Anna Stein will join London-based Aitken Alexander and start a New York office for the agency as of June 1. Gillon Aitken is quoted in the Bookseller: “As our markets grow ever closer, we believe this is an auspicious moment to expand our presence in the US, and we are delighted that Anna is joining us.” Jacqueline Flynn has joined Joelle Delbourgo Associates as an agent. Formerly executive editor at Amacom Books, she will represent a wide range of nonfiction including business and career, technology, science, psychology, self-help, and parenting. Carrie Cantor is heading up the agency’s new editorial services […]
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On Demand Books Overtake Traditional Titles for the First Time
Bowker’s preliminary data for books published in the US in 2008 shows that output from traditional publishers declined by about 3 percent to 275,232 new titles. But they project that the number of “on demand” books grew 132 percent to 285,394 books, now exceeding the traditional titles. The biggest declines for traditional publishers came in travel (down by 15 percent, with 4,817 new titles), fiction (down 11 percent, with 47,541 new titles the largest of all categories), and religion (down 14 percent, at 16,847 titles).Release
Little, Brown Fills In Missing Pieces of THE LINK
The publisher has announced details about their closely-guarded book set for release on May 20, THE LINK, written by biologist Colin Tudge. It focuses on what they call “the astonishing new discovery that could change everything”–a previously-secret, perfectly fossilized early primate, “older than the previously most famous primate fossil, Lucy, by an astonishing forty-four million years,” held in a vault “deep within the heart of one of the world’s leading natural history museums.” Called Ida, they say this fossil “rewrites what we’ve assumed about the earliest primate origins” and the book offers “exclusive access to the ï¬rst scientists to study […]
Scribd Launches Paid Model
Having built a large audience for free documents, Scribd.com launches their beta Scribd store today with a model for paid written content that gives rightsholders 80 percent of the revenue. Scribd also lets rightsholders set the prices for their content, with current offerings ranging from $1 up to $5,000 (for market research report on China). Among participating publishers noted in the release are Lonely Planet, Berrett-Koehler and O’Reilly. The store is currently available only in the US though the company promises “international launches to follow.” They will add an iPhone app shortly. Since Scribd displays documents of all lengths, the […]
People and Awards
Former svp and executive director of publicity and public relations at the Bantam Dell Publishing Group Barb Burg has launched a new company, barb burg ink, offering publicity, public relations, media training, media placement, publishing strategy and brand management services. Endeavor agents Kirby Kim and Rebecca Oliver and subrights manager Laura Bonner will join the merged WME Entertainment, according to the Observer. Australian author Christos Tsiolkas won the overall Commonwealth Writers’ Award for best book for THE SLAP, “about middle-class suburban Australia and its notions of child-rearing and acceptable behavior.” Pakistani author Mohammed Hanif won the best first book award […]
BN Finally Launches a Competitor to Audible
Barnes & Noble.com has launched an online mp3 audiobook, offering over 10,000 titles at an “average price” of $10 to $20 per download. A launch promotion offers nine free titles, including: The Babysitter’s Code by Laura Lippman, Great Day by Kurt Vonnegut, Super Goat Man by Jonathan Lethem, Best New Horror by Joe Hill, Fathers by Alice Munro, Truth or Dare by Elizabeth Berg, Ysrael by Junot Diaz, and Merrano of the Dry Country by Louis L’Amore. EVP of e-commerce Tom Burke calls it “a natural progression in our commitment to book lovers and audiobook fans.” Overdrive is maintaining and […]