Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has reached a three-book deal with Crown. The first book, for publication in 2011, will be a memoir in which “Rice will combine candid narrative and acute analysis to tell the story of her time in the White House and as America’s top diplomat, and her role in protecting American security and shaping foreign policy during the extraordinary period from 2001-2009,” according to a statement. A memoir about her family is scheduled for 2012 and it will be published at the same time in a separate YA version. The AP cites “two publishing officials […]
Deals
Crown Backpedals on Dodd Deal
Crown tells a Connecticut newspaper that an announcement of deal with Senator Chris Dodd to publish 13 DAYS: How the Financial Crisis Changed Washington this summer was “information prematurely sent by the publisher.” Executive director for publicity Katie Wainwright writes that “in fact, Senator Dodd and Crown do not yet have a signed agreement” (not unusual, of course) and adds that “if Crown and Senator Dodd reach agreement, Senator Dodd plans to donate his proceeds from this forthcoming book to charity.”Journal Inquirer
Shopping Obama's Campaign Manager; New Carter Mideast Book
Attorney Bob Barnett is representing Barack Obama’s campaign manager David Plouffe, shopping a proposal for THE AUDACITY TO WIN, “not only an inside look at the Obama run but a guide for how to run an organization,” the AP reports. Barnett promises, “There will be many books about the Obama campaign, but only one from the campaign itself.” It’s intended as a fall 2009 release.AP Separately, Jimmy Carter said yesterday his new book WE CAN BRING PEACE TO THE HOLY LAND will be published in late January.AP
Wiley In Meredith Publishing and Distribution Deal
Meredith’s steady pullback from the book publishing business now appears to be Wiley’s gain: the book publisher has just announced a five-year licensing agreement starting March 1, 2009 that gives Wiley the rights to publish books using all of Meredith’s brand names, including Better Homes and Gardens, as well as marks including Family Circle, American Patchwork and Quilting, and Diabetic Living. Wiley will also take over as the exclusive distributor of Meredith’s backlist of about 200 titles, in all channels worldwide. According to Meredith’s version of the press release, they will “continue to create book content” from their offices in […]
Overall Ludlum Deal at Universal
Universal Pictures will build on their Bourne adventures franchise with an overall deal with the Robert Ludlum estate, acquiring exclusive rights to the Bourne character and a first look at all other Ludlum deals not under option elsewhere. Over 25 Ludlum novels have not been developed into movies, and the estate retains contractual approval over screenplays and actors. Henry Morrison and ICM represented the estate in the deal. The Matarese Circle is already controlled by MGM and Relativity, Paramount bought The Chancellor Manuscript, and Summit Entertainment has The Osterman Weekend, while Universal is developing The Sigma Protocol under a separate […]
Mailer Estate: The Client Wylie Lost
As an Observer article reports, Andrew Wylie at The Wylie Agency represented Norman Mailer while we he was alive but the estate has selected Mailer’s friend and longtime collaborator Larry Schiller to represent all unpublished material, including the trove of “something like 60,000” letters. J. Michael Lennon, who just signed with S&S for an authorized Mailer biography, has been working on one book compilation of Mailer letters “on and off for about five years.” The Observer suggests that publishing rights to that collection might have been ambiguous under Mailer’s contractual relationship with Mailer: “Though at one point last winter there […]