The Annotated Dan Brown The reclusive author has given very few interviews since his mammoth success with the Da Vinci Code, so worldwide press is attracted to his testimony yesterday and an accompanying lengthy witness statement as some of the first glimpses into his life. Some excerpts: * “I have a very short concentration span. That’s why I write in short chapters.” * “For me, writing is a discipline, much like playing a musical instrument; it requires constant practice and honing of skills. If I’m not at my desk by sunrise, I feel like I’m missing my most productive hours. […]

The Bonds Business The Sports Illustrated serial of GAME OF SHADOWS: Barry Bonds, Balco, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports is looking like one of the most successful pre-release excerpts in a long time. Meanwhile, SF Chronicle editor (and boss of the two authors) Phil Bronstein admits he turned down the opportunity: “We had right of first refusal. It struck us at some point along the way the price was pretty high,” he tells the NYT. “We would be reprinting basic facts that had already been in the newspaper, but in a different form, and paying a lot […]

Monday, March 13 Advertisement “Authors — Do You Know The Seven Things Rich Authors Know That Poor Authors Don’t?” Learn them all on a free telephone seminar on Thursday, March 16th Why do some authors make a fortune while so many others struggle financially? After working with 9,300 authors over the last 19 years, I’ve learned rich authors simply do seven key things differently than poor authors. Join me for a free 75-minute telephone seminar next Thursday, March 16th and I’ll tell you all about those seven key differences — plus how you can use the Rich Author Strategies to […]

Friday, March 10 Today’s Extra Meal Google Invites Publishers to Register Books for Paid Access After months of discussing a variety of options with publishers to charge visitors to view different types of book content online, Google is introducing their first specific model to publishers today. In this incarnation, publishers can elect to sell “perpetual online access” via Google Book Search to the full text of individual books in Google’s program. Publishers have full control over the pricing of every book they choose to make available in this way, and prices and availability can be changed as often as publishers […]

New On the Beat, New on the Job Taking over publishing coverage at the NYT is Motoko Rich, who has been covering “real estate trends” since joining the paper in 2003. Before that, the 1991 Yale grad she worked at the WSJ and the FT. Bloomberg Press has hired Judy Sjo-Gaber as director of special markets and corporate sales. Most recently, she was at Weekly Reader Publishing. Additionally, Janet Coleman has joined the press as senior developmental editor. A freelance writer and editor for the past seven years, she previously worked for numerous publishers and Forbes magazine. At Simon & […]

Personnel News At Ballantine, Mark Tavani has been promoted to senior editor. In announcing the news, publisher LIbby McGuire notes Tavani’s work in nurturing bestselling author of THE TEMPLAR LEGACY Steve Berry: “Mark spotted Steve Berry’s exceptional potental and built him in four books from an unknown writer with 85 rejections to a major NYT bestseller, and he did it in the old fashioned way, book by book. Mark has a winning combination of enthusiasm, wisdom, unflappable good nature, and great talent as an editor.” At Basic, Tim Brazier has joined he company as publicity manager. He was a senior […]