In a blog post on Macmillan’s website, CEO John Sargent has issued his response to Andrew Wylie’s move to distribute select backlist titles exclusively via Amazon. First, Sargent “welcomes” Wylie to the fold as a publisher, joking that he’ll be knocking on the agent’s door to ask for AAP dues: “In today’s world job functions, channels of distribution, and age-old relationships are constantly shifting. Combining the functions of agent and publisher raises serious issues that I feel strongly about, but if Andrew wants to attempt to disintermediate publishers, that is his right.” But Sargent is “appalled” that Wylie has chosen […]
News
People, Awards and Announcements
At Ballantine Bantam Dell, Mark Tavani has been promoted to Editorial Director for Fiction. Scribd has hired Robert R. Macdonald as Senior Vice President of Business Development, to work out of the company’s soon-to-be-announced location in Manhattan. Previously he led media and strategic partnerships at Google. In partnership with Alibris, Borders has launched Borders Textbook Marketplace, featuring more than 1.4 million titles and a buyback option.Release Seamus Heaney and previous winners Robin Robertson and Jo Shapscott are among those shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Poetry. The winner of the £10,000 prize will be announced on October 6.BBC Square One […]
Briefs: LAT on ‘Future of Reading’; New Nook Gets FCC Approval; Palin Biography for Tweens Delayed; and More
Paperwork for a new edition of the Nook, codenamed Bravo Delta and CR Nook, has shown up on the FCC website (with specs and pictures withheld)The Digital Reader A front-page LAT feature hits many of the same notes on the intersection of reading, technology and digital books as did an ongoing series in the NYT last year, with the usual point-counterpoint between those who worry about people not reading enough and those who are excited by technological possibilities. LAT Zondervan is delaying publication of a Sarah Palin biography for young readers after deciding that October was not an “optimal time” […]
NEA Cuts Big Read Budget
Earlier this month the NEA awarded $1 million in grants for The Big Read program to 75 non-profit groups. That’s down from $3.7 million to 267 groups last year. NEA spokeswoman Liz Stark told the St. Louis Dispatch that the program was scaled back because it is now established and the NEA wants to “fund it at a sustainable level.” She said other groups are expected to take over funding and planning.St. Louis DispatchOriginal NEA release
Briefs: The Right Cover for ‘Dragon Tattoo’; Amazon Stock Down to ‘Neutral’; Murray Out at S&S;
The WSJ looks at the laborious process Knopf went through to find the right cover for THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO. Senior designer Peter Mandeslund prepared “nearly 50 distinct designs” over a 3-month period, ranging from “a monochromatic white cover dotted with blood…rejected for its lack of color” and “a vivid fuchsia jacket emblazoned with an illuminated typeface, [which left executives looking for something more original.” Even the final product met with some “pushback” among retailers and the Knopf sales team, who were looking for a more conventional depiction in lines with other thrillers. But chairman Sonny Mehta insisted […]
Layoffs Continue at Crown
Crown has gone through its second round of layoffs in a week, with five jobs reportedly eliminated in its WaterBrook Multnomah imprint. A spokesperson confirmed to PW that “a small number of positions have been eliminated” and that “we see these changes as aligning our business with our ongoing strategy here.” Earlier a “small number of positions” had been eliminated on the Clarkson Potter side. PW