As Perseus expands their digital distribution to agents and authors, Bloomsbury is preparing a direct competitor to Constellation, Faber Factory and other ebook distribution platforms for publishers. Launching soon, the new service, called Bloomsbury Connect, has been in development for months under the direction of managing director, group sales and marketing Evan Schnittman. It’s a companion to the Bloomsbury Reader program, announced in April, which launched last week with almost 600 titles. As Schnittman explains, Bloomsbury Connect is a “service solution,” focused on publishers, while Bloomsbury Reader is a full “publishing solution” for out-of-print titles, focused on agencies and estates. Bloomsbury Connect […]
Lonely Planet Founders Buy Canongate’s Stake in Text Publishing
Founders of Lonely Planet Maureen and Tony Wheeler have bought Canongate’s stake in Text Publishing for an undisclosed sum. Michael Heyward and Penny Hueston, who bought Text in tandem with Canongate in 2004 and created a joint venture whereby Text also published Canongate titles in Australia, will retain their share in the company and Heyward will stay on as publisher and managing director. Heyward added that Text and Canongate “will continue to work closely together to acquire books and authors.” “Our decision to sell our stake in Text was a strategic one that will enable us to focus more of our […]
Bookselling: Stores Open in Wasilla, AK and Katonah, NY; More BAMM Stores; And More
Buy the Book will open in Wasilla, AK this November in a location previously occupied by a Waldenbooks, with staff including former Walden employees. Co-owner Maria Clark told the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman a customer pitched in $25,000 in seed money to re-open the store as an independent shop; its previous incarnation was “profitable” despite the problems of its parent company. Children’s bookstore Little Joe’s Books will open on October 6 in Katonah, NY above its sister store, NoKa Joe’s restaurant and café. Owner Jennifer Cook told the Daily Bedford that residents most wanted to see a bookstore open in their […]
Borders Website Will Redirect to BN by October 14
As part of a $13.9 million deal approved in federal bankruptcy court late last month, Borders’ website will shut down by October 14 and redirect to BN.com. Over the weekend Barnes & Noble ceo William Lynch wrote a letter to Borders customers outlining the switch — and how to opt out if need be — as well as some words about the end of what was once the second-largest bookstore chain in the country. “Our intent in buying the Borders customer list is simply to try and earn your business,” Lynch wrote in the letter, which went to more than […]
From Pottermore, Potterlate
JK Rowling’s ambitious-if-not-fully-explained plan to publish the ebook versions of the Harry Potter book directly from the new Pottermore web site this October has been postponed. They will miss the holidays for certain, and according to their post, the wait could extend by as much as 9 months. The site claims it’s a change in “priority,” but the inability to deliver is certainly a challenge to those who jumped to the early conclusion that her strategy was some kind of large “game-changer.” The message on the site reads: “the Pottermore Shop, which will sell the Harry Potter eBooks and digital […]
People, Etc.
Alessandra Lusardi has joined Rizzoli as senior editor for its Ex Libris imprint, dedicated to upmarket transatlantic literary fiction and non-fiction and set to launch officially in Fall 2012 after a soft launch this fall. Lusardi will acquire titles from Europe, particularly in French and Italian, as well as original titles in English. Previously she was an editor at Viking for the past nine years. In addition, senior editor Kathleen Jayes will also acquire for Ex Libris. Barbara Jones will join Henry Holt as executive editor on October 24, concentrating on acquiring fiction as well as some memoir and narrative […]