The remaining members of the Romance Writers of America board of directors resigned on February 12, clearing the way for completely fresh leadership. The RWA will hold a special election from March 13 to March 20 for members to elect a new board for a term set to last through August 2020. Board resignations began…
Uncategorized
Publishing Figures in France Sign Op-Ed Condemning Sexism in the Industry
Forty-four authors and publishing figures in France have signed an op-ed written by literary director of Editions Stock Caroline Laurent about sexual harassment and sexism in the industry. It follows accusations against the writer Gabriel Matzneff and the withdrawal of his books from the market by publisher Gallimard. The piece says, “This scandal, so courageously…
Barnes & Noble Suspends Diverse Editions Project with Penguin Random House After Online Controversy
Diverse Editions, which dressed twelve classic books from Penguin Random House in new dust jackets featuring typically white characters reimagined as people of different races, was “suspended” following a quick wave of online criticism and accusations of “literary blackface.” Comprising such titles as Moby Dick, Romeo and Juliet, and The Secret Garden, the new covers…
Latinx Activists Met With Macmillan Executives, Say They Agreed to Action Plan
Latinx activist from #DignidadLiteraria and Presente.org met with Macmillan leadership on Monday afternoon to discuss the controversy about representation in publishing sparked by Jeanine Cummins’ American Dirt. A panel of authors including David Bowles, Myriam Gurba, and Roberto Lovato spoke with Flatiron Books president Bob Miller, Macmillan president Don Weisberg, as well as representatives from…
The Missing Piece: Three Days Before Bolton Leak, White House Said the Manuscript Contained Top Secret Information
On January 23, three days before the NYT reported on stories said to appear in John Bolton’s book manuscript (and three days before Simon & Schuster’s metadata describing the book, showing the jacket and offering it for pre-order started appearing online), the National Security Council wrote to Bolton’s attorney that they had problems with the…
Romance Publishers Withdraw From RWA’s National Conference
In the latest development in the ongoing RWA controversy, Harlequin, Avon, Entangled, Berkley, Kensington, and Sourcebooks have pulled out of RWA’s 2020 national conference, scheduled to be held in San Francisco in late July. Harlequin wrote in a letter to the RWA board of directors on Wednesday, “As a leading global publisher of romance fiction…