposed regulations to clarify and codify how the big tax cut (aka the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) applies to owners of sole proprietorships, partnerships, trusts, and S corporations. By early interpretations, high-earning authors would qualify for the new 20 percent deduction of qualified business income, and it appears as if literary agents would be eligible as well. (Two important caveats: These rules are still proposals, they are not final yet; and everyone will need to examine their own situation with their own tax professional.) As the NYT notes, it “probably means a windfall for authors […]
People, Etc.
Barnes & Noble chief digital officer Fred Argir will retire from the company on August 3. Chief information officer Bill Wood will move up to chief digital officer, working “side by side” with chief merchandising officer Tim Mantel “to market and merchandise the website.” (Before joining BN in 2015, Argir was at Toys R Us and Sports Authority.) Cristopher Garrido has joined Harper Christian as vice president and publisher for its Spanish publishing program. Previously he developed and directed a Spanish publishing program at Lifeway Christian Resources. Melinda Merino has been promoted to editorial director and associate publisher of Harvard Business […]
Agent Danielle Smith Accused of Fraud, Lupine Grove Creative Closes
Children’s book literary agent and packager Danielle Smith, founder of Lupine Grove Creative, has reportedly been accused of fraudulent deals with her clients and she has closed her agency. In a post to a private Facebook group (also then shared on Twitter) author Heidi Heilig wrote that “it was discovered a couple of days ago that [Smith] forged offer letters to her clients (and counselled her clients not to take them) (i do not know what the end goal was).” Helig says that Smith “has resigned as an agent, and in addition she was fired from Walden Pond Press where she […]