The AAP announced that Barnes & Noble chairman Len Riggio will deliver a speech at their annual meeting, which returns to New York, scheduled for March 9, 2011. In personnel news, Alexis Washam has joined Crown Trade Paperbacks as a senior editor, reporting to Tina Pohlman. She was an editor at Penguin. Washam will oversee paperback conversions for Broadway Paperbacks, Three Rivers Press, Crown Business, and Crown Forum, acquire select outside reprints, and acquire and edit trade paperback originals. At Knopf Children’s, Nancy Siscoe has been promoted to senior executive editor, relinquishing her associate publishing director responsibilities and focusing on […]
Lunch Weekly for Monday, November 1
Deal Reports Just e-mail to deals@PublishersMarketplace if you aren’t using the online form linked below. Report a deal using the online form The Key As usual, the handy key to our Lunch deal categories. While all reports are always welcome, those that include a category will generally receive a higher listing when it comes time to put them all together. “nice deal” $1 – $49,000 “very nice deal” $50,000 – $99,000 “good deal” $100,000 – $250,000 “significant deal” $251,000 – $499,000 “major deal” $500,000 and up FICTION Debut I. J. Kay’s MOUNTAINS OF THE MOON, about a woman newly […]
Callaway Launches Digital Content Studio with Financing Led by Kleiner, Perkins
With the release of the iPad earlier this year Nicholas Callaway announced he was creating a studio to develop apps and released an app based on his company’s Miss Spider character. That app captivated Apple ceo Steve Jobs enough that he connected venture capitalist John Doerr at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers with Callaway, who today officially announces $6 million in Series A financing led by Kleiner’s iFund. It’s the only second investment from this fund focused on the iOS platform. Founding board member of Google and founder of Sherpalo Ventures Ram Shriram and founder of Farmville-creator Zynga Mark Pincus […]
People
Robert Kempe has been promoted to associate publisher at Seven Footer Press, sharing responsibility with publisher David Gomberg for the overall business and publishing operations. With the release this week of his new novel EDGE, Jeffrey Deaver speaks to USA Today about the James Bond book he’s working on for publication next May. “The novel is set in the present day, in 2011. Bond is a young agent for the British secret service. He’s 29 or 30 years old, and he’s an Afghan war vet…. I get him into a lot of trouble in the book.The poor guy. I almost […]
Bloomsbury Buys Duckworth Academic; Will Distribute Trade Line
Bloomsbury has purchased the Duckworth Academic list outright from Gerald Duckworth & Company, and as an “integral” part of the deal, Bloomsbury will distribute the Duckworth trade list starting in March 2011. Bloomsbury will operate Duckworth Academic, which focuses on books about the ancient world, as Bristol Classical Press, through the Bloomsbury Academic division. Duckworth owner Peter Mayer emphasizes that the deal is driven by the growth of the company’s trade line. Jon Jackson has been named editorial director of Duckworth trade a Ben Slight is sales coordinator (he was a regional manager at Waterstone’s). He says, “With the recent […]
Customers Tell BEA and ALA to Stay Separate, and They Agree
BEA and the American Library Association issued a joint statement explaining that their discussions of co-locating and co-managing the two shows have come to an end. “Many are aware that ALA has been talking with Reed Exhibitions (BookExpo America) about the possibility of co-locating the ALA Annual Conference and BookExpo America. The American Library Association and BookExpo America are today jointly announcing that discussions regarding any co-location of the two events have been concluded. “Communication from exhibitors, attendees and association members indicated that each show is serving its constituency, and after extensive discussion, the ALA Executive Board determined that current […]